I only took this lens out of its box yesterday. I do think that when I get used to it and get lucky enough with the right shot that this lens is going to be
very nice. It's heavyish, but still ok for hand held shots.
The 200-500 is an amazing lens. I am often amazed at the clarity I get from it. And the VR is also amazing. I have hand held it on my D300, so it is a 750mm equivalent, at 1/40 sec and it is tack sharp.