OH MAI WERRRD!! this thing is fantastic!!! just in case you guys don't know what lens im talking about i got the Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 DG SLD Macro lens. the optics are amazing!!! super clear and sharp! the build quality is very sturdy and doesn't feel like cheap plastic like the nikon kit 18-55mm lens. it is of much better quality. no barrel creep at all. it has a metal mount which im glad it does because it's heavy D:. my camera (Nikon D100) with the lens weighs around 7-9 pounds with it on. definitely get a padded neck strap. it feels a bit like rubberized plastic which aids in its ruggedness. it for sure looks professional. all the versions of this lens except the Pentax version have two switches. one is for the switching between the macro focus and normal focus (macro is only able to be enabled at 200-300mm.) and the other switch is for switching from manual to auto focus. the pentax version has one switch for all of it. the barrel threads are sized at 58mm for filters and jazz. no need to worry about buying a lens hood as it comes with one. you can also store the lens hood on the lens by simply reversing it and using the lens hood for manual focus if you so desire. when it auto focuses its fairly fast for its price range ($150 usd from amazon) BUT it sounds like a freakin printer!!!!! i read on one of the reviews for this lens that one owner said this is not a true macro lens. it seems to do macro very well for me. it gets close and takes sharp vivid photos. now i have not tested this lens in low light conditions. but i expect its performance to degrade quite a bit unless your using a flash. its perfect during the day to mid afternoon. i would also feel very comfortable taking this camera to day sports but not really for sure about sports at night. overall its a fantastic lens for newbs to ametures and i would think even some professionals might keep one as a cheap back up. OH!!! one more thing to add. mine was made in japan so that may contribute to the build quality. also i read on the sigma web site that the glass has some kind of fancy coating on it called SLD (Special Low Dispersion) glass. it provides correction of chromatic aberration. its a super multi-layer coating that is spoda reduce flare and ghosting. in my opinion i think sigma consumer lenses are of better quality than nikon consumer lenses. besides nikons 50mm f1.8 and 18-200mm. ill be buying sigma lenses from now on. if you have the extra 50-60 bucks buy the APO version instead of the SLD version. it is of even better quality. im probably going to sell my kit nikon 18-55mm to buy a sigma 18-50mm or something. a good 97 percent of pictures i upload today are from the sigma lens. if you dont have one you should seriously think about getting one. but dont order it from 17th street photo. there packaging quality is crap. mine arrived with a total of like 50 packing peanuts and thats it. if it wasn't for sigma putting their lens in a egg crate style protective housing im sure it would have been busted on arrival. e_e have a good one guys! and sorry for the long read.