3

CHAPTER
NIGHT AND LOW-LIGHT PHOTOGRAPHY / What Gear Is Important

takes a moment for the vibration reduction or

image stabilization feature to read the movement

in the scene and counteract it. This slight lag can

cause problems when photographing moving sub-

jects because the subject can change position by

the time the shutter is actually released. If possi-

ble, it is always better to use a tripod to keep the

camera steady.

nearly impossible to hold steady. In Figure 3-10
the vibration reduction feature was turned off and
in Figure 3-11 it was turned on. You can see that
there is a difference in how sharp the two images
are compared to each other.

There are also times when this technology should
not be used because there is a brief lag time
between pressing the shutter button and the
actual image being captured. This is because it

ABOUT THIS PHOTO The House of Blues sign makes a nice
example of the differences in using and not using the vibration reduc-
tion technology that is in my Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. This photo
was shot without using the vibration reduction technology at 1/8 sec-
ond, f/6.3, and ISO 500.

3-10

ABOUT THIS PHOTO The House of Blues sign again but this

time the photo was shot using the vibration reduction technology at 1/8

second, f/6.3, and ISO 500.

3-11