Handholding the 70-200 2.8L IS lens

[john_kramer3]

I'm looking at the 70-200 2.8L lens and I'm trying to decide whether

I need to spend $500 more for the image stabalizer. Could someone

help me with the following question:

 

zoomed in to 200, with IS on, what is the slowest shutter speed you

can hand hold this lens at? Of course, I would be interested in as

much data as you're willing to post concerning shutter speeds at

different lengths as well. By handhold, I mean, the abilities of the

average person. Ie: with a 50mm I would say around 1/30th.

 

I want this lens to make sense for me, but I have every factor

working against me: 1) film, not digital (can't change ISO) 2) always

shoot 100 speed film 3) hate to use a tripod 4) always shoot at the

end of the day when light is fading.

 

Can I make this work for me with the IS?

 

thanks.

[andrew_carlson]

I've tried some lowlight stuff with mine, such as 1/15 and so on. IS really doesn't have anything to do with exposure, so to me it can't really give you more stops, thats creative marketing on their part.

 

What it can do is help stabilize the platform while shooting in less than optimal conditions. If you can expose properly then IS is overkill. However there are times when you want a shot such as twilight and early morning where you need those longer shutter speeds. It can help there if you don't use a tripod but its limited, 30 second shutter speeds won't improve handheld with IS.

 

I got mine mainly for sports but love the results so much I use it for practically everything. I leave IS on also and handhold a lot more than I probably should. With sports I'm moving around a lot, and can't perch or brace my body a lot of the time. I can see the IS impact there as the first shot is usually due to my movement, subsequent shots really clear up and look good. Without it, I'd probably end up tossing 25% more shots due to movement. That's not scientific, just my perceptions after using it for a year and a half.

[jim_mueller2]

Image Stabilization reduces camera shake by "wobbling" a lens element within the lens group at high speed to compensate for camera movement. Camera shake is minute movements of the camera caused by the unsteady action of your body.

 

I.S. shifts the image slightly, but does extremley fast so as to optically move the image in the opposite direction of your "shaking".

 

This technology gives a damping effect to the camera shake movments. It doesn't completely eliminate shaking but slows the movement down so a slower shutter can be used. It's VERY effective.

 

With my 300/4 IS + 1.4X, I can hold the effective 420mm lens steady down to about 1/90 or so (with a little luck).<div></div>

[mike_earussi1]

IS helps a lot as long as your subject isn't moving.

[pturton]

John,

 

That $500 more also includes weather resistance which I've found to be very effective.

[test11664875106]

Mike, IS helps with <A HREF="http://citadel.nobulus.com/gallery/HHMarathon2005/MG_4817" target="_NEW">moving subjects</A> just as good. That shot was made with shutter speed around 1/60 and while not perfect (I still need to master the technique) I wouldn't expect even this without IS.

 

As for lowest speed, <A HREF="http://citadel.nobulus.com/gallery/jonlord/IMG_4409" target="_NEW">this one</A> is around 1/10 at aproximately 135mm (on 20D) if I remember correct.

[John Crowe]

Unless you are trying to achieve an artistic movement shot like the runner above IS will NOT help with sports. You need 1/180-1/1000 for most sports to freeze the action and that is also good enough to freeze your 200mm lens.

 

 

It will help with lowlight photography where there is no subject movement. You are limited to approximately 1/15 with even the shortest lens. With longer exposures than that you will still need a tripod.

[henrik.ploug]

IS will give you three stops compared to what you can normally handhold. The rest is math.

 

If you can hand hold a 50mm at 1/30 sec, you will probably be able to handhold a 200mm at 1/200 x 50/30 = 1/120 sec (without IS).

 

Add the IS and you can multiply the shutterspeed with 8 (three stops), so you can handhold a 200mm IS lens at 1/120 x 8 = 1/15 sec.

[rodney_gold1]

The rule of thumb is that the slowest shutter speed one should use is 1/focal length , and with a 1.6 crop camera it is 1/focal length * 1.6

IE 1/320th with a 200mm lens at 200mm on a 20d or so and 1/200th on a non cropped camera. Obviously this changes as focal length changes. This is not cast in stone and depends on your technique and steadiness. The latest gen of IS will give you between 2-3 stops , so in theory that same scenario would give you about 1/35th at BEST on a cropped camera and 1/25th on a FF one at 200mm . However IS is no magic bullet and depending on print size and whats acceptable to you , I would say 2 not 3 stops is really the lower limit. For critical work , I would ignore IS and use the 1/focal length rule as the lower limit for hand holding

In YOUR case the IS would come in very handy considering you shoot when light is fading (I assume you arent shooting action or moving objects then). If you don't like a tripod , why not carry a lightweight monopod which will further extend this if you do get an IS lens and will give you the 2-3 stops of IS at a much cheaper price if you go for a non IS version of this lens.

[oceanphysics]

IS does nothing for moving subjects. Panning is what helps with moving subjects, but if you're panning the subject isn't really moving any more. The panning mode of the IS lens merely eliminates camera shake (not subject movement) perpendicular to the panning direction.

[oceanphysics]

b.t.w. I can generally hand-hold my 300 f/4 IS to about 1/60. Sometimes less, but 1/30 is pretty iffy. I think the 70-200 may be a generation more advanced, so you might get another stop out of it.

<p>

<i>I want this lens to make sense for me, but I have every factor working against me: 1) film, not digital (can't change ISO) 2) always shoot 100 speed film 3) hate to use a tripod 4) always shoot at the end of the day when light is fading.</i>

<p>

Believe it or not, sometimes it pays to adopt technique and gear that is appropriate to the situation. The lens will help some, but 100 ISO film in low light with a long lens handheld just isn't a particularly bright thing to do.

[erin.e]

Ocean Physics said "Believe it or not, sometimes it pays to adopt technique and gear that is appropriate to the situation. The lens will help some, but 100 ISO film in low light with a long lens handheld just isn't a particularly bright thing to do."

 

My sentiments exactly!

[whwhitejr]

Hi John, I have this lens with IS. It seems to me that you have got your self backed in a corner at ISO 100 with out a tripod or at least a monopod. A good digital body with this lens would give you a lot more options handheld. A Lot of my shooting is sports shooting and is hand held or with a monopod (mostly for me to lean on) some low light some daylight. All of the low light is at ISO 800 or 1600. Some shots are still dark. I love this lens and use it most of the time.(Shooting sports) IS is definitely worth the extra$$ For me. This should be a great lens for you with a tripod negating the need for IS. Otherwise you may be better off with a prime lens say f1.4. ?mm LOL,Bill

[john_kramer3]

Thanks for all the responses. Maybe a monopod does make sense. the last poster nailed the problem exactly - my situation *is* a direct result of me coming from f/1.4 prime lenses! thats why I have been able to keep up this game so long! but its time to switch to the flexibility of a zoom... but yes, my subjects are stationary. no sports. so at least that helps.

What 800 speed film do you recommend? I currently use provia 100F and... honestly don't even know anything else! Thanks again for your help.

[micheleberti]

"<i>zoomed in to 200, with IS on, what is the slowest shutter speed you can hand hold this lens at?</i>"

 

<p>1/15 sec</p>

[doug_landrum]

800 ISO film? Fujicolor Press 800. As for the EF 70-200 f/2.8 L IS USM, the image stabilization is truly amazing. I can handhold down to about 1/25 sec. at 200mm with a 20D and get a pretty good image.

[harvey_chao2]

Actually I refer to the 300 F4 IS lens - I have used this very successfuly with ISO 800 Fuji Supra color neg film to shoot carbon arc spotlight figure skaters with a F4 125/250 exposure VERY successfully. Having to shoot from public seating means no tripod or other support, and panning with the IS and 125/250 shutter speed results in very crisp images. Problem is that now that I finally have pretty appropriate gear for the venue, they won't let me bring it into the show!

 

Harvey