Stabilization of wildlifefootage

[Lauri Kettunen]

Originally Posted by Alan Craven

The best results are obtained using dedicated hardware stabilisers, and I believe that this is the approach used by professional broadcasters such as the BBC.

Sure. Still, there exists no, and even can't exist hardware stabilizer which yielded as steady shots as those in say in Planet Earth series. But, my guess is that they shoot in a format which yields plenty of space for cropping. Say, (nowadays) footages taken with Red One's 4K format leave a lot of space for cropping to HD 1080p. That can be fully exploited to stabilize images.

[Gilles Debord]

Thanks Per Johan

I'm looking for the same soft for Mac OS X, Shake is really too expensive, but this one well priced but only for Window PC.

Gilles

[Per Johan Naesje]

Originally Posted by Lauri Kettunen

Per Johan,

Thanks for the interesting post. You've been shooting in Kuhmo!

Yes, was visiting Lassi Rautiainen in July. That area is just like a honey pot, for both, the wildlifephotographer and of course the bears! Spent 7 nights in different hides/blinds in the area.

Originally Posted by Alan Craven

Shot 1 of the bear illustrates the downside of stabilisation software - even at this small size and reduced data rate, the loss of resolution is visible. As the stabilised bear is the same size as the original, I assume that Mercalli was set to give a constant size border and then both clips were cropped to match?

Alan, I'm aware that using tools for stabilization footage slightly degrade the quality. I'm working with HDV footage which is 8 bit, 4.2.0 and that is also a degrade from the original footage if you compare what you got out from the HD/SDI slot, 10 bit, 4.2.2. I work with the Canon XLH1.
The sample i provided here was and will not be any finally product. It was just to show a sample how the Mercalli stabilize side by side a raw footage.

My end products is delivered on DVD in SD formats which mean that I can work on a HDV (1440x1080) timeline, stabilize and then downconvert to a PAL (720x576) timeline, as you see I can crop much of the original footage, which mean hide the border artifacts you got when you stabilize in Mercalli with dynamic border.

Originally Posted by Alan Craven

The problem with all the older stabilisers is that development has ceased, Mercalli is new and shows a great deal of promise. I hope that ProDad continue to develop it!

I'm sure that ProDad will, and it's also important to report back to them any issues found.

Originally Posted by Alan Craven

Even then it comes a poor second to a good tripod and head combination.

Well, I think that my tripod system dosn't lack much in quality and steadyness. I'm using a huge Miller Arrow HD tripod system, but with focal lenght 2000mm and beoynd, I think most of us will struggle with jittering footage!

[Lauri Kettunen]

Originally Posted by Per Johan Naesje

Yes, was visiting Lassi Rautiainen in July.

Per Johan, right, I recognized the background, so I knew where you had been. Next time you come to Finland, could you send me an email? It would be nice to meet. I could show you some good places to shoot. Perhaps then one day you could show me some bits of Norway.

[Dale Guthormsen]

Per Johan,

I really appreciated the comparison between the two clips. I have not acquired stabilization software yet and had been searching about for something useful. I believe this program is promising and will probably invest in it soon.
Thank you for the comparison!!!

all I need now is an h1 so I have more latitude in my work!!

[Alan Craven]

Per Johan, I was not criticising your work, far from it. I was merely pointing out that there are limitations to what stabilisation software can achieve, before people get too carried away!

I am well aware of the possibilities offered by working with HD material and subsequently outputting as SD, but for those of us who are presently restricted to working with SD, the increased stability comes at a price. In my lengthy experience with this kind of software (I have tried seven different stabilisers) I have found that gains in stability are often more than cancelled out by the inevitable reduced resolution.

As I said, stabilisation software is not a substitute for a good tripod and legs, but when you work at extreme focal lengths, as Per Johan does, even the best tripods do not eliminate tremors entirely, and it can then provide a useful enhancement.

Mercalli is the first stabiliser that I have found that produces acceptable results of a bird such as a cormorant perched on a rock reef with a background of moving sea. Everything else produces a gently undulating reef as it tries desperately to stabilise that sea! On the other hand my best efforts so far with Mercalli have not been successful with a raptor in flight, such as a Red Kite, which tends to jink about the sky. Not that anything else has given me satisfactory results. Another clip where I found that I got better results with my SteadyMove Pro (which is more than twice the price of Mercalli in the UK now – I paid £50 when it first appeared!) is of a Red Backed Shrike perched on the top of a rather spindly bush, with a great deal of pale blue sky as a backdrop.

Note that the version of Steadymove which comes with Premiere is a cut down version. The full version SteadyMove Pro offers extra user control (but nowhere near as much as Mercalli), but costs around £200 now in the UK.

Mercalli offers a wide range of user controls if you buy the Expert version, and I am finding that the supplied presets often provide only a good starting point. One can easily while away an entire afternoon trying a succession of tweaks to the settings without achieving much improvement in the results.

Incidentally Mercalli was an Italian geologist who devised a qualitative scale for describing the strength of earthquakes, similar in concept to the Beaufort Scale for wind speed.

[David Chilson]

Per Johan,

On your recommendation, I purchased the Expert version of Mercalli and am delighted with the results. It has brought some previously unusable footage back from the "Gee, I really wish I could have used that" into ""that will work!" part of the hard drive.

As a group we tend to be a very critical lot. My girlfriend has said to me numerous times. "Quit being so picky! Your the only guy I know that if you shot some footage of Bigfoot running would say something like; "You know, the focus drifted a little during the shot and I probably should have stepped it up a stop or two...."Who cares, it's Bigfoot!"

That's part of the allure of shooting wildlife, if you miss it, it's gone forever. But if you do capture it........

Thanks again Per Johan! As a side note, your footage on your web site is stunning. Keep up the good work.

Dave

[Mick Jenner]

Well Per I have also taken the plunge and purchased, an Ideal plug in for edius.

I have tried it on a few small clips with small amounts of movement which have been smoothed out very well. Lets hope that on my upcoming trip to India I can achieve most of my shots from the tripod but just incase a tiger suddenly appears from the bush I can get a bit of hand held before putting on to the tripod and hopefully be able to stablilize in post?

By the way are you on commission from Prodad!!

Regards

Mick

[Brendan Marnell]

I wish I could say something positive about Mercalli.

proDAD seems incapable of communicating in English or even American; or perhaps their original link was an exceptional bummer, anyway I just get keep getting an instruction to install every time I try to open the "installed" version of Mercalli Expert ... not glad I parted with my money ... I have my reg.code but there's no sign of a "Register" button ...

[Mick Jenner]

Bredan,

This fooled me to start with, what you need to do is when you enter all the registration details including your what they call your registration code you e-mail these details to prodad and they will e-mail you back an activation download. I do not have e-mail on my editing suit so I copied all the registration details which I then e-mailed to info@prodad.de It took a about 2hrs before I received the activation e-mail,

Hope this helps

Mick

[Brendan Marnell]

Thanks for your support, Mick. I'm hoping you will translate the following for me ... like, where is the license key, or is the "key" the same as the "code" and if so why call it 2 different names ???


2. License key for unlocking the product

The product is licensed to "Brendan Marnell".

The license key for "Mercalli Expert" is listed below. You will need this
license key to complete the process and activate the product. The license
key and the text below originate from the software publisher and may be
written in another language.

Please use following registration code for the registration: ZBJR-9R8H-YWJQ
<br>
Enhanced information about registration are available in the program´s help
(access by pressing F1)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
The following information is from the publisher and may be written in
another language:

SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT THE REGISTRATION PROCESS:
SOME PRODUCTS INCLUDE A MENU "HELP" OR "?" WITH AN ITEM "REGISTER...".
THEN IT IS NECESSARY TO SEND THE APPLICATION FOR A TIME-UNLIMITED KEY TO
PRODAD. USING THE MENU
ITEM "REGISTER..." ASSURES TO SEND A CLEAR COMPLETE APPLICATION. THE KEY
WILL BEING SENT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE (NORMALLY IN 1-3 DAYS). THE ABOVE
DELIVERED REGISTRATION
CODE PLEASE ENTER INTO THE FIELD "REGISTRATION CODE". FURTHER
INFORMATIONS ARE AVAILABLE IN THE PRINTED MANUAL OR IN THE PROGRAM HELP
(ACCESIBLE BY USING THE F1-KEY).

[Mick Jenner]

I agree Brendon it is confusing. But it turns out that when you install, because the programe is a plug in the licence key is what is needed along with the letters and numbers you see at the top of the registration fields(these come up automaticaly when you open the registration box) as well as the rest of the registration fields to be sent by e-mail to prodad they will then send you an activation download which needs to downloaded on to the computer this then removes the cross across the the screen and gives you unlimited use. If your editing computer is connected to the internet you can send the e-mail directly from it following the prompts after filling in the registration details. You will not be able to fully activate the product until you have recived the activation download.

[Brendan Marnell]

[QUOTE=Brendan Marnell;771725]
2. License key for unlocking the product

The product is licensed to "Brendan Marnell".

The license key for "Mercalli Expert" is listed below.
QUOTE]

Could someone confirm or deny that this extract from proDAD (full quote in previous post above) is a lie? I think it's worse than an abuse of language. I have never received a license key.

Your explanation Mick sounds circular to me, but thanks for trying. I have installed something which I cannot open. I have sent my username, password, full name, invoice number, credit card details. My credit card has been debited €119 for a week. I have received a reg.code which gives me the permission to do sweet nothing. I have received 11 emails mostly produced by answering machines, none of which helps and most of which show semi-literacy, which is difficult to reply to.

What do you mean Mick, when you say "because the programme is a plug-in"? What is the significance of that? Is that my problem? I have never consciously used a "plug-in" in 15 years.

[Mick Jenner]

To answer your firsr question it is not lie just badly written or translated.
A plug in means when it is installed on your computer it needs another programe to open it. In my case I open it from the Edius timeline.

Lets try again

Step 1 Download the prduct and install.

Step 2 Select a clip and put the mecalli on it It will then open the options box.

Step3 Click on registration and fill in the fields including your licence key.

Step 4 It will then ask you to e-mail these details to Prodad which you can do immeadialty if your computer is connected to the internet.

If your computer is not on the net then you need to e-mail them seperately as I have already described, but be sure to include the numbers and letters at the top of the registration box which are there when you open it.

Step 5 You willl then receive an e-mail (mine came within 2hrs) with an activation download which you open up on you editing computer this inturn opens Mercalli

Regards

Mick

[Brendan Marnell]

Originally Posted by Mick Jenner

To answer your firsr question it is not lie just badly written or translated.
A plug in means when it is installed on your computer it needs another programe to open it. In my case I open it from the Edius timeline.

Lets try again

Step 1 Download the prduct and install.

Step 2 Select a clip and put the mecalli on it It will then open the options box.

Step3 Click on registration and fill in the fields including your licence key.

Step 4 It will then ask you to e-mail these details to Prodad which you can do immeadialty if your computer is connected to the internet.

If your computer is not on the net then you need to e-mail them seperately as I have already described, but be sure to include the numbers and letters at the top of the registration box which are there when you open it.

Step 5 You willl then receive an e-mail (mine came within 2hrs) with an activation download which you open up on you editing computer this inturn opens Mercalli

Regards

Mick

Step 1. I have downloaded the product and when I try to install it I am sent through the same install procedure every time (over 15 times now). How can I uninstall it without being charged for it when I try to download it again?

Step 2. I have opened clips in PPro 1.5 and in Elements 4.0 but when I try to import or drop and drag the "installed" mercalli.exe file it won't "put the Mercalli on it". Instead a WinZip Self-Extractor - mercalli-10-register-expert.exe pops up asking me to install Mercalli Expert all over again ....

... So, I never get to Steps 3,or 4,5

I have made my Will, but don't go away yet