How much dynamic range does the Canon 550D offer?

According to measurements carried out by DXO Mark, the sensor in the Canon EOS 550D provides a maximum of 11.5 EV of dynamic range (DR). DR is defined as the ratio between the highest and lowest brightness a camera can capture. A value of 12 EV or above is considered excellent.

High dynamic range of a camera sensor is particularly desirable for scenes with a mix of very bright and very dark parts, such as in some landscape photography settings. It helps to avoid that highlights get washed out or that detail in shadows is lost.

Sensor specs and performance

The table below compares the sensor specs of the Canon 550D to those of several similar cameras. The reported DXO values are indicators of the sensor's imaging quality (higher is better). In addition to dynamic range (DXO Landscape), the listing also covers color depth (DXO Portrait) and high-ISO noise (DXO Sports). Larger sensor cameras tend to outperform cameras of the same generation that are equipped with a smaller imager. On the other hand, larger sensors are more expensive and require bigger and heavier lenses than smaller light receptors.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Canon 550D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	784	66
2.		Canon 500D	APS-C	15.1	4752	3168	1080/20p	21.7	11.5	663	63
3.		Canon 600D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	22.1	11.5	793	65
4.		Canon 650D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	722	62
5.		Canon 700D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.7	11.2	681	61
6.		Canon 750D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.7	12.0	919	71
7.		Canon 760D	APS-C	24.0	6000	4000	1080/30p	22.6	12.0	915	70
8.		Canon 1100D	APS-C	12.2	4272	2848	720/30p	21.9	11.0	755	62
9.		Canon 1200D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.9	11.3	724	63
10.		Canon 4000D	APS-C	17.9	5184	3456	1080/30p	21.9	11.4	695	63
11.		Nikon D5100	APS-C	16.1	4928	3264	1080/30p	23.5	13.6	1183	80

In the United States, the 550D was initially launched in February 2010 at a price of $699.

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Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just use the search menu below. An an alternative, you can also directly jump to any one of the listed comparisons that were previously generated by the CAM-parator tool.

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