A spokesperson for Sony UK has said that the newly released Nikon D800, which features a 36 million pixel full-frame sensor, isn't a competitor for its own Sony Alpha 900, and that the D800 'pushes the boundaries.'
Introduced in February, the Nikon D800 is the world's highest resolution full-frame camera, and sees Nikon firmly targeting studio and medium format photographers.
Speaking to TechRadar, Paul Genge from Sony UK said, "[It] sounds like a good idea to me, the user of that type of camera only ever seeks higher resolution for stills.
Impressive
"I think when it comes to the market and when people are using it, people will be impressed by the increased resolution, of course on a full-frame sensor you've got room to provide for it so, all credit to them, they've chosen to keep pushing the boundaries."
Of course, it is widely believed that it is Sony that produces the sensors for the D800, Nikon confirmed to us that it was working in partnership with another manufacturer for the sensor.
"It's a good thing," Genge continued, "36 megapixels will be improved upon in years to come still. We were the world's highest with 24 megapixels until this point, and we've held on to that since 2009.
"I think Nikon will do quite well with it, certainly their customer base can adopt it, use it and get the best of it, but we'll have to see when it comes to market what their customer truly thinks of it."
Sony released the full-frame Alpha 900 back in 2008, with rumours pointing to a likely replacement some time this year.
Last week, Genge confirmed to us that Sony was only concentrating on it's translucent mirror technology, so bets are already being taken that the 'Sony a99' will use the new technology, and perhaps rival or beat the 36 million pixel resolution of the D800.
But for now, Genge says that the camera doesn't compete with any of Sony's products. "Alpha 900 is a very different camera altogether, it's very conservative in its offering, it doesn't have Live View and it doesn't do video. It's a different proposition altogether."
Stay tuned for information on any new Sony cameras that are due for release.
