Hi Frank,
Because this has me quite interested, I built a spreadsheet containing the camera information and my quality measure:
Code:
Camera Length Crop Factor EFL MP Ratio Pixel density Quality
D3100 300 1.5 450 14.2 1.5 4.6 2076.8
DSC-H1 432 5.1 1.33 2.6 1125.1
DS9100 450 12 1.33 4.0 1797.7
1D4 800 1.3 1040 16.1 1.5 4.9 5110.8
This assumes that Mark used his Canon 1D4 for the image and not the 5D. However it shows that there is little difference between your Nikon and the Sony DS9100, with the Nikon in front due to the higher MP count. However the shot that Mark took is 2.5 times higher in quality.
Note that this table is based on having perfect optics. It also assumes the subject has detail to fill the pixels on the sensor. In practice, as revi pointed out, the zooms with less range and the primes will have better optical quality as fewer compromises are made in the design. You should then expect the SLR cameras to do better than these figures show.
Private message me with your e-mail address and I can send you the spreadsheet. You can then fill in whatever cameras you care to evaluate.
Regards,
Alex