OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

I don't have a gimbal yet, it's on the way.

Traditional wisdom is tripod mount = VR off. I also have found that VR at high shutter speed makes little difference.

But at 500mm or even 300, when you need to drop your shutter speed down, is it VR on or off with a gimbal?

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

Odd, it's Canon IS on, everything else...., OFF!! :lol:
Odd, I'm not kidding!
SS

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

Always off, with the exception of those lenses marked with a "Tripod" position on the VR control switch on the side of the lens.

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

Thanks, SS. That's what I suspected since a gimbal is pretty much in free-flight mode. I'll get to test it in a couple of days.

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

Now we have one vote for on, one vote for off. What's a guy supposed to do? :-)

JD750 Loc: SoCal

Isnt the main purpose of a good tripod to enable low shutter speeds without blurry results? When using telephoto lenses, lower light, high value ND filters, etc. Else why use the tripod? It limits motion. Now VR allows you to push that shutter speed until you need the tripod down a little. But when you get there ,once your on a tripod, you don't need VR.

Nikonian72 Loc: Chico CA

You go with MT Shooter, the professional photographer who near weekly, uses long lenses on gimbal heads.

Additional info:
All About VR
http://www.bythom.com/nikon-vr.htm

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

Maybe you missed the point here. The point of a gimbal is to not limit motion.

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

As far as VR, what is the advantage of off VS: on?
I was playing around with the Tamron and I felt the VR was an advantage. Seemed like anyway.
Wouldn't it at least depend a bit on the situation? Wouldn't it behoove to try both? :|

Threads like this give me GAS.

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

"Motion" and "Vibration" are two very different issues. A properly fluid-dampened Gimbal head is a thing of beauty to use, but it is still mounted rigidly to a tripod. The VR system of the lens is designed to counteract low level vibration as well as incidental motion. VR systems will work to try to counteract that smooth motion afforded by a good Gimbal head and that will cause the image to be jerky as you follow the action. When fixed on a distant subject the VR system is still searching for motion to counteract and this in itself can cause motion blur on the image as there is nothing for the VR to compensate for.
"Tripod Mode", on those lenses that offer it, puts the VR system into a very fine search mode that primarily is intended to counteract the higher frequency vibration caused by mirror slap when taking a shot.

That said, there are some pretty poor quality, light duty gimbal heads on the market that are, in themselves, so unstable that VR could actually be a benefit when using some of them.

SonnyE Loc: Communist California, USA

Very good MT Shooter, Thank You for that explanation.
Makes much better sense now.

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

Once people become experienced photographers instead of politicians, then it becomes very easy to understand when properly explained. :thumbup:

Glad to help.

OddJobber Loc: Portland, OR

Yes, thanks for that explanation, MT.
" there are some pretty poor quality, light duty gimbal heads on the market that are, in themselves, so unstable that VR could actually be a benefit when using some of them."

LOL. Due to too many GAS attacks this month that's the route I had to go. but your advice several month ago regarding Meike vs Optika saved me 50 bucks.

So you are now entitled to two votes, making it 2 to 1 for VR on. Sorry, SS. :)

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

Odd, I don't know how many or which Nikon lenses have a Tripod mode, since I don't use them. For those that do, I'm sure they do exactly as MT says.
Perhaps if you tell us which lens you will be using, then MT can tell you exactly what to do with THAT particular lens. Or look on the side of it and see if it has a tripod mode switch. But it sounds like if it does NOT have tripod mode, then the VR must be off.
I'm gonna guess that a gimbal is a little trickier, since the gimbal is actually still moving around and certainly is sometimes panning. I would not consider it a tripod unless it's completely still.
The problem is with the older style IS/VR, the computers will cause what is called," Shake Return". That's when the system is hunting for movement and there is none, and may cause it's own blur.

The confusion comes in because there are a number of manufacturers making VR/IS/AS and they are probably all different. In the Canon line-up there are only FOUR lenses that do not have AUTO tripod sensing modes. Those are the old original IS designs from 1995 of which two are L lenses. The 100-400 and the 300 f4 from 97 and 98 and due to be replaced. The Canon lenses automatically go into tripod mode to detect low level vibrations and mirror slap.

Folks with other brands will have to read their manufacturers manuals to be sure of exactly how to use their IS/VR/AS. I have NO idea what the in-body guys need to do! :lol:
There are guys like Thom Hogan that advocate the VR be ALWAYS off, until which time that you are sure you need it! ;-)
SS

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

Ah!!! That is what I forgot when I started playing with my Tamron Thursday, I didn't turn stabilization off when it was on the tripod.

1000 times 'mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa'. Will try tripod again tomorrow. No wonder my best images were hand held. It was doing what it is supposed to for those shots.