DxO Labs adds measurements on Hasselblad H3DII, Leaf Aptus 75s, Mamiya ZD, and Phase One P45+ to its RAW-based Image Quality Database; photographers can now use DxOMark Sensor metrics to easily compare medium-format and DSLR sensor performance

Paris, France – February 3, 2008 – DxO Labs announces today the addition of RAW-based image quality data and DxOMark Sensor rankings on its popular www.dxomark.com website for an initial set of high-end professional medium-format cameras: the Hasselblad H3DII-39, the Leaf Aptus 75s, the Mamiya ZD, and the Phase One P45+.

Photo enthusiasts, professional photographers, and the media now have a valuable tool with which to compare the RAW sensor performance of these medium-format cameras with high-end, high-resolution DSLRs. How is it possible to make valid comparisons between cameras with widely disparate sensor sizes? It’s possible by reviewing the cameras’ rankings for each of the three separate metrics that make up the DxOMark Sensor scale (Color Depth, Dynamic Range, and Low-Light ISO).

For example, if medium-format cameras do not receive top marks on the overall DxOMark Sensor scale because of their inherent Low-Light ISO limitations, DxO Labs has found these models’ Color Depth and Dynamic Range performance to be very striking when compared to high-end DSLRs. Also, despite the clear challenge from DSLRs across all DxOMark sensor metrics, medium-format cameras still lead the way for large-print photography because of their very high resolution performance capability.

Although dxomark.com data is only one of many criteria to consider when choosing a camera, a digital camera’s RAW sensor performance lies at the heart and soul of its capacity to produce professional-quality images and prints.

“Adding our measurements on this first set of medium-format cameras to our database demonstrates our commitment to our goal of building the most comprehensive database of RAW image information available,” said Nicolas Touchard, Vice President of Marketing, DxO Labs Image Quality Evaluation. “We want to give professionals and expert amateur photographers the highest level of RAW image data possible through our dxomark.com website.”

About dxomark.com
Sponsored by DxO Labs, a company focusing on image processing technologies, www.dxomark.com is a free online resource that delivers key objective sensor performance metrics measured directly on the RAW image for a variety of cameras. As a result, dxomark.com makes it possible for the first time to assess the intrinsic quality of a camera before the impact of any RAW conversion and independent of its optics. The site also features a simple scale, DxOMark Sensor, for analyzing and comparing RAW image quality. The DxOMark Sensor scale is mapped to real-world photographic scenarios such as portrait, landscape, and action photography, ensuring that the scale is relevant to photographers.

dxomark.com’s goal is to serve the imaging community, particularly the photo press. Photography journalists and experts can now complement their analyses and reviews with an objective evaluation of intrinsic camera performance, regardless of optics or processing considerations.

For more information, visit www.dxomark.com.

About DxO Labs
DxO Labs offers products and solutions ensuring excellence in digital imaging. The company develops and licenses patented intellectual property serving the entire digital imaging chain:

• For consumer electronics OEM/ODM (such as digital camera and camera phone vendors): embedded software and silicon architectures for real time still and video image processing;

• For imaging component suppliers (camera module manufacturers, sensor vendors, and processor vendors) as well as photography journalists and imaging experts: image quality evaluation and measurement tools;

• For serious and demanding photographers: PC and Mac solutions to enhance camera image quality.

For more information, visit the DxO Labs website at www.dxo.com

DxO, DxO Labs and dxomark are registered trademarks of DxO Labs. Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. DxO Labs disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own.