IS V Non IS

[PaulPMW]

Greetings,

Is the large price jump between the Canon 70-200 f/4 L USM and the version wth the Image Staberliser, the 70-200 f/4 IS USM, worth it?

Do I need it? How can one tell? Cost is an issue for me.

Rgds,
Paul

[Henrik Paul]

Prices can be checked from many places on the Internet. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ or http://www.adorama.com/ for US and http://www.ac-foto.com/ for Europe are good places to start from. Amazon probably sells something also.

Image stabilisation gives about two stops worth of stability when handheld. When applied to the rule of thumb, a 200mm lens should be operated at 1/200s or faster when handheld, but a two stop help from IS would allow speeds like 1/50s.

[Olli Vainio]

I've found that with newer IS lenses 3 stops slower than without is quite manageable and even with 4 stops lower the keeper rate is still acceptable in most situations.

[Per Ofverbeck]

Greetings,

Is the large price jump between the Canon 70-200 f/4 L USM and the version wth the Image Staberliser, the 70-200 f/4 IS USM, worth it?

Do I need it? How can one tell? Cost is an issue for me.

Rgds,
Paul
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I´d say, generally it´s worth it.  However, if you work with subjects in motion (sports, running kids or animals), IS won´t stop that kind of motion.  For more static subjects (including people that don´t run or jump around all the time) in low light, it makes a world of difference.