So with the D800/D800e images starting to desharpen at about F9 due to the effects of diffraction how are landscape photographers going to take advantage of the 36mp sensor at F11 or more?

Steve.

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

At 36.3 MP people will be happy with the worst image it makes . After everyone down sizes it
to 1000 pixels wide to post on the web . Only the dynamic range will be left to boast about .
Maybe the .2 % better resolution of the D800E .

Hans K.

My Gallery

Visit my Nikonians gallery. nikonus@nikonians.org

Steve,

>...with the D800/D800e images starting to desharpen at about F9 due to the effects of diffraction how are landscape photographers going to take advantage of the 36mp sensor at F11 or more?<

They will use the tilt feature of a tilt/shift lens at a larger aperture, or knowingly shoot at an aperture that suffers from diffraction because they consider the additional depth of field advantage to outweigh the loss in overall sharpness.

Rob
www.robbuckle.co.uk

>So with the D800/D800e images starting to desharpen at about
>F9 due to the effects of diffraction how are landscape
>photographers going to take advantage of the 36mp sensor at
>F11 or more?
>
>Steve.

The effects of diffraction at f11 or even f16 will be gradual and hardly noticed until you get into large enlargements. It will certainly be noticed at 100% crops. But as a landscape shooter I hardly crop at all. I use my PC 85mm quite frequently at f16 and f22 on my D3X and quite frankly the photos, even at those apertures, are gorgeous.

Len

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

So are we saying that we can use the D800 for large enlargements but not at F16 or smaller.
So more MP is less quality then? Interesting scenario!

Steve.

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

Nothing to worry about - more megapixels will never lead to less resolving power. Increased diffraction will just eat some part of resolution increase one could wait from the increased photosite density, not all of it. For example, if up to f/11 48MP full-frame sensor will give double lines-per-millimeter in comparison to a 12MP sensor, at f/16 the resolving power may be only 1,5 times higher or so, but at no given f-stop it will be less than equal. I mean - if you print the same format (20*30 from both cameras without cropping for example), NOT the same pixel scale (100% crop @ 300 dpi).

Vladimir
Russian Nikonian in Switzerland

Vlad has it right. Worst-case scenario is that diffraction causes a D800 image to be equal to a lower-res image. It will never be worse.

And I'll add, as Rob implies above, you're always better getting DOF right, even if ultimate sharpness suffers due to diffraction. Your subject will always appear sharper by being within DOF and diffracted, than by being outside DOF but not diffracted.

>Nothing to worry about - more megapixels will never lead to
>less resolving power. Increased diffraction will just eat some
>part of resolution increase one could wait from the increased
>photosite density, not all of it. For example, if up to f/11
>48MP full-frame sensor will give double lines-per-millimeter
>in comparison to a 12MP sensor, at f/16 the resolving power
>may be only 1,5 times higher or so, but at no given f-stop it
>will be less than equal. I mean - if you print the same format
>(20*30 from both cameras without cropping for example), NOT
>the same pixel scale (100% crop @ 300 dpi).


Larry - a Bay Area Nikonian
My Nikonians gallery

www.tempered-light.com

>So are we saying that we can use the D800 for large
>enlargements but not at F16 or smaller.
>So more MP is less quality then? Interesting scenario!
>
>Steve.
>

As Vladimir says don't worry about it.

Here's a photo I just took with my D3X with a mf 200mm f4 lens. I shot the photo at f8 and f22. The D3X starts getting into diffraction at f11.

Here's the photo.


Here's a 50% crop of both photos side by side. f8 on the left f22 on the right. This would be a pretty big print.


And finally side by side 100% crops. f8 on the left f22 on the right.


Here you can see the effect of diffraction. So if you view or print at normal or even large sizes don't worry about it. Don't forget the larger the print the further away the viewing distance and the problem disappears.

Len

Visit my Nikonians gallery.

Attachment #1, (jpg file)
Attachment #2, (jpg file)
Attachment #3, (jpg file)

A lot have been contributed already. Most of the sample shots used with a zoom lens (Nikon 24-70mm f2.8) with the D800 pretty much stayed at f8 for optimal sharpness. The sample below is a crop image to show the lens diffraction as you go above f8. Click on the image for larger view.



Regards,

Glenn

HI Glenn, any withdrawal symptoms from NAS when you had to give the D800 back?

Jim

My Nikonians Gallery

>HI Glenn, any withdrawal symptoms from NAS when you had to
>give the D800 back?

Worse feeling ever! This also included the D4! I am actually screwed. I already changed my computer wall paper from a D800 to a D4!

Hopefully, my wife will notice how devastated I feel now.


Regards,

Glenn

The D7000 is fine for landscapes, even at f/11. Since the D800 has the same pixel density, just a larger sensor, it will be fine, too, even better, in fact.

Tom
Bay Area Nikonian

http://www.tkphoto.me/