What is the pixel pitch of the Nikon D700?

The Nikon D700 provides 12.1 megapixels from a full frame sensor. This pixel density gives rise to a size of the individual pixel of 8.43µm.

The pixel size or pixel pitch can be calculated by dividing the sensor area by the pixel count and then taking the square root. In particular, the sensor in the Nikon D700 measures 36.0mm in width and 23.9mm in height, so that the total imaging area of the sensor amounts to 860 mm². Moreover, the D700 has 4 256 horizontal pixels and 2 832 vertical pixels, for a total of 12.1 megapixels. Then, the size (height or width) of each individual pixel can be calculated as the square root of the ratio of the sensor area (860 mm²) to the MP count (12 052 992).

Larger pixels provide advantages with respect to gathering light, particularly in low-light situations. Large pixels notably have a better signal to noise ratio, meaning that they can better differentiate between incoming photons and the noisy signals that the internal processes of the camera create. As a result, big pixels are particularly helpful to the photographer when shooting with high ISO settings.

Sensor specs and performance

The table below compares the sensor specs of the Nikon D700 to those of several similar cameras. The reported DXO values are indicators of the sensor's imaging quality (higher is better), covering color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape), 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.		Nikon D700	Full Frame	12.1	4256	2832	none	23.5	12.2	2303	80
2.		Canon 5D	Full Frame	12.7	4368	2912	none	22.9	11.1	1368	71
3.		Nikon D3	Full Frame	12.1	4256	2832	none	23.5	12.2	2290	81
4.		Nikon D3S	Full Frame	12.1	4256	2832	720/24p	23.5	12.0	3253	82
5.		Nikon D3X	Full Frame	24.4	6048	4032	none	24.7	13.7	1992	88
6.		Nikon D300	APS-C	12.2	4288	2848	none	22.1	12.0	679	67
7.		Nikon D300S	APS-C	12.2	4288	2848	720/24p	22.5	12.2	787	70
8.		Nikon D800	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/30p	25.3	14.4	2853	95
9.		Nikon D800E	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/30p	25.6	14.3	2979	96
10.		Nikon D810	Full Frame	36.2	7360	4912	1080/60p	25.7	14.8	2853	97
11.		Nikon Df	Full Frame	16.2	4928	3280	none	24.6	13.1	3279	89

Further information on the sensor in the Nikon D700 and the camera's operation can be found in the camera manual.

In the United States, the D700 was initially launched in July 2008 at a price of $2,999.

Check D700 offers at
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Camera to camera comparisons

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