All camera brands offer some form of image stabilization. The technology is wonderful! Whenever you are using slower shutter speeds while holding the camera, hand vibration will cause some amount of motion blur, making the image less sharp. In these situations, image stabilization can really help. Images that otherwise would turn out a little soft (unsharp) will be much sharper with image stabilization.
Every camera and lens manufacturer calls this technology something different, adding a little confusion. Canon calls it Image Stabilization. Nikon calls it Vibration Reduction. Sony calls it Super Steady Shot. Tamron calls it Vibration Compensation. It’s all basically the same idea.
The different manufacturers implement this feature in different ways. Some have it built into the camera body, and others build it into the lens. Canon and Nikon build it into their lenses. The catch is, not all lenses have this feature. Generally, lenses that have this feature cost a bit more than ones that do not. I personally believe it is worth the extra cost.
Usually the manufacturer will indicate the degree to which their stabilization will help. For example, they may say a lens offers “3 stops of image stabilization.” To know what is meant by that, you have to consider a basic rule about what shutter speed is sufficiently fast to freeze any motion blur introduced by hand movement/vibration.
That rule says the shutter speed should be at least 1 / focal length when using a camera with a “full frame” sensor. So if you are shooting with a 200mm lens, you should ensure the shutter speed is at least 1/200th second or faster. Or if you are not using a camera with a full frame sensor, such as a camera with an APS-C sensor, then you need to take into account the sensor “crop factor” (typically 1.5X on most Nikons and 1.6X on most Canons with APS-C sensors). That means with that same 200mm lens on a Canon Rebel DSLR with a 1.6X crop factor, is effectively producing images that look like they were shot with a 1.6 X 200mm lens (320mm) and you should really shoot at least 1/320th second or faster.
Now, back to that lens that says it offers “3 stops of image stabilization”. If you are shooting with a 200mm lens they mean you can break that shutter speed rule I mentioned above by three stops. A stop is a photography term referring to the doubling of the light. So, in terms of the shutter speed, “one stop” means making the shutter speed twice as slow, like going from 1/200th to 1/100th.
If you are using a 200mm lens on a full frame sensor camera, you should normally try to shoot at 1/200th second or faster. If the lens offers “one stop” of image stabilization, then you can get away with shooting at 1/100th. If it offers three stops of image stabilization, you can theoretically shoot at 1/25th second! (1/200th -> 1/100th -> 1/50th -> 1/25th). Wow!
Just note that it is probably risky to go that far with trusting the image stabilization to sharpen up a slow shutter speed shot, but it sure helps having that feature when you simply must use a slow shutter speed hand-held, like when shooting in a low light scenario. If it turns out the image stabilization just isn’t getting the job done well enough, that means it is time for you to shift to a higher ISO which will enable you to shoot at faster shutter speeds.
One more note about terminology you might encounter: Sometimes you might see the term “EV” used instead of “stops.” They mean the same thing. “EV” stands for Exposure Value and technically is the more accurate term when talking about varying shutter speeds. A “stop” normally refers to the aperture values, but when we are talking about shifting shutter speeds by an amount that is the equivalent of adjusting the light by one f/stop, that is said to be an adjustment of one EV. Still, you will find many manufacturers talk about the image stabilization in terms of stops instead of EV’s. It’s all the same.
Also, note that lenses that offer image stabilization have an off/on switch, and some offer more than one mode of operation. Check the manual that came with your lens for more information about its features and any limitations. For example, the reason they have an off/on switch is because when you are shooting on a tripod, you should turn off the image stabilization. Again, check your manual for more information about that. Just remember to turn the image stabilization back ON when you are shooting hand-held!
This feature is so important; you really need to make sure you know how to use it! Using this technology will help ensure you get consistently sharper hand-held shots! It’s a “must use” feature!
