The D800, a case for the higher resolution

Hmm, I guess it will depend on the lenses and what you are shooting. I do recall the review on this site some time ago of the Canon 1Ds Mark II, where the reviewer showed the imperfections that show up on the 16Mp sensor. And both Canon and Nikon (and everyone else it seems) is now updating their lenses to cope with the demand of high pixel density sensors; so if you have a last generation lens (e.g. the previous Nikon 70-200 f2.8) you are going to want to update to the latest version of the lens (assuming you are wanting to maximise potential) but I guess in 5 years time when the currently new lens and similarly new lenses become commonplace then there will be no need to upgrade your lens as most lenses will be able to cope.

But isn't that a roundabout way of saying you need a computer upgrade (at least of your laptop)?

Hmm, but I think it is obvious I was talking of the situation where peeps shoot raw and keep them all. And even in your particular situation, use of a D800 will result in the need to purchase more backup media sooner than would have been the case with a lower res cam (so backup costs will have increased on a Mpixels per anum basis )

Yep, pedantic, but partially agreed.

Leica guru Erwin Putts (spelling?), Lloyd Chambers, and I think Thom Hogan also, talk of the need to reassess the old 1/focal-length shutter speed rule with high res digital. There is talk of it now needing to be (1/focal-length) x 2. So what once may have been regarded as NON-tripod necessary exposures may well become so now, and lets not forget that Nikon doesn't have in-body image stabilization so a great many of their prime lenses will need tripod support if one wants to MAXIMISE the potential of D800's resolution.

I will go along with that, notwithstanding my talk of "MAXIMISING" image quality.

Hmm, possibly but I think those who advise against every Tom Dick and Harriet rushing out to buy a D800 are really saying that buying such a cam is overkill for what they would normally shoot and publish and really one ought to be using the D800 for landscapes and such-like. It really is a medium format cam in all but name.

Agreed. You would be amazed at how many peeps rely on spray and pray. By the way, (I am too lazy to go check ) what is the fastest framerate for the D800 when shooting in 14bit raw mode?

Hmm, I agree to an extent, but like my gramdma would say "too much of one thing is good for nothing" and 36Mp is a SEEEERIOUS amount of pixels so much so that I do agree with Thom Hogan to an extent, in that one has to consider the whole package (lens selection (even Nikon think so, hence their recommended lens list), workflow, shooting technique, overall costs) before jumping in. Coming away from photography for a minute, it's not much different to buying a high performance car; yeah you can get away with the non-specialist tyres but just be aware of the issues surrounding that choice and the other issues that come as baggage with a high performance machine.