LWW wrote:
IMHO VR is not a necessity on a 60 unless there is a physical impairment.
Image stabilization of any sort isn't "necessary" at all...
But it's VERY helpful and allows you to take shots that would otherwise be difficult or impossible.
I'm damn good holding steady shots.... usually able to get a high percentage of sharp shots one or two stops slower than the focal length/shutter speed rule of thumb suggests.
However, thanks to image stabilization I've been able to do another one, two, sometimes even three stops slower with reasonable success. I used to sneer at stabilization use with lenses shorter than 50 or 60mm (on APS-C, where they are short telephotos).
I shot the above portrait of a friend at 1/30 with an unstabilized 50mm lens on APS-C (80mm equiv.)...
after one or two drinks!
But, hey... after nearly 20 years using stabilized telephotos, I realized it doesn't hurt to have it on ANY lens. With a little luck and careful work, thanks to it maybe I'll be able to get some sharp shots at 1/4 or 1/2 second with a 10mm or 15mm ultrawide, that I'd normally have to use at 1/15 or 1/30.
IMO, image stabilization has been one of the most important innovations for photography. Partly that's because I use fairly powerful telephotos a lot, where I still think it's most helpful. In general stabilization ranks up there with roll film, in-camera TTL metering, autofocus and a few other truly revolutionary features. If it weren't such a game-changer, why would everyone else have followed Canon's lead implementing some form of stabilization in their cameras and/or lenses?
It could be argued that newer digital camera high ISO capabilities... ability to make images in lower light and at far higher ISO than we ever dreamed possible back in the days of film... has made image stabilization less important. Or you could take the opposite tack and think how the combination makes even more possible.
Given choice of a lens without IS or one with it, so long as image quality isn't compromised and the price difference isn't ridiculous, I'll always opt for the stabilized lens no matter the focal length.