Image stabilization - is it worth it?

IS is super-helpful when you shoot in the wind, like say at windsurfing events, or at the seashsore where gusting winds are the norm on many days. It is also useful when shooting from moving boats, or boats on ocean or other wavy bodies of water, like say The Strait of Juan de Fuca or the open ocean, where there is a LOT of irregular and basically impossible-to-predict movement due to wave or wind-and-wave motion. IS is useful when you do a lot of slow-speed panning, since it can cancel out the up-and-down movement. It's also useful when you are shooting when you might be tired, or somewhat out of breath. It's also useful when you want to shoot hand-held stopped down to smallish f/stops, to get good depth of field, without needing a tripod.

In other words, it's hugely useful. Buy it if you can.

IS or the Boat?
 
IS is super-helpful when you shoot in the wind, like say at windsurfing events, or at the seashsore where gusting winds are the norm on many days. It is also useful when shooting from moving boats, or boats on ocean or other wavy bodies of water, like say The Strait of Juan de Fuca or the open ocean, where there is a LOT of irregular and basically impossible-to-predict movement due to wave or wind-and-wave motion. IS is useful when you do a lot of slow-speed panning, since it can cancel out the up-and-down movement. It's also useful when you are shooting when you might be tired, or somewhat out of breath. It's also useful when you want to shoot hand-held stopped down to smallish f/stops, to get good depth of field, without needing a tripod.

In other words, it's hugely useful. Buy it if you can.

IS or the Boat?

Both.
 
Personally I wouldn't even consider a lens without it. When you need it then it's a very valuable tool. When you don't just turn it off.
 
Personally I wouldn't even consider a lens without it. When you need it then it's a very valuable tool. When you don't just turn it off.

Well I wouldn't consider a zoom lens without it, that's for sure. Neither of my primes have it though.. lol.. but yup, on a zoom I consider it a must have feature myself
 
Well I wouldn't consider a zoom lens without it, that's for sure. Neither of my primes have it though.. lol.. but yup, on a zoom I consider it a must have feature myself

Anything over 200 IMO.
 
Well I wouldn't consider a zoom lens without it, that's for sure. Neither of my primes have it though.. lol.. but yup, on a zoom I consider it a must have feature myself
Fair enough. I wouldn't even consider a prime lens either ;)
 
What's your feedback on IS/VR/SS/OS enabled at high shutter speeds ?

Anyone done any personal (I don't mean all the stuff on the web) comparisons with or without at speeds higher than 1/focal length ?
 
What's your feedback on IS/VR/SS/OS enabled at high shutter speeds ?

Anyone done any personal (I don't mean all the stuff on the web) comparisons with or without at speeds higher than 1/focal length ?

I have been BURNED BADLY by leaving Nikon's VR on the 70-200 VR-I "ON" at high speeds...
 
VR/IS/OS takes a few moments to spin up and start working - as a result if you're the kind of person who's walking around and going for very fast sudden shots at moving subjects you might find that if your shutter speed is fast enough, you simply want ot leave the stabilization off since you're taking shots before its ready.
 
I don't own a lens with IS. I guess I'm missing out…..or not.
 
Well I wouldn't consider a zoom lens without it, that's for sure. Neither of my primes have it though.. lol.. but yup, on a zoom I consider it a must have feature myself
Fair enough. I wouldn't even consider a prime lens either ;)

Very true, on the primes I don't think it would be nearly as useful since all of the ones I have are short focal length and have nice wide apertures.

Sent from my LG-LG730 using Tapatalk
 
What's your feedback on IS/VR/SS/OS enabled at high shutter speeds ?

Anyone done any personal (I don't mean all the stuff on the web) comparisons with or without at speeds higher than 1/focal length ?

Haven't tested it persee but for high shutter speeds or tripod/monopod shots I often shut mine off.

Sent from my LG-LG730 using Tapatalk
 
I don't own a lens with IS. I guess I'm missing out…..or not.

Well you can certainly shoot without it, people did for a long time. But in a situation were you need to shoot at lower shutter speeds handheld it can really be incredibly useful.

Sent from my LG-LG730 using Tapatalk
 
I prefer lenses with Image destabilization; challenge accepted.
 

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