Behind the scenes - interview design team

http://imaging.nikon.com/history/scenes/32/index.htm

our goal was image quality a step above – far superior to any existing D-SLR camera – compressed into a compact camera body.

One of our main design concepts was a camera with image quality, tone reproduction, and sharpness that were a match for high-resolution medium-format cameras."

We didn't see 36.3 megapixels as some astronomical number; we could proceed with confidence because we expected to reach our goal gradually through a series of building blocks: for example, increasing the precision of the image sensor, improving the performance of the optical low-pass filter to match that of a 36.3 megapixel sensor, and developing the high-speed processing technology for the EXPEED 3 image-processing engine and the image-processing software to support high resolutions. In addition, given that Nikon boasts NIKKOR lenses with superior optical performance, we thought that they could be combined with the D800 to get the most from the lenses and camera."

And our conceptual foundation was to provide high image quality in a compact body similar to the D700, one that had to handle well, given that it would be used by professionals and advanced amateurs: not a big body like a medium-format camera, but one capable of the mobility typical of a D-SLR camera. 

From the start we wanted to build a camera notable not just for its pixel count, but for image quality founded on a marriage of high performance and ease-of-use."

We spent considerably more time on development than we have for other models, so there were a lot of improvements. 

"The D800 is targeted at users who insist on a methodical approach to photography. We thought people like that would naturally require a viewfinder with around 100% coverage. Another fundamental consideration was the desire to have our customers make full use of all 36.3 million pixels."

Therefore, we suggest selecting medium or small for normal use and choosing large only for, say, group portraits or very high resolution landscape shots.