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Message:: [QUOTE="rmpsrpms, post: 6375751, member: 31773"]I bought the same lens back in 2009, used it a few months, and it has sat on the shelf since then. It's big, heavy, and because it doesn't have a tripod mount, you must mount your camera to the copy stand. This causes the camera to droop a bit, and the weight causes the whole system to have a long response time to any vibration or bumping. The large size makes getting light on the coin very difficult, though not impossible if you are willing to make specialized fixtures. The 105VR, like all dedicated macro lenses which can reach 1:1, shortens focal length as magnification approaches 1:1. In particular, the 105VR is aggressive with this, shortening to ~60mm at 1:1. This further compromises working distance, making lighting even more difficult for small coins. Luckily, your camera is an APS-C "crop sensor" type, so you can fill the sensor with small coins. But if you ever upgrade to a full-frame camera someday, the 105VR (indeed all 1:1 macro lenses) will not be able to take advantage of the full-frame sensor. Even for Dimes, which are 18mm diameter, you will only be able to fill 75% of the sensor height. If you're into Half Dimes or Gold Dollars, it's only 65%, and God forbid you are into Trimes or anything smaller, you can only fill 58% of the sensor. So while you're paying a lot more money for the 105VR's full-frame capability, it's not a great lens for shooting small coins on full-frame.[/QUOTE]