Annoying judder with Fuji W3 (24p) at DVinfo.net

Pavel Houda · February 27th, 2012, 06:02 PM

I tried to build a Steadicam Smoothee adapter for the Fuji W3. I know it is not a very good camera, especially for video, but it fits in a pocket. It was fairly easy to put together the low cost stabilized system, as such it works pretty well, but the judder, which I assume is caused by the 24p frame rate is very annoying when motion is present - which is of course the main reasons to use stabilizer. There are many 24p cameras available, so I have couple of questions for those using them. Do you experience great deal of judder when playing back on 30/60Hz non-TV system? What type of 3:2 pulldown (or other method) are you using to get reasonably smooth output? TVs handle the pulldown lot more gracefully than computers.Thanks.

Mark Rosenzweig · March 25th, 2012, 01:12 PM

If you add a stabilizer, the camera+rig is no longer pocketable, defeating the whole rationale for putting up with the lousy 3D video of the W3 (I own one - great stills). Now there is a solution: the Panasonic 3D1. Pocktable, good quality video, and built-in optical stabilizer. Does 108060i sbs 1/2-frame. Very good quality MPO stills too, and no jitter or judder in video.

Pavel Houda · March 25th, 2012, 11:47 PM

Well, to each his own. I got the W3 for free on an infinite loan, so I wanted to experiment with it. IMHO, optical stabilizer will never be able to do what Steadicam/inertial stabilizer can do. I don't like the stereobase on the pocket 3D cameras. But I am glad that you like the 3D1.

Mark Rosenzweig · March 26th, 2012, 11:54 AM

I agree of course that an optical stabilizer cannot allow you to do with a camera what a Steadicam can - namely move the camera steadily. It can allow steady shots when the camera is motionless, however. And it certainly would improve enormously one of the problems of the W3, though not as much as a higher frame rate perhaps.

Here is a video shot with the 3D1 handheld. You can judge how well stabilization does:

Panasonic 3D1 3D Test Video: A Trip to Union Square NYC in Springtime - YouTube

IO distance is not better or worse; it depends on what is being shot. The io distance of the W3 (75mm), wider than human eyes, creates odd effects and is useless for close subjects. But for many shots the wider io gives more depth than the smaller io of the 3D1 (30mm).

February 27th, 2012, 06:02 PM	#1
Pavel Houda Major Player Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Laguna Hills, CA Posts: 352	Annoying judder with Fuji W3 (24p) I tried to build a Steadicam Smoothee adapter for the Fuji W3. I know it is not a very good camera, especially for video, but it fits in a pocket. It was fairly easy to put together the low cost stabilized system, as such it works pretty well, but the judder, which I assume is caused by the 24p frame rate is very annoying when motion is present - which is of course the main reasons to use stabilizer. There are many 24p cameras available, so I have couple of questions for those using them. Do you experience great deal of judder when playing back on 30/60Hz non-TV system? What type of 3:2 pulldown (or other method) are you using to get reasonably smooth output? TVs handle the pulldown lot more gracefully than computers.Thanks.

March 25th, 2012, 01:12 PM	#2
Mark Rosenzweig Trustee Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: New Haven, CT Posts: 1,004	Re: Annoying judder with Fuji W3 (24p) If you add a stabilizer, the camera+rig is no longer pocketable, defeating the whole rationale for putting up with the lousy 3D video of the W3 (I own one - great stills). Now there is a solution: the Panasonic 3D1. Pocktable, good quality video, and built-in optical stabilizer. Does 108060i sbs 1/2-frame. Very good quality MPO stills too, and no jitter or judder in video. Last edited by Mark Rosenzweig; March 25th, 2012 at 01:53 PM.

March 25th, 2012, 11:47 PM	#3
Pavel Houda Major Player Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Laguna Hills, CA Posts: 352	Re: Annoying judder with Fuji W3 (24p) Well, to each his own. I got the W3 for free on an infinite loan, so I wanted to experiment with it. IMHO, optical stabilizer will never be able to do what Steadicam/inertial stabilizer can do. I don't like the stereobase on the pocket 3D cameras. But I am glad that you like the 3D1.

March 26th, 2012, 11:54 AM	#4
Mark Rosenzweig Trustee Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: New Haven, CT Posts: 1,004	Re: Annoying judder with Fuji W3 (24p) I agree of course that an optical stabilizer cannot allow you to do with a camera what a Steadicam can - namely move the camera steadily. It can allow steady shots when the camera is motionless, however. And it certainly would improve enormously one of the problems of the W3, though not as much as a higher frame rate perhaps. Here is a video shot with the 3D1 handheld. You can judge how well stabilization does: Panasonic 3D1 3D Test Video: A Trip to Union Square NYC in Springtime - YouTube IO distance is not better or worse; it depends on what is being shot. The io distance of the W3 (75mm), wider than human eyes, creates odd effects and is useless for close subjects. But for many shots the wider io gives more depth than the smaller io of the 3D1 (30mm).