Stabilization ? again

T

Tum67

Member
I have used a steady stick and still am having to much camera shake. I have steady setting on in camera so I am wondering if some of these wedding videos I am seeing are using a stabilization software or plug-in (shake)?
A slow pan or zoom is necessary much of the time when a tripod cannot be used. I purchased the steady stick after some advice here and it has helped a great deal
but my slow pans are still not smooth enough. I have a wedding this coming Sat. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated ?????????

:dankk2:
 
While zooming would seem to be contraindicated in any good shooting style (I admit I have never shot a wedding so I am not qualified to really comment), for the least amount of "shake" stay near, if not at, the wide end of the lens. If this focal length yields your subject too small in the frame, then dolly (walk?) in, don't zoom in!
 
Zooming in will definitely amplify any shakes you might be having. If you're shooting floral arrangements, the front of the church, etc, then I would heed khmuse's advice and bring your camera closer to the subject, rather than zoom in. But I wonder why you're not able to shoot flowers and building exteriors with a tripod? Generally, static shots like those should be steady. You can get away with the vitality of the handheld look, as long as it's not TOO shakey, if you can let the viewer rest now and then with a nice, steady shot of some lilies, mums and, of course, baby's breath.
 
Your referenced video includes, jib, dolly and stick shots (some with dutch) though the framing on some of the shots have too much headroom for my taste (though as I mentioned, I don't shoot weddings, I shoot narrative projects). There are a few which include a zoom out along with a camera move.

What resources (in terms of camera support) do you have available to you?
 
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]He states all his are handheld? Not sure if that is the truth.... I use
SteadyStick by Tiffen
Tripod
Just ordered a monopod
FCP HD
Not sure what a dutch is...
[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
 
I really don't think all those shots are handheld!

Perhaps Steadicam for some, but the vertical changes seem to make that unlikely.

Dutch is any angle other than parallel to the natural horizon.
 
Just got an email back from him stating he does not own a jib or dolly and that all his tecniques are on his instructional dvd............... Guess im going to order!#@@$!
 
I've seen sample clips of his instructional video and at least what I saw, what he does is just put the camera on a monopod, extends it and he moves the monopod around. This allows him to get high shots and dutch angles. Also, by extending the monopod and holding it where it balances vertically, you get a rudimentary stabilizer. This is probably how he got that dolly-type shot of the bride at 01:00, although the horizon bobbles a little.

Clearly he is not using a lot of fancy equipment so the main reason for his success is simply skill and practice. But he's also using a few other tricks to make it look nicer. One trick is he slows down the footage. Notice the whole video is in slow motion. This will take the edges off any slight instabilities. Also, the movements actually don't last that long. They are small, subtle and do not traverse a large arc or distance. It's much harder to sustain a solid shot that lasts a long time.
 
Thanks for the post Tim Le. I shot my first 2 camera wedding this past weekend and I used a monopod for those type of shots as I also thought that is what he did......
 
I have used some software called Dynapel Steady Hand to stablize shots. It's not perfect, does zoom in and create some artifacts but they can be responably cleaned up later in After Effects.

http://www.goodervideo.com/

Sometimes it is needed for weddings as you might not get the perfect shot when it happens, this software has helped me some poorer shots, also helps with pans on tripods that don't work out 100%

Thier other software the MotionPerfect and SlowMotion are pretty much junk, don't bother with them.
 
I have all of the Tulsa Wedding Films training DVDs and although he does use steady stick type stabilisation for long tracking shots, this guy has done some serious practice to get those handheld moves so fluid. You can see him demonstrating these on one of their DVDs.

I'd say a course in Tai Chi would be a good start to getting your body to move like that. I've been practicing his moves for about a year now with some success, the only thing letting me down at the moment is getting muscle cramps during slow tracking/dolly shots due to lack of fitness & excersise :S
 
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