Nikon AF-S DX 16-85mm f3.5-5.6 G ED VR lens

Pros: Versatile focal lengths (particularly the wide end at 16mm, or 24mm on DX format DSLRs), incredibly reliable VR plus exceptional IQ to rival "professional grade" lenses selling for over 100% more.

Cons: Not really.

Summary: One of the most under-rated lenses in the Nikkor line-up. Often criticized for not being fast enough without taking into account the need to balance features, size and weight. This lens is criticized by some as "expensive". Imagine what they would say if it were a fast lens (e.g., being fixed at f2.8)! Comments on its distortion figure (2.5% is far from high for such a wide lens) and wide-open performance (see the impressive MTF figure for 16mm at f3.5 listed on photozone.com) are nit-picking, if not misleading. Just goes to show detractors' biased attempt to ignore the full picture and single out aspects naturally prone to relatively undesiralbe results (e.g., plastic construction typical of DX lenses, or higher distortion figure for wide angle lenses, which are in fact present in similar designs across brands). All things considered, a truly outstanding lens -- period. The fact is, with its impressive feature set, light weight and extremely useful focal lengths, and at this price point, you can't get any better than this gem of a DX lens.