NOISE AND RESOLUTION

Nikon also chose to make the sensor resolve more than other sensors, with an excellent signal-to-noise ratio, so that your best lenses can make medium-format-like images. Some may complain that the full-frame sensor is able to make a less noisy image, since the pixel elements are larger and have a better signal-to-noise ratio. That is true! But, if you've ever seen an image from the Nikon D2x you will discover that there is simply NO noise in the images at 100 ISO. In higher ISO settings there is more noise, but it is so well controlled that even at 800 ISO it is not objectionable, and still less than ANY 800 ISO film. Noise is NOT a problem with Nikon's DX sized DSLR sensors.
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Even if a full-frame sensor had less noise at higher ISOs, ask yourself a question: Which would I prefer ... slightly more noise or massive light falloff? For myself, I will take the little bit of extra noise in higher ISO settings. Everyone is used to seeing "grain" in film images, and so most would not even see the noise in the image anyway. The digital noise can also be reduced by adding extra noise reduction, if a person is really worried about it. Everything is a trade-off in lens and sensor design. Personally, I will accept a bit of extra noise to get significantly higher resolution in small details, and no light falloff on the edges.

A lens or sensor that can resolve more Lp/mm can record finer details than a sensor that resolves fewer Lp/mm. The unaided human eye can only resolve about 10 Lp/mm. The D2x resolves nine times that figure, at 90 Lp/mm, with less noise than some "Full-Frame" 35mm-sized sensors. By giving us a very high resolution, but low-noise sensor, Nikon is thinking of the most important things...not just what the market thinks it wants.

Other camera manufacturers chose to go with marketing pressure and design the 35mm-sized sensor as a standard even though their engineers knew that 35mm lenses, with their angled light transmission, couldn't cover the full-sized sensor. It almost requires a medium format sized lens circle to cover a 35mm sensor size with light that is moving straight enough to go in the pixel bucket directly. How many of us want to carry around medium format sized lenses on our DSLRs so that we can get full coverage of the sensor?

I honestly don't care if Nikon EVER makes a full-sized sensor. Wide angle lenses are MUCH cheaper than telephoto lenses. I LOVE the extra "reach" I get with my 400mm lens acting like a "big-gun" 600mm lens. Plus, the Nikon D2x's High-Speed Crop mode gives me even greater reach when I absolutely need it as shown below.

My 120mm lens in the above picture, with the Nikon D2x's CMOS sensor, acts like a 180mm lens. In high-speed crop mode, it performs like a 240mm lens. Since telephoto lenses are MUCH more expensive than wide-angles, this makes me very happy. The Nikkor 12-24mm lens costs about $1000.00 USD, where the 600mm Nikkor costs about $5000 USD. Which one do I want my camera to lend the best support to? The most expensive lens! I can now buy a nice DX lens for 20mm equivalent shooting, and I'm sure even wider DX lenses are coming.

So, unless noise was a real issue, which it isn't, I don't need a sensor any larger than the one in my Nikon D2x. And, I truly enjoy the extra "reach" my 1.5x lens factor gives me. See what I mean:

Nikon® D2x digital camera and AF Nikkor® 80-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR Lens