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Finally, video stabilization software that actually works!

Posted by robert mcintosh on August 21, 2015 at 8:00am

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to share with you all the news that our video stabilization software is now live and ready for download! 


We set out a few years ago to transform the very time-consuming and difficult stabilization technique that I was developing into an automated piece of software.  To say it's been a lot of work would be a huge understatement.  But I must say I think it's been worth it.  

We feel that this will open up a huge range of possibilities for drones, as you'll no longer need to carry the weight of a brushless gimbal, the beefier motors to lift that heavy gimbal, and the heavy higher-voltage li-po to power those motors in order to get solid, smooth footage. 

Who knows, we might even see a renaissance of the servo gimbal!  If you take a look at our gallery page you can see the full before and after clips of many servo gimbal flights.

And we've got no doubt this is going to make drone races look that much more amazing.

Check it out at ReelSteady.com.  We are super-excited to see all the imaginative uses people will find for this new tool.

Hope you like it!



-R

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Comments

  • Joe Renteria August 22, 2015 at 6:18am
    HeliStorm that would be the ultimate video capture. It would also eliminate cropping due to stabilization because you would have the entire sphere to work with.
  • HeliStorm August 22, 2015 at 6:03am

    http://diydrones.com/profiles/blogs/continued-work-towards-a-virtua... I have been playing with this concept for a couple years. My problems...I am only mediocre, at best, in my ability to code, and I have a couple kids who can't eat gadgets for dinner. I would love to help someone better funded develop a product.

  • HeliStorm August 22, 2015 at 5:54am

    To the person who asked about gyro/accel data being used to stabilize video, look at the Parrot Bebop.What I would love to have is a panospheric image with all the data for stabilizing recorded at the same time. Then, you could later pan anywhere in the video, stabilized, in post. As I put it once, imagine if you are flying along, recording a sunset, and Bigfoot walks past, BEHIND your quad before you can turn it around. Wouldn't it be great to refocus your shot to Bigfoot after the fact?

  • robert mcintosh August 21, 2015 at 6:03pm

    Hi John,

    If you can reply to the email you received we will send you download link and get to the bottom of this.  Thanks for your patience.

  • robert mcintosh August 21, 2015 at 3:17pm

    Thanks Martin.  Please do.  Make sure to check out the tutorials when you do.  We take a different approach than most stabilizers so it's important see the differences. 

  • Moderator
    RM Aviation August 21, 2015 at 3:04pm
    This looks absolutely brilliant Robert, we shall certainly try it out.
  • robert mcintosh August 21, 2015 at 2:41pm

    That's a good question.  We are hoping that every after effects artist will have this in their arsenal someday soon. 

  • Thomas Stanley-Jones August 21, 2015 at 2:39pm

    That's super.  Where would you go to find guys to do this on one or two videos as the need comes up?

  • robert mcintosh August 21, 2015 at 2:07pm

    Thanks John.  The thing is with this new method of stabilization, the more fisheye your lens has, the less resolution you lose.  It's hard to explain but it makes it perfect for shooting with GoPro because you can shoot in the widest/most fisheye 1440p mode which goes all the way up to 80fps on the hero Black.  That gives the plugin tons on info and pixel real estate to work with.  That comes in really handy if you are one of these new mini quad racers that are going 70mph 6 inches off the ground.   the above clip was shot in 1440p 48fps with protune turned on. 

  • robert mcintosh August 21, 2015 at 1:10pm

    Thanks for the feedback.   Pritam, I can't really comment on the gyro thing as that's not really my area.  I'm a computer graphics artist/ former animator. 

    Joe,  I hope you are right.  I can tell you that it is a very liberating feeling to zip around on a light, nimble, high performance quad and know that footage is going to look great. 

    It's almost got like an old school photography vibe.  You go out and shoot, then take it back to the dark room to see what you REALLY got.

    Mini Test from Robert McIntosh on Vimeo.

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