To stabilize or not to stabilize?

[tecboy]

In my experience, the image stabilizer only help very little. When I use the tripod, I notice the visual in the screen tends to shift a little with stabilizer on. Do you guys ever leave it on or off?

 

[Buckster]

The stabilizer is meant for hand-held shooting. On a tripod, the stabilizer is supposed to be off.

 

[SCraig]

The stabilizer is meant for hand-held shooting. On a tripod, the stabilizer is supposed to be off.

What he said. I always turn it off when using a tripod and it's normally on when I'm not using a tripod. In my experience it helps a great deal when shooting hand-held.

Edit ... Some lenses have a two-position VR switch. Normal is for hand-held shooting and the other position is ostensibly for use when using a tripod. It disables the horizontal sensor and only corrects for vibration in a vertical direction so that it can be used when panning on a tripod. That mode doesn't seem to do much good for me so I normally just turn VR off when using a tripod.

 

[Crollo]

If you have a external stabilizer (Tripod, monopod, steadycam rig, dolly, crane, etc) then there's no need to use lens IS.
If not using any external stabilizer, then use it, every little bit helps. You're not supposed to whip the lens around, that's not what it's designed for.

 

[tecboy]

Okay, I'll take your words for that. Sometimes, I forget to turn on the IS while I shoot some pictures, but I still get sharp pictures without the blur.

 

[480sparky41 41]

Nikon VR explained.

 

[SCraig]

Okay, I'll take your words for that. Sometimes, I forget to turn on the IS while I shoot some pictures, but I still get sharp pictures without the blur.

There is more to getting sharp shots than just VR / IS, especially if your lenses are relatively short focal length. Shutter speed, of course, being the big one.

If you have a long lens pick a distant spot and at your longest focal length hold the center of the focusing area on that spot with VR / IS turned off. Now do the same thing with VR / IS turned on. On my cameras I can SEE the difference in the viewfinder. There is far less movement with VR on than when it's off. I shoot a lot with a 500mm lens and it really makes a difference with that one.

 

[KmH]

Some of Nikon's VRII equipped lenses have a 'Tripod Mode' that helps minimize mirror slap vibrations.

Image stabilization is mostly a marketing ploy.

 

[Buckster]

Image stabilization is mostly a marketing ploy.

Especially when you can see the difference it makes while looking through the viewfinder.

 

[pgriz]

Some of Nikon's VRII equipped lenses have a 'Tripod Mode' that helps minimize mioor slap vibrations.

Image stabilization is mostly a marketing ploy.

Sorry, Keith, I disagree. At least in my personal experience with the Canon 24-105 f/4.0 IS and the 70-200 f/4.0 IS lenses, I get 2-3 stops of exposure before hand-holding shows blur due to camera movement. I've tried it a number of times, comparing the reslts with and without the IS) and the performance is definitely there. Of course, there are a number of things one can do from a shooting technique point-of-view to lower the speed at which hand-held blur starts showing up, and they do play a role. I've been able to shoot the 70-200 at 200mm and 1/10 sec (IS-on) handheld, with minimal blurring, but using the techniques of bracing, using a delicate shutter button press, exhaling while shooting, etc. Can't do it all the time, but IS does help.

@ tecboy: at least in my case, leaving IS on when the camera is on a tripod, has cost me many pictures as the image shifts when the IS gets activated. If I remembered to anticipate the IS shift and then pressed the shutter release after, then the image would be OK. I found it was simpler to turn the IS off when placing the camera on the tripod.

 

[bratkinson]

If it were up to me, every lens, especially the higher-quality lenses such as Canon L's would be IS equiped.

I had occassion to use my 135 f2.0L indoors this weekend and forgot my monopod. Shooting without the flash at 1/20th, 1/30th, I knew I had to be well-braced against the wall, etc. Not unexpectedly (double-negative intended), I ended up trashing all but 2 of the 20 or so I shot with the 135. Back to the trusty 24-105 f4L IS and handheld problems solved...even a couple at 1/15th!