I became aware of this lens several years ago. Back then, it was hard to find one on the used market, and even when they popped up, they remained cost prohibitive. A fellow member at an online photographer hang-out knew I was looking for one and offered up his because he was in the midst of changing systems - something I've done myself several times. The following probably insinuates some hyperbole, but having used a myriad of zoom lenses from the likes of Canon, Nikon, Sony,