Sony A99 II has a
42.0MP Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm ) sized BSI-CMOS sensor and features Bionz X processor. On the other hand, Nikon D800 has a
36.0MP Full frame (35.9 x 24 mm ) sized CMOS sensor and features Expeed 3 processor.
Sony A99 II's sensor provides 6MP more than Nikon D800's sensor, which gives a significant advantage in real life. You can print your images larger or crop more freely.
On the other hand, please keep in mind that Max sensor resolution is not the only determinant of resolving power. Factors such as the optical elements, low pass filter, pixel size and sensor technology also affects the final resolution of the captured image.
Another difference between these two cameras is that Sony A99 II's sensor lacks anti-alias (Low-Pass) filter. Removing anti-alias filter increases the sharpness and level of detail but at the same time, it increases the chance of moiré occurring in certain scenes.
Below you can see the A99 II and D800 sensor size comparison.
Sony A99 II and Nikon D800 have the same sensor sizes so they will provide same level of control over the depth of field when used with same focal length and aperture. On the other hand, since Nikon D800 has 16% larger pixel area (23.83µm2 vs 20.43µm2) compared to Sony A99 II, it has larger pixel area to collect light hence potential to have less noise in low light / High ISO images.
DxOMark Sensor Scores
DxOMark is a benchmark that scientifically assesses image quality of camera sensors. It scores camera sensors for color depth (DXO Portrait), dynamic range (DXO Landscape) and low-light sensitivity (DXO Sports), and also gives them an overall score. Sony A99 II and Nikon D800 sensors have been tested by DxO and the results show that D800 has a better overall score of 95, 3 points higher compared to A99 II's score of 92.
Model |
Overall |
Color Depth |
Dynamic Range |
Low-light ISO |
Sony A99 II |
92 |
25.4 bits |
13.4 Evs |
2317 ISO |
Nikon D800 |
95 |
25.3 bits |
14.4 Evs |
2853 ISO |