Is "automatic tripod detection to disable IS" an urban myth?

[JamesHarvey]

I remembering "reading somewhere" (i.e. I don't have a "quotable source") that many Canon telephoto lenses have a 'tripod detection" feature (presumably by detecting no instability) that automatically disables the IS, but is this just an urban myth?  The manual for my RF200-200 says: 

"When using a tripod, the Image Stabilizer might not be fully effective or it might be better to set the STABILIZER switch to OFF, depending on the type of tripod and where the tripod is located, as well as on the camera’s settings such as shutter speed." 

I find similar statements in the manuals for the RF100-400, 100-500, 800/11, 800/5.6, EF600/4 (i & iii), EF800/5.6. 

So is there such a thing as Auto Tripod Detection or was I dreaming: it would actually be a bad dream, as I really need control over the IS, when, for example, using a motorized panoramic tripod or star tracker! 

Thanks/JH

[normadel]

Can anyone think of HOW a lens could know it is on a tripod, to automatically disable IS?  Seems there would have to be a switch on the body by the tripod socket, or IN the tripod socket, that gets pressed by the tripod surface or screw. Did this ever exist?

Otherwise, the idea of a lens disabling IS automatically doesn't sound realistic.

[p4pictures]

This is the text written in the EF Lens Work III book.

Tripod-compatible Image Stabilizer

When the first IS lenses were used with a tripod, the image stabilizer malfunctioned, requiring the photographer to turn off the image stabilizer function. However, the EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM and other new models in the super telephoto L type IS series are equipped with an image stabilizer that can be used with a tripod, which prevents malfunctioning. Since the system uses a vibration gyro to automatically detect when the camera is mounted on a tripod, the photographer can focus on the photograph without having to think about turning the stabilizer on and off. And when a monopod is used with any lens in the IS series, image stabilization is identical to that achieved during hand-held photography.

I did find a PDF of EF Lens Work online too. It's an interesting read. 

[Waddizzle]

“ 

. In the EF lens technology section is a paragraph titled Tripod-compatible Image Stabilizer. 

In this paragraph it mentions that early lenses with IS had an issue when used on a tripod, and that EF 300mm f/2.8L IS USM and other models in the super telephoto L series IS range were equipped with an IS unit that can detect when the lens is stationary on a tripod making it unnecessary to switch the IS off. “

This is entirely consistent with what I recall reading on the Canon Europe site.  The feature would work with “Great Whites” and 1D bodies.  I would be curious to know what is reported in the EXIF metadata with the DSLRs.

One veteran forum member reported that his RF body exhibited the same behavior.  I believe that he was referring to EF Mark II great whites and at least one L series RF mount telephoto zoom. 

[normadel]

So then, the camera senses vibration or lack of, not that it is specifically on a tripod. And instantaneously switches IS on and off at the slightest provocation?

Sounds like a feature best removed.

[p4pictures]

The reason the content on the Canon Europe website is consistent with the EF Lens Work book, is that the books were source material for the Canon Europe website content.

[JamesHarvey]

Thanks, all, but I note that none of this has apparently been updated into the R series era 20 years later, but I will investigate that.  This is a real issue for mixed-mode R series shooters like myself, and when using motorized panorama & astro heads where we very much need to keep IS on. 

[jrhoffman75]

Have you seen it to be a problem? I would expect that the motion of an equatorial mount is slow enough to not need stabilizing. 

[ebiggs1]

IMHO as I have already stated I have never seen a problem with the IS. I don't have a EF 300mm f2.8L but I have a good friend that does so I have used it a fair bit. I never give the IS a thought. I know of no setting in 1D series camera(s) that has that function of automatically turning IS off when sensing a tripod. Perhaps someone can enlighten me.

The closest lens to that I personally own and I use a lot and have a lot of time with is my Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 DG OS HSM Sports Lens. I never turn its OS off either. Again it's really a moot point, if it bothers you or you think it bothers you switch it off. It's not that difficult.

[JamesHarvey]

I use a Benro Polaris, which is effectively a 3D motorized tripod head, on a very solid & heavy Manfrotto metal tripod.  When used with a short lens (10-20mm) for Milky Way images there is no issue, but when used with longer lenses (400-800mm) for deep sky objects, even with careful balance and wind protection you still have a mechanically resonant system, & occasionally I can see some slight jitter in the images which you would expect IS to nullify; & I have confirmed this by watching the live output from the camera on a PC screen.  But the same problem is also seen when shooting video when tripod mounted with lenses like the RF100-500, RF200-800 & RF800/11 which, unlike the bight white primes for which this feature was originally introduced, do not have much angular inertia due to their relatively short length and/or light weight. 

This whole question arose because I saw a FB posting on one of the Canon R groups that showed a video taken using a tripod with IS on (I believe it was an R6ii+200-800), but the video was still shaky, similar to my own findings, so one issue was whether this was due to the IS being automatically disabled; i.e. with no option to enable it. 

[jrhoffman75]

It’s not a camera feature. It’s built in to the lens. 

Why and how Canon implemented it is posted in some responses. 

The OP’s issue is he doesn’t want it to automatically shut off.