I've spent a long time looking to find a reasonably priced Nikon professional lens in this focal range.

It doesn't hurt that the price is more affordable than the 14-24mm

A great lens at a great price

I do notice my camera bag gets tighter, and things are squeezed around when I pack this lens, I wish they made it little shorter.-Shouldn't buy is for a DX sensor, too big and bulky, and the12-24mm DX lens is much better choice for crop sensor cameras, and you can actually use the 12-24 DX on full frame camera as 18-24mm (it will vignette under 17mm on a full frame).Who should buy this:-The lens is very sharp and the price is right, and I believe Nikon nailed it with this one, this is an affordable semi-pro ultra wide angle VR lens, it has a lot to offer in terms of sharpens and zoom range and build quality

I'll keep the 14-24 for those special situation landscape and special event shots where I have time to use a tripod, cable release, MirrorUp and all other user precautions to maximize the full capability of the 14-24.The 16-35 is a tremendous wide angle at a great price and when used with a little forethought and the post production work that you would do anyway with RAW files, you will not be able to discern any difference between

All in all this is a great compromise in weight with the 18-35 and in sharpness with the 14-24 at a reasonable price.

This lens works great in low light with still subjects and it is priced at a competitive price.

So what are the good things about this lens?-The sharpness, this lens is very sharp at any focal length, some claim it's even sharper than the phenomenal Nikon 14-24mm, even though I haven't tested this claim myself, but I don't have a problem believing it.-The price is right