Usually, when I scan color negatives (either with a DSLR or scanner), I end up with a scan that has a histogram that is quite compressed. What one has to typically do is adjust the levels so the histogram has better distribution or tonal range. I think they call this dynamic expansion? Anyway, this does increase the contrast, but from my understanding, may leave gaps in-between do to the expansion?
So my question is, how could I scan a color negative with an 'already' expanded tonal range (hardware wise and not necessarily via software) instead of one that would be typically compressed?
Is the reason the scanner can't capture an expanded tonal range have to do with the light source? Better light source, maybe I'd have better tonal range distribution?
Yet, maybe I'm misunderstanding something: is it that even though the tonal range is compressed, the scanner is really capturing everything that it could from the color negative? Meaning, even though in the end I must expand the tonal range, that really I'm not loosing anything in the process because all the data is really there despite what I am seeing in the histogram?
When I see from a normal scan in the histogram the tonal range distributes from say, 150 to 250 (from a histogram range of 0 to 255), it sort of bothers me. I feel like I'm missing data as it doesn't cover the full tonal range of the sensor. I'm not sure what to make of this?
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