Final Cut Pro X has a built in algorithm for stabilizing handheld shots and in this week's
Under 5 episode, I'm going to show you just how awesome it is.
Here's some clips of a recent off roading trip in Lake Havasu, Arizona.
The clips were shot with a GoPro Hero 05 mounted to a pole.
I'll play back this last POV shot and you'll notice there's some noticeable camera shake,
which is to be expected given the type of shot it is.
I've placed two markers where the shake is especially pronounced.
I'll create a range, then loop playback.
To apply Stabilization, park the playhead anywhere over the clip, then reveal the video
inspector.
Click the box next to Stabilization.
Stabilization is always applied to the entire clip, not just the portion within the selection
range.
There are two separate phases to this stabilization process.
In phase one, each successive frame in the clip is analyzed to determine the direction
of the camera movement.
The text in the viewer let's you know the analysis is in progress.
In phase two, Final Cut Pro will use the analysis data to apply transform effects to compensate
for the camera movement.
The transforms that are applied appear as three separate parameter adjustments in the
inspector.
Translation Smooth compensates for camera movement along the X and Y axis.
In other words, up and down movement.
Rotation Smooth compenstates for camera rotation around the image's center point and Scale
Smooth compensates for forward and backward lens movement.
There are two methods of stabilization that can be applied to clips: SmoothCam and InertiaCam.
Final Cut Pro will automatically pick the best method depending on the type of movement
in the clip.
For this particular clip, SmoothCam was applied.
By default, the SmoothCam values are set fairly conservative at 1.5 for each Transform
effect.
Setting the value to zero for any parameter, effectively turns it off.
While setting the value to 4.5, applies the strongest possible transformation.
I'll leave the settings at the defaults and loop playback.
It looks better but in order to really see the difference, I'll disable the effect and
watch it for a few cycles.
Then reenabled it.
In order to fine tune the stabilization, I'll turn off the effect, then step through the
clip near the markers, one frame at a time.
You can see from the upper corners of the clip that most of the camera movement is rotational
in nature with some slight translational movement.
I'll re enable the effect then crank up the Rotation Smoothing to 4.5
and set the Translational Smoothing to 3, then playback.
The improvement is subtle, but I do see a difference.
By the way, there's no right or wrong here, just choose the values that look the best
to you and go with it.
Let's move to this next clip.
A shot of a fairground where the camera pans from left to right.
As you can see, it's a bit shaky during the pan.
With the playhead parked over the clip, I'll enable Stabilization.
Before I play the clip back, you'll notice that Final Cut Pro applied the second stabilization
method, called InertiaCam.
This method is optimized for footage that includes pans or zooms or both.
Let's playback the clip with the stabilization turned on.
Wow, quite a remarkable improvement!
If you want to control how much of the effect is applied, there's a single smoothing control
for that purpose.
Let's look at one more example for how you might use this effect.
I'll open up this timeline of this dinner scene and skim over it.
I shot this scene handheld with a Canon C100 MK II.
I'll select all the clips, then enable Stabilization.
Playing the sequence back, Final Cut Pro did a nice job of stabilizing the shots using
the SmoothCam method.
But what happens when you change the method to InertiaCam?
I'll try that on this first shot in the sequence.
When changing the method, Final Cut Pro must reanalyze the clip for movement.
With InertiaCam, because of how the camera movement is interpreted, you'll notice some
slight movement in the shot.
Let's loop the clip to see the difference.
Here's SmoothCam applied.
And here's InertiaCam applied.
Depending on your artistic goals, you might prefer to leave some movement in the shot.
I'll increase the smoothing just a bit.
And lest we forget where the clip started from, let's turn off the effect.
Oh, and one more thing, if you don't want any movement at all, then place a check next
to Tripod Mode.
Bam, instant lockdown shot!
I should also point out that this option is only available for the InertiaCam mode and
may not be available in all instances.
It just depends on the results of the analysis.