JohnLock
Veteran Member
Not today. There are just too many good system camera/lens out there that provide this important feature. An additional 3 f-stops in dim light is a huge advantage.
JL
JL
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Would you buy a camera lens combination without IS?
- Thread starter Trevor Carpenter
- Start date
Guy Parsons
Veteran Member
Never.
Recently on holidays and I was surprised at how many shake free images I could get, even under some terrible conditions, E-P5 plus 12-40/2.8 helps with that.
One night I decided to push things a little and tried 1/2 second at 40mm (standing, hand held) and the only two shots I took were perfect. Never bothered to go further down as I was happy at that point.
In theory a 40mm lens on M4/3 needs 1/80 sec for reasonable reliability of freedom from shake and with the old 2 axis Oly IBIS or Mega OIS I could take that to 1/8 second , slower and I had problems. So the 5 axis IBIS allowed me to go from 1/8 sec to 1/2 sec reliably and I'm happy.
One dark night I'll check more shutter speeds at more focal lengths to see what I can get.
In your case with no IBIS or OIS the 60mm lens would need at least 1/120 sec and 300mm would need at least 1/600 sec in theory (some do worse, some do better, I just happen to fit the rule). Add a bean bag or tripod and things get way better, so be prepared to carry more support stuff to make up for no stabilisation.
Regards..... Guy
Recently on holidays and I was surprised at how many shake free images I could get, even under some terrible conditions, E-P5 plus 12-40/2.8 helps with that.
One night I decided to push things a little and tried 1/2 second at 40mm (standing, hand held) and the only two shots I took were perfect. Never bothered to go further down as I was happy at that point.
In theory a 40mm lens on M4/3 needs 1/80 sec for reasonable reliability of freedom from shake and with the old 2 axis Oly IBIS or Mega OIS I could take that to 1/8 second , slower and I had problems. So the 5 axis IBIS allowed me to go from 1/8 sec to 1/2 sec reliably and I'm happy.
One dark night I'll check more shutter speeds at more focal lengths to see what I can get.
In your case with no IBIS or OIS the 60mm lens would need at least 1/120 sec and 300mm would need at least 1/600 sec in theory (some do worse, some do better, I just happen to fit the rule). Add a bean bag or tripod and things get way better, so be prepared to carry more support stuff to make up for no stabilisation.
Regards..... Guy
TN Args
Veteran Member
You can do it if you want to. IMO you will clearly be committing to using a tripod on occasions, and not on others. Your photos will actually be better for doing this than using IS, anyway.
Mark Thornton
Veteran Member
Just think how expensive it would be to get those 3 extra stops by optical means!
antoineb
Veteran Member
Hi Trevor,
I think it depends a lot on the intended use. People DID do a lot of zoom photography long before IS was invented, and continued to do so when IS had been invented but brought little benefit i.e. max 1-2 stops.
Remember that IS corrects USER movement. So if you will do a lot of candid photography, or can never be bothered to carry a tripod, the IS is very useful. On the other hand if your intended use for a 300mm is to photography wildlife i.e. probably use a tripod and stay immobile for a long time, then IS is much less useful.
I think it depends a lot on the intended use. People DID do a lot of zoom photography long before IS was invented, and continued to do so when IS had been invented but brought little benefit i.e. max 1-2 stops.
Remember that IS corrects USER movement. So if you will do a lot of candid photography, or can never be bothered to carry a tripod, the IS is very useful. On the other hand if your intended use for a 300mm is to photography wildlife i.e. probably use a tripod and stay immobile for a long time, then IS is much less useful.
Isabel, I don't understand why you would not just use a tripod - almost the perfect situation to do so, I would have thought.
I use a tripod a LOT around the house and garden, less so when traveling of course.
But around home and within a few hundred meters, I'd use a tripod over IS of any kind almost all the time.
Mark Thornton
Veteran Member
I think I would be in trouble if I left a tripod set up around the house for any length of time.
Mark
Mark
Terminal Boy
Veteran Member
I purchased a 15mm f1.7 PanaLeica to use on my GM1 knowing it wasn't stabilsed and I manage to avoid image shake 90% of the time.
Because in my view you cannot putit lie that as you are not as penalised for instance with an ultrawide lens compared to a long(ish) zoom.
Also: are you shooting still or moving subjects? if a subjects moves fast, you need a fast shutterspeed which negates the use of OIS/IBIs to some degree.
Another point yet again is: stills or video. The OMD EM5 has poor video but that IBIS in video is great! EM6 with 4K and IBIS (which seems challenging) would be quite something.
A final example: shoot a bird sitting still at 200-600 mm FL with IBIS/OIS on or of...You can shoot at low ISO with IBIS on and a 1/100s or so or you can bump up the ISO by 3-4 stops and end up with a faster shutterspeed but clearly worse IQ...
So long story short: short FL are fine without IBIS/OIS, Longer FL can benefit a lot. All this depends on the subject and the available light though..
Also: are you shooting still or moving subjects? if a subjects moves fast, you need a fast shutterspeed which negates the use of OIS/IBIs to some degree.
Another point yet again is: stills or video. The OMD EM5 has poor video but that IBIS in video is great! EM6 with 4K and IBIS (which seems challenging) would be quite something.
A final example: shoot a bird sitting still at 200-600 mm FL with IBIS/OIS on or of...You can shoot at low ISO with IBIS on and a 1/100s or so or you can bump up the ISO by 3-4 stops and end up with a faster shutterspeed but clearly worse IQ...
So long story short: short FL are fine without IBIS/OIS, Longer FL can benefit a lot. All this depends on the subject and the available light though..
Why does everybody say the E-M5 has poor video. I dare say it has great video quality, you just can't use specific refresh rates and some codecs for pro use is missing, but the image quality is fine.
It's much better to say the camera is not very useful for professional video due to missing options, but for occasional use it's fine.
Grzzl
Veteran Member
In the time of the Nikon D300 i barely noticed the difference. However, the e-m10 is much better (for my way of shooting off-course). It seems it can handle a much greater amplitude of motion.
So i like it very much
So i like it very much
Having been here for long enough I have used cameras and lenses without IBIS, IS, OIS or what ever for most of my life. IBIS etc does help with handheld shots, especially with longer focal lenghts, but there are ways to get sharp shots without too - and usually the result is better than with IS.
1. Use fast enough shutter speed. Rise ISO if needed.
2. Use tripod, monopod, shoulder support or something else. Even with shoulder support you can use 2-4 times longer shutter speeds than just handheld, and with a tripod up to hours.
IS is a wonderful thing, and hepls a lot, but it can in certain situations also add some blur to photograps, mostly in corners. One thing more moving in the light path. These 5-axis versions are very good, and even with the older (EP3) versions you can use amazingly long exposures handheld. Add those two points to this, and you can take acceptable shots with wide angle lenses on cityscapes for 1- 1/2 seconds. But with a proper tripod it would be better.
Jouko
'The best camera in the world is the one you have with you when you need it'
lehtokukka.smugmug.com
1. Use fast enough shutter speed. Rise ISO if needed.
2. Use tripod, monopod, shoulder support or something else. Even with shoulder support you can use 2-4 times longer shutter speeds than just handheld, and with a tripod up to hours.
IS is a wonderful thing, and hepls a lot, but it can in certain situations also add some blur to photograps, mostly in corners. One thing more moving in the light path. These 5-axis versions are very good, and even with the older (EP3) versions you can use amazingly long exposures handheld. Add those two points to this, and you can take acceptable shots with wide angle lenses on cityscapes for 1- 1/2 seconds. But with a proper tripod it would be better.
Jouko
'The best camera in the world is the one you have with you when you need it'
Kuva-Lehto & Lehtokukka photography
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Old Listener
Veteran Member
My wife and I use Oly 60mm lenses on G6 bodies. Works great.
You need precise control over (manual) focus when you are taking macro/closeup shots. IBIS or OIS is something to avoid in that use.
In general, the longer I have gear with IS (years now), the less I use it.
Bobby Rue Goldberg
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No problem at all with the 60mm lens IMO. I shoot that focal length all the time on MFT without stabilization.
Regarding the 300mm lens, I'm not saying that it's not possible to use it, but you'd need to be in bright sunlight and you can't use it for video. For that reason, I wouldn't buy a 300mm lens as pricy as the Oly without stabilization. I might go for something cheap, maybe a few hundred $ tops, even though the quality likely won't be anywhere near the Oly.
Trevor Carpenter
Veteran Member
Trevor Carpenter
Veteran Member
The nos were making major gains early in the day but they are falling back a bit now
Mark Thornton
Veteran Member
Though Olympus do claim that their 5 axis stabilisation is useful with macro (unlike most lesser varieties). That would indicate an e-m5, e-p5 or e-m1 ;-)As a G6 user. I'm about to buy the 60mm and was using that as an excuse to buy a GX7, now you've blown away that excuse
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