IS/VC - Do they help reduce rolling shutter/skew?

J

Jean Dantes

Well-known member
Does anyone know if IS (image stabilisation) or VC (vibration compensation) help in reducing rolling shutter/skew?

I ask because I am thinking about buying this APS-C Tamron lens (for a Canon 7D) that uses VC (which is supposedly the same as Canon's IS technology):

http://www.dwidigitalcameras.com.au/store/product.asp?idProduct=2416

Some people have told me that IS/VC is "a must have" on a lens, however, I am yet to see any tests performed proving it's "must have" quality.

So yeah, does anyone know if IS (image stabilisation) or VC (vibration compensation) help in reducing rolling shutter/skew?

Thanks :)
 
Yes, it does help, but only when shooting handheld. If you're doing pans on a tripod, then it does nothing for you. Actually, IS/VC is not recommended for tripod use because it has been known to cause "bounciness" at the end of pans.
 
Image stabilization is not recommended for Steadicam work either. But if you're not an experienced Steadicam operator, and you're flying a small, light rig, then you might have some extra shakiness. IS/VC would help with that.

I'm guessing that the reason why image stabilization is not found on most prime lenses is because prime lenses are supposed to be faster and simpler than zooms. Image stabilization is important in the still photography world because, when slower shutter speeds are required to obtain a proper exposure, minute camera shake will introduce even more blur into a snapshot. If you have a faster lens, then you can just open the iris wider and use a faster shutter speed to avoid the extra blur. That's why IS mechanisms are rated by "stops," e.g. three or four stops of correction.

IS does exist in some prime lenses however. But they're all very long lenses, like 300mm. A lens that long can't be very fast (even f/2.8 would be very expensive), and shakes are very magnified at long focal lengths.
 
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