How much dynamic range does the Pentax 645D offer?

According to measurements carried out by DXO Mark, the sensor in the Pentax 645D provides a maximum of 12.6 EV of dynamic range (DR). DR is defined as the ratio between the highest and lowest brightness a camera can capture. A value of 12 EV or above is considered excellent.

High dynamic range of a camera sensor is particularly desirable for scenes with a mix of very bright and very dark parts, such as in some landscape photography settings. It helps to avoid that highlights get washed out or that detail in shadows is lost.

Sensor specs and performance

The table below compares the sensor specs of the Pentax 645D to those of several similar cameras. The reported DXO values are indicators of the sensor's imaging quality (higher is better). In addition to dynamic range (DXO Landscape), the listing also covers color depth (DXO Portrait) and high-ISO noise (DXO Sports). Larger sensor cameras tend to outperform cameras of the same generation that are equipped with a smaller imager. On the other hand, larger sensors are more expensive and require bigger and heavier lenses than smaller light receptors.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Pentax 645D	Medium Format	39.5	7264	5440	none	24.6	12.6	1262	82
2.		Canon 1D X Mark II	Full Frame	20.0	5472	3648	4K/60p	24.1	13.5	3207	88
3.		Canon 1D X	Full Frame	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	23.8	11.8	2786	82
4.		Canon 1D Mark IV	APS-H	16.0	4896	3264	1080/30p	22.8	12.0	1320	74
5.		Leica S Typ 006	Medium Format	37.5	7500	5000	none	23.9	12.2	824	76
6.		Nikon D850	Full Frame	45.4	8256	5504	4K/30p	26.4	14.8	2660	100
7.		Nikon D5	Full Frame	20.7	5588	3712	4K/30p	25.1	12.3	2343	88
8.		Nikon D810	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/60p	25.7	14.8	2853	97
9.		Nikon D3S	Full Frame	12.1	4256	2832	720/24p	23.5	12.0	3253	82
10.		Pentax 645Z	Medium Format	51.1	8256	6192	1080/60i	26.0	14.7	4505	101
11.		Sony A7R	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/60p	25.6	14.1	2746	95

In the United States, the 645D was initially launched in March 2010 at a price of $9,995.

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Camera to camera comparisons

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