LowDynamicRange

Low dynamic range is a characteristic of imaging, video, and display systems in which the range between the darkest usable signal and the brightest usable signal is limited. Dynamic range, usually measured in stops of light or in bits per color channel, describes how well a system can distinguish detail across bright and dark areas. In a low dynamic range system, scenes with strong contrast may exhibit clipped highlights or crushed shadows, resulting in flattened images with reduced tonal separation.

In photography and video, the sensor’s native dynamic range, noise floor, and bit depth determine how much information can be captured in shadows and highlights. For consumer cameras and compressed formats, limited bit depth (for example, 8-bit per channel) and noise can reduce tonal detail, especially in high-contrast scenes. In display technology, standard dynamic range (SDR) displays reproduce a limited luminance range, typically far below what the human eye can perceive, which further constrains perceived contrast. By comparison, high dynamic range (HDR) systems and content aim to extend this range through wider luminance limits, better tone mapping, and wider color gamuts.

Mitigation strategies include exposure bracketing and high dynamic range imaging, post-processing tone mapping, increasing bit depth and sensor quality, and using displays capable of higher peak brightness with appropriate gamma correction. Low dynamic range is a common constraint in older media and in budget equipment and can be acceptable for certain applications where contrast requirements are modest.