Lenses with VR or IS Built In

Lens manufacturers know that people have a hard time hand-holding their cameras in low-light situations, so they started adding features that automatically help keep the lenses from moving, so you get sharper shots in low light. Nikon calls their brand of this “anti-movement” technology VR, for Vibration Reduction, and Canon calls theirs IS, for Image Stabilization. They’re both well-named, because that’s what they do—they hold your lens steady for you, so you get sharper shots, but it really only makes a difference when you are shooting at a slow shutter speed (you’ll get no improvement when you’re shooting in broad daylight, because your shutter speed will be so fast [which freezes any motion], that there’s no reason for VR or IS to kick in). What VR and IS do is let you hand-hold in lower light situations, so if you wind up shooting a lot in churches, museums, theaters, and other low-light locations, you should probably keep an eye out for VR or IS lenses (they usually cost a little more). Also, you won’t often find this feature in already very fast lenses, like an f/1.8 or f/1.4. One more thing: if you’re shooting on a tripod, you should turn VR or IS off (there’s a switch on the lens) to reduce any shake caused by the VR or IS searching for movement.