70-200 L-series 2.8

Taky Cheung · September 18th, 2011, 10:45 PM

Everybody says IS should be off on tripod. I found it completely not the case. With IS off, even little shake like people walk a few feet near me, those shakiness will be recorded.

I guess the best way is to experience it yourself to see if IS is needed on tripod. IMO, IS is a must for video recording.

Jonathan Shaw · September 19th, 2011, 01:48 AM

Actually Taky I'm with you. IS on when using a long lens works well even on a tripod. I have never noticed any dodgy shifting etc etc

Dylan Couper · September 19th, 2011, 11:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steve Oakley

IS is a WASTE of money.

That's inaccurate unless your shooting is limited to a warm comfy studio. IS can save your shots EVEN on a tripod. You just haven't learned the hard way yet.

Alan Maughan · September 21st, 2011, 09:53 AM

Guys,

Many thanks for all the information, I certainly feel I have made a far more informed purchasing decision than many other times in my life! Ive opted for the 2.8 IS II which really has blown my budget but I feel confident this lens will help me to progress further with both video and stills.

It arrives in the morning and I feel like a kid on Christmas eve!

Andy Wilkinson · September 21st, 2011, 01:43 PM

Blummin heck! Enjoy! I'm sure you'll not regret it (long after the pain of paying for it has long gone).

James Strange · September 21st, 2011, 07:40 PM

I had the tamron 70-200, upgraded to the canon 70-200 f/2.8 with IS ,

For me, IS is definitely worth it, even on atripod, there is a huge improvement, IS removes themicro shakes and wobles .

Im now selling my tamron if anyone is interested, its on ebay

Alan Maughan · September 22nd, 2011, 10:33 AM

My new lens arrived this morning and Ive been out this afternoon.

Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now I understand.

Monty Wentzel · September 22nd, 2011, 05:35 PM

IS makes me think I've become a good camera man. Once it's turned off I'm depressed.

Monty

Ger Griffin · September 23rd, 2011, 09:36 PM

Congrats on the new lens Alan.The only way you'll regret that purchase is if you drop it! So don't :)

Peter Burke · October 17th, 2011, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alan Maughan

My new lens arrived this morning and Ive been out this afternoon.

Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now I understand.

My first experience was the very same !!!!!!!!!! wow !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Standing, balanced on top of a concrete barrier @ motor sports, smooth panning, and zooming and focussing (using a vari-ND to open up to F2.8 in broad daylight to knock out the wire fence) all at once, this len's IS is incredible.

Bill Binder · October 20th, 2011, 09:15 AM

I'm primarily a stills shooter, but let me just add that the 70-200mm f2.8L IS II is flat out the sickest lens ever in that category. Just ABSOLUTELY KICK @SS. If you do events, I simply can't imagine not owning it, it's that good. Worth every single penny and then some, I literally would pay more for it even.

Aaron Dunlap · December 29th, 2011, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Monty Wentzel

IS makes me think I've become a good camera man. Once it's turned off I'm depressed.

Monty

I'm going to go ahead and second this. I don't comment on this forum too much, but if you're a cameraman trying to decide whether or not to get an IS lens vs the non-IS (specifically the 70-200).... get the non-IS and spend the other $1000 you just saved on some decent sticks and a halfway decent head.... or a mediocre set of sticks with a head, and some sort of run-n-gun stabilizer mount as well.

If stabilization is a concern, I most certainly would not trust it to something built into my lens. (For video at least... still the 70-200 2.8 II is a very sharp lens, but I would buy the non-IS first and spend my other money elsewhere)

Just my two cents.

Scott Hayes · January 2nd, 2012, 02:17 PM

Id get the 70-200 IS II and be done. youll end up with it at somepoint, so take the hit upfront
and enjoy.

Steve Oakley · January 2nd, 2012, 11:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dylan Couper

That's inaccurate unless your shooting is limited to a warm comfy studio. IS can save your shots EVEN on a tripod. You just haven't learned the hard way yet.

I wish I did shoot in some comfy studio, but I don't. mostly location work.

what I do have is a good head & sticks that easily handles this lens with full matte box / ff setup. as some one else said, the $1k you save on the tamron vs the canon will get you into the bottom end of a decent tripod setup thats a lot more bang for the buck. you'll use it all the time for everything.

I also have a Matthews doorway dolly as well which gets a lot of location use.

I've been shooting for over 25 years now, and IS is just not a concern except when aircraft are involved.

s

Jon Fairhurst · January 3rd, 2012, 01:42 AM

Dylan and Steve,

You're both right. If your grip gear is really stable, IS isn't needed. IS costs money that could be spent on grip gear.

...however, when shooting events on squishy carpet, in the wind, or in any other real-world situation where there is ANY play in the tripod, at 200mm even on the 5D2 you will see vibrations in the footage every time you touch the pan handle. When it's a live event, you can't re-shoot, you can't go find some weights to steady your sticks, and you can't move the tripod to better footing. For live shooting, I definitely recommend IS. I shot one with the 200/2.8L and needed to hold my breath every time I needed to pan. It was stressful and the result, while good, was less than perfect. At a similar event with the 70-200/2.8L IS II, I was able to concentrate on framing without worries and the result was 100% perfect from a vibration point of view. FWIW, I was using a Vinten 3AS with a floor spreader on thick carpet. (I need to get a mid-spreader.)

For narrative, IS isn't as critical. You have time to get things right and re-shoot when there are problems. Even still, with IS you can damp out micro-vibrations that can add motion blur to your images, so it can still add benefit.

Anyway, for events and live shooting, I'd definitely recommend IS. But you need good grip gear too. Hopefully, the two aren't mutually exclusive.

September 18th, 2011, 10:45 PM	#16
Taky Cheung Inner Circle Join Date: May 2007 Location: Los Angeles, USA Posts: 2,114	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Everybody says IS should be off on tripod. I found it completely not the case. With IS off, even little shake like people walk a few feet near me, those shakiness will be recorded. I guess the best way is to experience it yourself to see if IS is needed on tripod. IMO, IS is a must for video recording. __________________ LA Color Pros Blog RODE Authorized Reseller . Comer LED Camera Lights . TakyBox HTML5 Menu Generator

September 19th, 2011, 01:48 AM	#17
Jonathan Shaw Major Player Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Sydney Posts: 552	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Actually Taky I'm with you. IS on when using a long lens works well even on a tripod. I have never noticed any dodgy shifting etc etc __________________ www.ginclearfilm.com www.facebook.com/ginclearfilm Last edited by Jonathan Shaw; September 19th, 2011 at 11:20 PM.

September 21st, 2011, 09:53 AM	#19
Alan Maughan Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Wylam Posts: 46	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Guys, Many thanks for all the information, I certainly feel I have made a far more informed purchasing decision than many other times in my life! Ive opted for the 2.8 IS II which really has blown my budget but I feel confident this lens will help me to progress further with both video and stills. It arrives in the morning and I feel like a kid on Christmas eve!

September 21st, 2011, 01:43 PM	#20
Andy Wilkinson Inner Circle Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Cambridge UK Posts: 2,853	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Blummin heck! Enjoy! I'm sure you'll not regret it (long after the pain of paying for it has long gone). __________________ Andy K Wilkinson - https://www.shootingimage.co.uk Cambridge (UK) Corporate Video Production

September 21st, 2011, 07:40 PM	#21
James Strange Major Player Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Glasgow, Scotland, UK Posts: 309	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 I had the tamron 70-200, upgraded to the canon 70-200 f/2.8 with IS , For me, IS is definitely worth it, even on atripod, there is a huge improvement, IS removes themicro shakes and wobles . Im now selling my tamron if anyone is interested, its on ebay

September 22nd, 2011, 10:33 AM	#22
Alan Maughan Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Wylam Posts: 46	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 My new lens arrived this morning and Ive been out this afternoon. Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Now I understand.

September 22nd, 2011, 05:35 PM	#23
Monty Wentzel Regular Crew Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: San Diego, California Posts: 30	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 IS makes me think I've become a good camera man. Once it's turned off I'm depressed. Monty

September 23rd, 2011, 09:36 PM	#24
Ger Griffin Major Player Join Date: May 2007 Location: Ireland Posts: 579	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Congrats on the new lens Alan.The only way you'll regret that purchase is if you drop it! So don't :)

October 20th, 2011, 09:15 AM	#26
Bill Binder Major Player Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: San Francisco Posts: 542	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 I'm primarily a stills shooter, but let me just add that the 70-200mm f2.8L IS II is flat out the sickest lens ever in that category. Just ABSOLUTELY KICK @SS. If you do events, I simply can't imagine not owning it, it's that good. Worth every single penny and then some, I literally would pay more for it even. __________________ BayTaper.com \| One man's multimedia journey through the San Francisco live jazz and creative music scene.

January 2nd, 2012, 02:17 PM	#28
Scott Hayes Major Player Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Lexington, KY Posts: 692	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Id get the 70-200 IS II and be done. youll end up with it at somepoint, so take the hit upfront and enjoy.

January 3rd, 2012, 01:42 AM	#30
Jon Fairhurst Inner Circle Join Date: May 2006 Location: Camas, WA, USA Posts: 5,513	Re: 70-200 L-series 2.8 Dylan and Steve, You're both right. If your grip gear is really stable, IS isn't needed. IS costs money that could be spent on grip gear. ...however, when shooting events on squishy carpet, in the wind, or in any other real-world situation where there is ANY play in the tripod, at 200mm even on the 5D2 you will see vibrations in the footage every time you touch the pan handle. When it's a live event, you can't re-shoot, you can't go find some weights to steady your sticks, and you can't move the tripod to better footing. For live shooting, I definitely recommend IS. I shot one with the 200/2.8L and needed to hold my breath every time I needed to pan. It was stressful and the result, while good, was less than perfect. At a similar event with the 70-200/2.8L IS II, I was able to concentrate on framing without worries and the result was 100% perfect from a vibration point of view. FWIW, I was using a Vinten 3AS with a floor spreader on thick carpet. (I need to get a mid-spreader.) For narrative, IS isn't as critical. You have time to get things right and re-shoot when there are problems. Even still, with IS you can damp out micro-vibrations that can add motion blur to your images, so it can still add benefit. Anyway, for events and live shooting, I'd definitely recommend IS. But you need good grip gear too. Hopefully, the two aren't mutually exclusive. __________________ Jon Fairhurst