Does 6-bit coding affect image quality?

[rami G]

I wonder if anybody knows whether, in the end of the day, the lens coding affects image quality or is it possible to post-process the images using the same algorithms that are done by the internal process. I am not talking about jpgs but about Raw images. I never minded not getting the lens info in my exif data when I am using the R-D1, nor with my film Leicas. My only concern is that I will loose some of the quality. That could result from two factors: first, if there is a special algorithm used by the camera and is not part of the software; second, since I understood that the DNG files themselves have some sort of compression, so I guess it might be better that the "processing" is done prior to such compression. Am I getting things right? does anybody know the answer?

 

[Woody Campbell]

6-bit coding

6-bit coding

Part 3 of Sean Reid's review of the M8 covers this very well.

See the separate thread on this forum for a link.

 

[rami G]

Part 3 of Sean Reid's review of the M8 covers this very well.

See the separate thread on this forum for a link.

My questions came after, not before reading the relevant paragraph in Reid. I asked whether I loose something if I process after the fact. I did not find an answer to that in Sean's review. I asked whether the fact that Leica's correction algorithm was created specifically for their lenses make it better than using one that is not Leica-lens specific. Further, I was worried that only using the in camera processing I will not loose data that is not recoverable, since there is some sort of compression in the creation of the DNG files.

 

[jaapv]

I would say the same result could be obtained in post-processing. But I doubt I could do a better job than Leica. And one can switch the feature off...