bumpintheroad wrote in post #17918008
I'm sure that IS is effective at slower shutter speeds. I expect that Canon wouldn't waste time putting it on lenses for no benefit.
I know that, empirically, I can handhold a 35mm lens at 1/25th. Even on a crop body. I also know that, if necessary, I seldom have complaint about shooting at ISO 6400. So f/2 at 1/25th and 6400 is somewhere around 1 EV. That's pretty darn dark, and pretty much the limit at which my 70D can focus. If it's going to be darker than that I have several tripods, flashes and LED lighting that I'm not adverse to using. Obviously, I can't predict all future situations, but I would be very comfortable trading IS in exchange for $300 worth of savings, particularly on a short focal length lens with reasonable fast aperture.
I'm sure that IS is effective at slower shutter speeds. I expect that Canon wouldn't waste time putting it on lenses for no benefit.
I know that, empirically, I can handhold a 35mm lens at 1/25th. Even on a crop body. I also know that, if necessary, I seldom have complaint about shooting at ISO 6400. So f/2 at 1/25th and 6400 is somewhere around 1 EV. That's pretty darn dark, and pretty much the limit at which my 70D can focus. If it's going to be darker than that I have several tripods, flashes and LED lighting that I'm not adverse to using. Obviously, I can't predict all future situations, but I would be very comfortable trading IS in exchange for $300 worth of savings, particularly on a short focal length lens with reasonable fast aperture.
Sounds like you have analysed it pretty well.
For me, I don't think (a) I can hand hold a 35 lens and get excellent sharpness at 1/25th.
but (b) if I could hold such a lens at 1/25th and get decent sharpness at 1/25, I suspect I would get a sharper image with IS. But that is not true for everyone.
You are happy with what you get at 1/25 without IS. And the tradeoff in savings that translates to a better lens makes sense to me.
