Wide Angle & IS

[duncan22]

I Guess I will be discovering the answer to this myself having recently purchased a Canon 10-20mm lens but I note that this lens along with a number of other makes of wide angle lenses lack IS.
Is this simply because these lenses have been available prior to IS being introduced into lenses or is IS something that would not be of much value in a wide angle lens.
Just curious !

[silversnapper1]

I don't think that IS is needed on a lens with such a short focal length. The usual formula for handholding and being able to hold the camera steady is to have the shutter speed equal to or greater than the focal length. Therefore, with a 10-20 lens it should be possible (and is) to shoot at quite slow shutter speeds. Anything slower and you would probably need a tripod anyway and IS is usually better switched off when the camera is tripod mounted.

Steve.