Not All Stabilizers Are Equal

Light Meter by Lisa K. Berton

As digital camera technology evolves, more and more features on point and shoot cameras have become standard. One such mark is stabilization. Originally, nearly every stabilizer was digital.

The camera raises the ISO setting, enabling the camera to shoot faster and requires less light to take the photo. When it does this, it increases what’s known as noise. On a photograph, noise looks like a mosh of mostly primary colors that make an image look “dirty” upon inspection.

The higher end cameras came with optical stabilization or CCD-shift stabilization, in which either the lens or the sensor inside the camera moved, respectively, in conjunction with the photographer. These are true stabilizers.

Nowadays you have to be even more on your toes when seeking out the true type of stabilizer within a camera. Every camera manufacturer seems to have different names for their stabilizers and may offer more than one. Here’s a perfect example, Nikon’s Coolpix L22 boasts a “3-Way VR Image Stabilization System” which sounds great except that it’s a digital stabilizer which they call Electronic VR (Vibration Reduction) Image Stabilization criss-crossing with Motion Detection and Best Shot Selector (BSS). It’s the cheap version of a stabilizer, overkill and not teaching you anything. In fact, I’d wager that such a setup will actually confuse consumers as to what their camera is doing.

Nikon offers their Optical VR Image Stabilization in the Coolpix S5100 model as part of a 4-Way VR Image Stabilization System which can also mesh Motion Detection and BSS while adding ISO 3200.

Fujifilm’s JZ500 model lists Dual Image Stabilization as a feature. These are a combination of boosting the ISO and CCD (charge-coupled device) shift image stabilization. The CCD is your camera’s sensor and so it’s moving along with the camera as you take the photo. It’s not as good as an optical stabilizer but far better than just a digital stabilizer.

While you’re researching cameras in stores or online be sure to seek out what type of stabilizer the camera has and remember that you ideally want an optical stabilizer.

Avoid these terms: Anti-blur, picture stabilization, digital stabilization, electronic stabilzation, and anti-shake.

If you get caught up in the jargon ask a sales person, call the consumer support line or send me a note.

Trending Now

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

One Reply to “Not All Stabilizers Are Equal”

  1. Hi Lisa,

    I have the same camera as one of yours – the Canon SI5 (I think thats the right number – I’m away from it now. I know its the same one you have).

    What type of image stabilization does that have? I’ve been really happy with the camera.

    Thanks for your time,

    Dan

    Lisa responds: The Canon PowerShot S5 IS is a great camera but I don’t own one. I borrowed it from my neighbor for 2 trips to Walt Disney World. I believe it has an optical stabilizer in the lens barrel.