Thanks to the image stabilizer (IS), you can squeeze two stops of exposure out of your camera when shooting without a tripod (Figures 8.2 and 8.3). Typically, the average person can handhold their camera down to about 1/60 of a second before blurriness results due to hand shake. As the lens is zoomed, the ability to handhold at slow shutter speeds (1/60 and slower) and still get sharp images is further reduced. Keep in mind that the IS compensates for camera shake; it won’t magically clarify moving objects in your scene.
Ac tivating the IS Mode
- Press the Menu button.
- In the Shooting menu, scroll down to the IS Mode option.
- Press the Right or Left button to select Continuous, which applies image stabilization whenever you’re shooting. You can also choose Shoot Only, which activates the IS only when you press the shutter button halfway, or Panning, which corrects for vertical movement when you’re panning the camera horizontally (such as when you’re following a fast-moving object).
- Press the Menu button again to exit the menu.
Self-timer
Whether you are shooting with a tripod or even resting your camera on a wall, you can increase the sharpness of your pictures by taking your hands out of the equation. Whenever you use your finger to press the shutter release button, you’re increasing the chance that there will be a little bit of shake in your image. To eliminate this possibility, set your camera’s self-timer. Press the Self-Timer button and use the Control dial to choose an option. You can choose a delay between 1 second or 30 seconds using the Front dial. Pressing the left or right button lets you specify how many shots to fire. Yet another option is available: Face Self-Timer, which activates the shutter when the camera detects a face in the scene.