VR and AF when the camera is off or lens detached | Nikon Lenses | Photo Forum

@Mandrake: Thank you for the article. It was really informative.  I always put VR on. Now I know its not the right choice.

But the article does not seem to answer all my questions. I would list them down so that its easier

• Is it recommended to keep VR and AF off when then camera is off / lens is dismounted and why?
• Will toggling these switches (in general) a lot of times bad for the lens?
• While keeping the lens in bag, is it better to dismount the lens or keep the lens attached to the body.

Thank you for the precise answer. I did some more reading and here are my questions.

• Let me say in advance that I know I am not supposed to do this . When the camera was OFF, I engaged the AF, then I tired to rotate the focus ring. I tried the same with AF OFF. There was a difference in pressure that needs to be applied to rotate the focus ring. So I think the switch connects it to the motor even when camera is off. I am not sure whether this affects the motor badly.
• In the article Mankdrake referred, and in some other article I have read, the electronics of VR was mentioned. If I understand correctly a set of lens/glass is moved inside to account for the camera movements. What was interesting was, these are fixed while VR is OFF. When camera is OFF and VR is ON, there is no current to move these elements, but would it be locked? If not while carrying wouldn’t it cause problems because of much shaking.