I've had four cameras with image stabilization features: Canon 10D + 300mm f/4L IS, Panasonic FZ10, Panasonic LX1, Konica Minolta A2. In all cases, I just shot with them as I would according to the rules of exposure. The image stabilization allowed hand holding at longer exposure times than I would have been able to achieve without it, by a couple of stops.
How much, precisely, depends on the particular situation ... whether there is subject movement to be accounted in the photograph is the primary discriminator, not whether something weird will happen to the sensor or whatever. Image stabilization helps particularly with longer lenses, in my opinion, although it can also render a good improvement with short lenses: camera motion is less of an issue with short lenses, not that the IS is any less effective. It's no panacea for everything, and in particular is less useful for taking pictures of people in low light than taking pictures of scenery. Sensitivity helps more for pictures with subject movement in them. Godfrey On Oct 28, 2006, at 11:53 AM, Joseph Tainter wrote: > For the K10D, Pentax is claiming 2.5 to 4.5 steps of shake reduction > effectiveness. > > I have been wondering whether there are general conditions when one > can > get more shake reduction and when one can get less. For example, > when I > am in Europe I like to shoot inside cathedrals and other buildings. A > typical setting is ISO 800, 1/30, wide open. Two steps of SR would get > me down to 1/8, which is useful. Two more steps would get me to 1/2 > second. But if the shutter is open that long, one might achieve > correction for shake, but that is still enough time for light to > register on the sensor in the wrong places. This would mean images > that > are blurry, have low contrast, or have ghosting. > > So, having not yet tried shake reduction, my thinking is that > wide-angle, low-light shots will probably be able to use only 2-2.5 > steps of shake reduction. The highest level of shake reduction, 4.5 > steps, might be achieveable only with telephoto in daylight, where the > shutter speeds would need to be higher to start with. > > What does everyone think? > > K100D owners: Any experience? > > Thanks, -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
