As a beginner in the world of high quality photography, after many, many years of shooting with less equipment, I've finally made the switch to a full frame Nikon DSLR and needed a reliable, versatile lens for starting work and at the same time inexpensive. This lens met that score VERY well! This is a quality lens with great reviews from the many pros who tested it and the price compared to other lenses of a similar caliber was OUTSTANDING! It has an excellent focal range with decent light-letting (I'll use f/2.8 next round) and features Tamron's highly acclaimed vibration reduction technology, which is like an invisible tripod for slow-motion shots. If you're looking for a pro quality lens right now, but can't quite rock the $1,000+ price range of these beasts yet, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this lens to help you move forward!