Cherokee, I think we are big enough and ugly enough to sort ourselves out. We are big boys and girls now.
In answer to your question, the Nikon line up that give the very best quality are all fixed f-stop (so the zooms that are f2.8) much the same as Canon really, if you use a bit of lateral thinking.
On the Vr front - I NEVER use it to overcome handshake woes, I use technique fo rthat. Where it does come into its own is for creative effects. Effects that you can simply not get without it. If you use VR with high shutter speeds, very often it causes ghosting - almost like a double image. High shutter speeds = TURN IT OFF!
marginal shutter speeds,so around the 1/250 on a 300mm, 1/160 on a 200mm etc (on full frame...don't forget your focal length/speed needs to be matched to the resultant focal length of any crop sensor, so a 300mm becomes a 500mm and so the shutter has to go to 1/500 to match...and so on.)
BELOW matched shutter speed to focal length in use, then VR comes into its own....take the wide angle lens down to 1/2 second and pan a bicycle going past, then VR gives you results that fill flash even on 2nd curtain cannot give you - totally different results to introduce deliberate blr with sharp subject areas.
I agree to some extent that good technique should be used for sharpness, not IS/VR - but to say it isn't of use is rubbish. It gives some great creative effects on moving subjects - I could never do powerboat to powerboat shots with the 200mm at around 1/60th and get PIN SHARP boat with streaked sea or background otherwise.
SLOW moving things can be rendered so they look like they are doing 100mph too (just look in EVO an dother car mags to see shots of cars that are being pushed at walking pace, looking like they are on the ragged edge!
:shrug:
