Image Stabilization while on tripod?

[Duke]

So i have read that I need to have IS off when doing a tripod shot so as not to get motor feedback. I prefer double checking principles rather than just taking them on faith and I did an experiment with some city lights at night a few weeks ago and tried both ways to see and got mixed results. Do you have any experience with this? My experiments while hand held show that it definitely helps so the IS is working. ? Do you shut yours off for tripod shots?

Duke

 

[John Fowler]

Conventional practice is to turn it off when using a tripod but I haven't run any tests and often forget to do it.

Here's a link to an interesting experiment about IS (or VR) in general.

http://photographylife.com/proof-that-vibration-reduction-should-first-be-stabilized

 

[Nick]

I can say with absolute certainty that using optical stabilization for long exposures is a bad thing. That little IS/OS/VR element just bounces around lightly and distorts things. Check out this really bad star trail from 2010 for a good visualization of the problem. This is stacked 30 second exposures.

 

[Duke]

Thanks Nick and John. John, I did read that article. Very interesting and throws another wrench in that may help explain why I got such varied results. It is also interesting that the author did all of these tests with the camera mounted and stated that hand held results could not have been used. He states that IS should only be used when slower than the equivalent number for focal length, but with his results all while on a mount I would take it that he has no problem with using IS while on a tripod, when at high zoom. This seems to go against Nick's evidence.

Still a bit confusing for me.

 

[Nick]

I think any possible wiggle room on whether it might work would come in shorter exposures, but logically it still seems like a bad idea. Just watch that sucker dance...

 

[John Fowler]

Thanks Nick and John. John, I did read that article. Very interesting and throws another wrench in that may help explain why I got such varied results. It is also interesting that the author did all of these tests with the camera mounted and stated that hand held results could not have been used. He states that IS should only be used when slower than the equivalent number for focal length, but with his results all while on a mount I would take it that he has no problem with using IS while on a tripod, when at high zoom. This seems to go against Nick's evidence.

Still a bit confusing for me.

He got the best results when using a tripod with IR turned off, and slightly worse results with IR on but giving it time to stabilize, and the worst results with IR on but not giving sufficient time for stabilization. At least that's how I read it.