IS Problem?

Question

I purchased my first IS lenses which was the 24-105mm f/4 IS L and Ive been doing tests on it and I noticed that there with my IS on at a high shutter speed (1/100 or faster) and/or with the flash unit on, the picture comes out more blurrier than with the IS off. Is this a defect or does IS not work at high shutter speed?

Yea just like if you have it on a tripod you want to ahve it off cause its looking for vibrations. But I mean my hands arent as still as a tripod so I wont think it would work against itself.

Haha I know I never intentionally shook the camera. I wanted to get results about how well the IS acutally works. I like to take out varibles that might affect the pictures such as shaking it on purpose. I held the camera as still as I could while taking the shots so there would be at least a constant, that being little camera shake.

Both your guys answers are great, I dont know which one to choose. I tried it out today for about 3 hours of shooting and it seems to not go all crazy any more. It seemed like it was a lot jumpier when I first got it. I dont think lenses "break in" like shoes but hey what ever works.

Answer 1

I'm not an expert at the engineering, Koko, but my first instinct is that you are using IS when you don't need it, especially when using flash, so maybe it is working against itself. Sensors in the lens determine how much shake there is and physically move elements inside the lens to compensate for this discrepancy. Perhaps the flash fires with the image stabilization mechanism in one position as soon as the front curtain triggers the flash to fire and, since the duration of the flash is but a fraction of the time the shutter is actually open and since the IS works so quickly, you are getting a ghost image once the IS settles down into some position other than when the flash fired. I know... That sounds like voodoo engineering, but it's a guess.

As far as the 1/100 shutter speed or faster, I don't really have an answer. Nikon VR certainly works at higher shutter speeds. If you don't need any stabilization, it just doesn't have much effect. I'm going to check out canonusa.com and see what I can learn about the Canon IS system. I'll add to the answer if I come up with anything or if I learn that my guess is horse-hooey.

Well, I see that Canon has an active mode ("Mode 2") just like Nikon's "Active" mode and you had selected Mode 2 when you were not actively panning the camera. I can see why Nikon chose to call their modes "Normal" and "Active" instead of "Mode 1" and "Mode 2."

This link is for pretty basic information and I'm sure the owner's manual goes into more depth, but maybe there is something here that would be new to you. Don't overlook the little banner that says, "Click here for a Photo Tip," as this is where you will find actual technical information.

http://www.usa.canon.com/app/html/IS_Lens/is_version.html

Another thought comes to mind. IS will work for "normal" camera shake; the kind we all think we are not really producing. If you are trying to intentionally shake the camera, I am sure that the degree of camera movement is far beyond what IS or VR is capable of correcting. The system works by moving a lens element (or so) back and forth in the barrel and there's only but so much distance that thing can travel before it's out of room. You know that the commercials for P&S IS cameras are very misleading. IS is not intended to correct crazy bumping - like that roller coaster ride - but they seem to portray it this way anyhow. I'm sure that this leads to some disappointed customers.

I'd suggest that you try some tests using 1/100 or faster simply with and without the IS turned on. Don't try to shake the camera, but assume that you're going to have some degree of shaking anyhow. Rack it out to 105 mm (168 mm equiv) to magnify any shake and then carefully examine your results at 100% image size on the computer monitor.

If I've assumed too much here about your tests, I'm sorry ifit came out insulting, but I'm just trying to come up with something to help.

Whatever you do, don't vote on this question for a few days to give the people who may know more than I do a chance to chime in with their ideas. Be sure to extend the expiration time also after a couple of days. That will keep the question alive for another 6 days.
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Hey, you're 16 and you SHOULD be pretty steady. A 105 (168) mm lens is not really much of a challenge to hold still at normal shutter speeds, either. Maybe you ARE about as steady as a tripod. I'm sure you hold your breath and s-q-u-e-e-z-e the shutter the way you are supposed to. (This goes against my assumption above that you might be TRYING to shake the camera, but it also makes sense to me.) You may just not need IS in "normal" light conditions. It will help when you get down to 1/15 and slower, no matter how good you are at 16...
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"I held the camera as still as I could while taking the shots so there would be at least a constant, that being little camera shake"

Well there you go... YOU were your own tripod. Not that you shouldn't try to hold the camera still, but you can probably do a better job than most at your age. Especially with the relatively short 105 lens.
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Great info, OMG. Great comment about Nikons, too! All I can say is, "Gee... I've never had this problem." Haha!

Answer 2

Hey Koko,

Let's round up the posse and solve this mystery! Dr. Sam made a great start but before we delve into this any further, let's eliminate the obvious... did you give the IS a second to kick in before taking the shot? (IS only activates when you pess the shutter button halfway. Give it at least half a second after that to do it's job.)

Here's a bit more about the two Canon's IS modes - it may or may not relate to the specifics of your test shots: http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=003m8W&tag=

And the opinions are divided regarding when to use IS.
According to some users: "(always) keep the IS on, as there is more handshake even at the faster shutter speeds (e.g., 1/250 and faster) than you realize. Haven't noticed a problem panning, but then I don't do much of it. On the tripod I would cut it off, EXCEPT if there are gusty wind conditions..."
http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=006Byf
But other users disagree:
"I only use IS when hand holding, on monopod/bean bag, and on tripod without MLU and shutter speed is slower than 1/FL. Outside these parameters, I turn it off." In other words, turn IS off when the shutter time is faster than 1/ focal length.
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1029&message=21572740
Ditto according to this guy, and his findings sound a lot like what you're experiencing. Take note:
"If I`m shooting at 50mm at 1/125 shutter speed my chances of getting a very sharp shot are better with IS off. It takes away the whole randomness of IS trying to make a correction. The misconception is that at 50mm and a 1/125 shutter speed with IS on is like shooting at 1/1000. It`s not. The hit or miss of IS will cause more harm then good. Obviously at 50mm and 1/15 shutter speed IS will be a big help. You should at least be able to get an acceptably sharp photo.
If I`m using a midrange IS lens I would leave the IS off by default. Just turn it on when you actually need it. Where that point is depends on how steady you hands are. "
http://photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00Dmnr&tag=

Of course, Sam and I use Nikons. So despite our brilliant intellectual powers *cough*, we can't offer a lot of hands-on experience. Perhaps Petra_au ? (From the USA to Europe, and on to Australia in search of an answer...)

Answer 3

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