DxO Mark now offers lens technical test data and you can mix and match lenses with camera bodies

This is what the revised DxOMark website now looks like.

I'm quite a fan of DxO. Their online DxOMark database of camera sensor lab test data has been very handy for reference, not only for us, but for anyone research the purchase of a new camera. DxO's understanding of digital imaging and optics, plus how to measure their performance, is to a very high standard. The company, which is based in Paris, France, and operates a digital camera design and performance consultancy for the camera manufacturing industry, as well as producing the impressive image improvement software package DxO Optics Pro, has this week revealed a major upgrade to its DxOMark site. In addition to sensor performance data, DxOMark now offers lens test data. On top of that you can see how the performance of a lens may vary according to the camera body it's fitted to.

DxO spends a lot of time testing camera bodies and lenses in their lab. Their DxO Analyzer test suite for measuring sensor and optical performance is widely used in the camera industry and is also used by a number of key photography publications, including us here at DPNow. Much of the testing DxO carries out is to generate camera and lens profiles for use with DxO Optics Pro, which can automatically optimise lens and sensor performance by making corrections based on previously measured characteristics. Needless to say, DxO has built up a huge database of test data, not just for cameras and lenses, but permutations of many camera body and lens combinations.

Here the vignette (loss in brightness towards the corners of the frame) measurements are compared across three lenses.

Until now, DxOMark has concentrated solely on camera sensor performance, measured from RAW file test images. This week sees the start of DxOMark's public offering of lens test data, and variation in that data according to which camera body the lens is fitted to. There can be a fair range of variation in the performance of a lens when used with different bodies. For example DxOMark rates the Canon EF-S 18-55 f/3.5-5.6 IS noticeably better on an EOS-7D body than on an EOS-350D body. You might be surprised to find that the older EOS-20D works better than the 350D with this lens too. You can also compare similar lenses across brands. Nikon's 18-55mm kit lens is edged out by Nikon's 18-55, but both are better than Sony's 18-70 kit lens. You could spend hours bringing up hundreds of permutations.

There is still much work to do by DxO as the selection of lenses and camera bodies in the database at present is small compared to the total number of bodies and lenses that have been tested for DxO Optics Pro, so I'm expecting a gradual increase in the size and scope of the database over the coming months.

As with the original sensor/RAW data DxoMark offering, a few ratings have surprised me, and occasionally the data I see doesn't concur with my own experience of the camera and/or lens concerned, but this is probably only to be expected from time to time. Nevertheless, the upgraded DxOMark should be a very handy tool for anyone interested in DSLR camera and lens technical performance.

 

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DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site

DPNow DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
Here is a summary or excerpt from an article that has just been published on DPNow: Paris-based DxO... (more)

StuartR Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
Glad you're a DxO convert Ian :) Yes I'm still alive and well and sincere apologies for disappeari... (more)

StuartR Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
...as I was saying - just need to convince 'er indoors :)... (more)

Pol Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
You usually manage, eh. *LOL It's very nice to see you again too, Stuart. Pol... (more)

Ian Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
Great to see you back Stuart, I can honestly say we have really missed you! :) Ian... (more)

StuartR Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
Trouble is Pol, 'er indoors is now the breadwinner and I'm having to do all the housework* so "'... (more)

Pol Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
*whack It really is just [I]so[/I] good to have you back! *LOL When I first met David (we worked ... (more)

Ian Re: DxO adds lens data to its DxoMark test site
I've always been impressed by DxO - we've used their test kit for several years, and I've even been... (more)