Not sure how the article could make the d4 look so bad
When I test mine the crop mode & normal mode look very close
Here are two small samples straight out of the camera D4 with 24-104 lens
The full frame I zoomed in & stopped down to match the field of view & depth of field of the crop mode. ( Remember when comparing the two you must stop down a stop or so to match the depth of field of the smaller sensor area otherwise the crop mode will seem slightly sharper because t has a greater depth of field.
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