Stupid Dumb Question for the Week....

[Gazza]

I have the Canon EF 100-400mm f4.5-5.6L IS USM Lens that I nearly always use with the monopod...(it all gets a bit heavy after awhile!)...

The question, "Do ya think I should be turning the 'IS' off?"

My theory up til now is, that there is still movement as I track/pan/follow my subject (Birds) through the bush, unlike the camera/lens sitting motionless on a tripod...but, I nearly always photograph perched birds, so, I've come to a complete stop before clicking!

Obviously, now that this thought has crossed my mind, I'm going to switch it off for the next few days and see if I can notice any difference...
I guess in short..."has anyone else considered this or experimented as well, or am I just overthinking everything?"



Cheers -

[ricktas]

Yep. you win the stupid dumb question of the week award :

Now serious for a moment. Not sure about Canon but Nikon's VR has two modes. One for full VR and the other for vertical movement only. So you can have VR turned on when panning, for example. Take motorsports, you can use your VR mode to simply minimise vertical movement and allow horizontal as you pan to follow the vehicle. So... does Canon's IS offer something like this, cause it could be the answer you seek?

[Gazza]

Yep. you win the stupid dumb question of the week award

Gosh .... I feel like I should make an acceptance speech ....


Now that you mention the 'two mode' thingy, Canon does have that feature....best I do some research and refresh my mind on that.....cheers -

[Warbler]

VR, IS, OS, is designed to counter undesireable camera movement. It will do that well. If your panning technique give you too much vertical shake or is too jerky, your IS might simply disengage.

Read this:

http://cpn.canon-europe.com/content/...abilisation.do

IS doesn't detect subject movement, only camera movement. Sure you can have it on in Mode 2 if you want, but it may still disengage.

The important bit I found, was "Two gyro sensors start up and detect the speed and angle of any camera movement."

[ameerat42]

You would VEX us with such a Q! - But you're not the 1st

I can't tell the difference in having OS (IS/VC/VR) ON or OFF while on (in my case) a tripod
Now it's always ON - in shutter-press mode only. But this is on the Σ50-500OS.

Anyway, congrats on the AWARD. Your poor predecessors had to make do with just a GOOD LIE DOWN

[mudman]

on my k7 the manual says turn it off when using a tripod

[mikew09]

I may not be 100% correct but this is my understanding that I work by.
With Canon L lens that have IS, it is general rule of thumb and advised to turn IS off when using tripod or monopod. It can in fact impact the IQ in a negative way of your images having IS on with some model lens. There are 3 levels of technology with IS on the lens depending on the version you have.
Some simply have an IS on or off - in this case IS should be turned off.
Some have 2 mode IS, mode one is for normal usage to address hand held camera shake, mode 2 is for tripod mount which from memory only addresses lateral shake or visa versa
Some as in a later models have both but also have a sensor of sorts to be self aware the body is tripod mounted and will turn the IS off automatically - however, this is more relevant to a true tripod mount and not a monopod so in this case (and from memory) your lens falls into the second category of lens - you may want to try mode 2 with IS on and without IS on to see what gives you the best results.

Remember - IS addresses camera shake only. If you have a practiced steady hand you may get fine results with the mono-pod and IS off. IS or no IS - the bottom line comes down to the exposure triangle which in the end should give you a shutter speed that will be sufficient to give a good sharp image. One of the benefits I find with IS even with correct shutter speed is it gives you a much more steady view finder in as much as maintaining a focal point.
Hope that helps - if you search youtude you will find no end of vids on the topic

[spootz01]

I have a 150-600 (Tamron with single mode VC) that almost exclusively gets used on a monopod and I turn it off most of the time. Having said that I've gotten in the habit of turning it back on when i put it away just in case and there have been times where I have forgotten to turn it off again and I haven't noticed a big difference.

Having said that, I did notice when I was doing some panning at the Clipsal 500 in March that my keeper rate did drop off with VC on so make of that what you will.

[Cage]

on my k7 the manual says turn it off when using a tripod

The Pentax has in-camera stabilisation. I forgot to turn it off once when using a monopod and it didn't like it one little bit.

I have two Tamrons with VC, the 24-70mm f2.8 and the 70-200mm f2.8, and I really can't see any difference in IQ when using a tri/monopod whether it is on or off.

[Gazza]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions, links, ideas and that door prize -

I had a 'not-so-serious' play yesterday and have concluded, for me, that IS needs to stay on.
I'm pretty sure it's all in the mind, but when it was turned off, there was heaps of movement looking through the view-finder! (wish I'd tried that before typing out the original Q/post...!! )

Found this pdf online and will try MODE 1 instead of 2 which I had original set when using it handheld some time ago...MODE 2 if I ever get adventurous and try for B'^sIF
Screenshot-(49).jpg

Thanks again, folks...



Yours Sincerely

Mr. Desperately trying to get a higher keeper ratio...

[Mark L]

...MODE 2 if I ever get adventurous and try for B'^sIF

Doesn't make much difference from my experience (might try again since you've raised the question. Pretty sure I'll get the same results). Shutter speed and focus are more important. Keep thumb on BBF with Al Servo.