Video Glitch

[Pete Cofrancesco]

I recently encountered video glitch while filming with my Canon 70d with 17-55mm f2.8 lens. After playing around at home I discovered that when the lens image stabilization is on and you zoom in/out the video will periodically “glitch” and by that I mean the image for a fraction of a second shift up and back down.

So obviously I can do two things to avoid this problem. Don’t zoom while filming or turn IS off. I’m curious is this a known issue. Has anyone ever encountered this?

[Chris Hurd]

Howdy Pete,

Yes, I've experienced that first-hand as well.

The EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, in my opinion, is an absolutely fantastic lens -- practically "L series" quality in optical performance; it is the best of all Canon crop-sensor lenses. It's the only zoom in the EF-S line that has a constant aperture. And, there is no equivalent in the Canon EF full-frame lens series. So, yes, it's special, it's the best, I'm glad I have one and it's my primary crop-sensor lens.

That said, it's important to keep in mind that this lens was never intended for video applications. Its design pre-dates the Oct. 2008 "DSLR revolution" fronted by the 5D Mk. II that popularized the very trendy fashion of shooting HD video with a stills camera. The EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 is very much a stills lens. Those of us who use it for video recording are forcibly repurposing it to do something it was never meant to do. It works quite well in that regard, but there are some limitations with this lens in video mode and the IS system is one of them.

The optical stabilizer system in this lens is a stills IS, not a video IS. Your best bet is too simply turn it off when shooting video. The IS motor is somewhat audible and the noise it makes can find its way onto your audio track if you're recording single-system sound onboard the camera. It's nowhere near as loud as the old (and thankfully discontinued) EF 28-135 IS; that thing was a ratchet master. Good lens for stills, but not for video.

But yes the design of the optical stabilizer in the EF-S 17-55 is considerably older than the HD video recording feature and for that reason it does not work well if you're changing focal length during a shot. I have found the IS to be perfectly adequate for shooting video as long as the focal length is *not* changed during the shot. Also, be sure to switch IS off when using a tripod. Otherwise, unlike some newer lenses, the IS in that older lens doesn't know that a pan is intentional and it will fight the movement, resulting in a glitchy pan.

In short, with the EF-S 17-55, be sure to turn the stabilizer OFF if you are doing either or both of these two things:

1. changing focal length during a shot
2. moving the frame during a shot (panning, etc.) while mounted on a tripod

I love this lens but it so badly needs an update. It needs silent focus via STM or nano-USB; it needs a modern, quiet OIS with multiple modes, and it needs the interface for Canon's power zoom adapter. Maybe we'll see an "R" series version of it... that's where Canon seems to be putting all of their development these days.

Hope this helps,

[Pete Cofrancesco]

Thx for confirming. Wanted to make sure this wasn’t a repair issue. Amazing I’ve own this camera/lens and either never noticed or realized what was going on. Yeah I’ll turn off IS. I’m glad I discovered this before an upcoming wedding.