3 ms·

What I don't understand is why 8 bit color isn't enough. Back when 8 bit color was released (yes, I'm old), we were told that it provided way more colors than

by crusso 11y ago

What I don't understand is why 8 bit color isn't enough. Back when 8 bit color was released (yes, I'm old), we were told that it provided way more colors than the human eye could discern - 24 million as opposed to the 10 million that the human eye could discern. What changed? Is 10 bit color smoke and mirrors or is it something that only a smaller fraction of the population can appreciate?

rplst8 11y ago
It's not smoke and mirrors. It's akin to the audio world where the final product (an CD or MP3) is mastered in 16 bit audio, but is mixed and edited at a higher bit depth, often 32 bit. In the color world, most of ones job is about mapping what a sensor captures (most modern DSLRs are 12-16 bits per channel) onto the reduced palette offered by 8 bit color. Actually, most cheap displays are 6 bit color with some fancy techniques to help fool our eyes. Research banding and dithering with respect to color to get a better idea of the subject.
mtw 11y ago
For seeing pictures and watching videos, 8 bit is good. Its when you start manipulating images that it doesn't work out. For example, you have a nice sunset picture but its dark and you can't see the people in front. As a result, you try to increase saturation, contrast and exposure. The people's faces are still dark so you try to change the exposure more aggressively. That's when the picture breaks down. The sky sunset becomes pixelated, maybe the skin becomes white etc. If you use a 8-bit display you wouldn't know if it's because of the effects or because of the 8bit monitor. With a 10-bit display, if it looks crap, at least you know its from the picture you took. This might look an extreme example bit it happens often for photographers and videographers. It can also happen for consumers if they try to check a picture which lots of minimal variations if the same color in the same picture. A good example is a picture of a white sky. It can appear pixelated in a few parts
wtallis 11y ago
We're gradually moving toward displays with wider color gamut and dynamic range for brightness. We need more bits to cover more area without reducing the precision with which we represent the more common subset. Also, 10-bit grey-scale is really important in the medical imaging field. You don't want your xrays compressed down to just 256 levels.

by crusso 11y ago

rplst8 11y ago

It's not smoke and mirrors. It's akin to the audio world where the final product (an CD or MP3) is mastered in 16 bit audio, but is mixed and edited at a higher bit depth, often 32 bit. In the color world, most of ones job is about mapping what a sensor captures (most modern DSLRs are 12-16 bits per channel) onto the reduced palette offered by 8 bit color. Actually, most cheap displays are 6 bit color with some fancy techniques to help fool our eyes. Research banding and dithering with respect to color to get a better idea of the subject.

mtw 11y ago

For seeing pictures and watching videos, 8 bit is good. Its when you start manipulating images that it doesn't work out. For example, you have a nice sunset picture but its dark and you can't see the people in front. As a result, you try to increase saturation, contrast and exposure. The people's faces are still dark so you try to change the exposure more aggressively. That's when the picture breaks down. The sky sunset becomes pixelated, maybe the skin becomes white etc. If you use a 8-bit display you wouldn't know if it's because of the effects or because of the 8bit monitor. With a 10-bit display, if it looks crap, at least you know its from the picture you took. This might look an extreme example bit it happens often for photographers and videographers. It can also happen for consumers if they try to check a picture which lots of minimal variations if the same color in the same picture. A good example is a picture of a white sky. It can appear pixelated in a few parts

wtallis 11y ago

We're gradually moving toward displays with wider color gamut and dynamic range for brightness. We need more bits to cover more area without reducing the precision with which we represent the more common subset. Also, 10-bit grey-scale is really important in the medical imaging field. You don't want your xrays compressed down to just 256 levels.