Just wanted to address part of your post - you indicated at least part of your needs was kids' sports both indoors and out. No lens you are considering is capable of indoor sports. If you specify which sports I can offer suggestions.

No lens you're considering is particularly good at outdoor sports either. The sport will determine the focal length you need. So what sport, and what level and where will you be shooting from?

How important is the sports work to your needs? Sports shooting is VERY equipment intensive. Quality results require quality lenses. But there's no need to invest thousands of dollars in lenses if sports isn't a big part of your needs.

FrankD wrote:There's an excellent write-up and example here:
http://www.shootsmarter.com/index.ph...iew&id=175

JohnG wrote: Thank you. Any sports shooting will be less than 25% of all shooting. The indoor sport is basketball. The outdoor sports include lacrosse, baseball, and softball. For the outdoor sports, I can be fairly close to the field. The same is true for basketball; I can be close to the court. I would appreciate any suggestions.

JazzManB-3 wrote: Basketball = 85mm 1.8 (a 70-200 2.8 would work with the d90 as well but it's very pricey and too short for your outdoor work. For the outdoor work you said 'close' so I'm guessing you're not inside the fencing. I think the sigma 50-500 (aka bigma) is the most bang for the buck. For baseball you'll need something in the 400-500mm range. If you're outside the fences you'll find 300mm too short for all 3 sports. If you were inside the fences my recommendation would be the sigma 100-300 f4