3 axis gimbals are dead, this is insanity

[wolf33d]

Well. Watch this video and tell me if you can believe it...

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1091165875/steadxp-the-future-of-video-stabilization?ref=discovery

 

The concept is fantastic. The quality is fantastic. 
Obiously it needs 4K to work well and shoot a bit wide, but man look at the result !!!!! Wow. 

[wolf33d]

For 120 euros integrated to a Gopro, this is a steal. 

Now just imagine this integrated in your camera, and processed in your camera directly so you get the perfect footage out of the camera. 

Low processing power required (they say they almost can do real time, because it doesnt have to analyse footage like warp stabilization). 

This coupled with future 8K camera for a clean silky smooth 4K output is the absolute future of film making. 
Welcome into the future my friends. 

Interesting review by Newshooter:

http://www.newsshooter.com/2015/09/10/steadxp-kickstarter-launched-next-generation-image-stabilisation-unleashed/

[Michael Ma]

In my opinion it is pretty limited in use.

You can't use this if you want to shoot 24p with motion blur.  Which is pretty much what most people want to shoot in.

Also, the processing this requires is gonna be a pretty heavy workload, even though it doesn't have to analyze the video.  it's still working with 4K frames.  With a gimbal, it is stabilized out of the box.

Last, if you want native 4K this is not the solution either.

Additionally, it is still not a product you can buy today.

Is the 3-axis gimbal dead?  I strongly disagree.  This is not a replacement for a gimbal.  It's just an improvement for unplanned shooting day with just a camera and nothing else.  Unless you prefer to shoot 30p or 60p at 1/60 or 1/120 shutter, your footage will be compromised.

[wolf33d]

You can't use this if you want to shoot 24p with motion blur.  Which is pretty much what most people want to shoot in.

Yes you can. It is just recommended to shoot at 1/125s minimum for best result. Plus it has a motion blur capability in post that works well (see video).

 

Also, the processing this requires is gonna be a pretty heavy workload, even though it doesn't have to analyze the video.  it's still working with 4K frames.  With a gimbal, it is stabilized out of the box.

Absolutely not. Did you bother at least looking at the link? Actually on a consumer grade shit PC it does render at 8fps for FHD. 
Considering you are a filmaker with a decent station, you can expect 8fps in 4K. Not bad at all. 

 

Last, if you want native 4K this is not the solution either.

Indeed. If you want native 8k it is not the solution either. It is the solution if you want amazingly smooth footage in a 30 grams package instead of your horrible 5 kilos gimbal, to transform 4K footage into FHD (which 90% of people do anyway). 

 

Is the 3-axis gimbal dead?  I strongly disagree.  

Relax. The title of this subject is 2nd degree. This is a first view of a prototype as you say not even on the market. Saying gimbals are dead means they soon will be. In the future we won't use gimbal (in 5 years from now) we will have cameras that will have this guys' system integrated and deliver 4K from 8K silky smooth. 

 

The tech of this product made from a young french guy is insane in my opinion. Why Olympus Sony Canon DJI and so on did not make this ? I mean, they have the cameras they should do it internally !! 
AND IMAGINE THIS ON GIMBALS !! there is already those sensor in a Phantom 3... DJI could do that and deliver a pefect image (this product works best for micro vibration and jittery/jellow images). 

Also with a gopro, I would certainly have a GoPro with this in 4K superview and deliver silky smooth 1080p than having an horrible twice expensive huge GoPro 3 axis gimbal that does not deliver half of this smoothness. Look at the results in hyperlapse too... This is insane. Just look at the other videos on the link. 

Anyway, with reluctant negative resistant-to-change people like you, we would still be at the age of stone  

I say congrats to these guys and even if the product is far from perfect and obviously not useable for 100% of the needs, it is great tech. I aplaude and look forward for the exciting future in camera tech. 

[Sebv]

havent we seen this product like 3 years ago ? 

[Jonesy Jones]

It crops way in on the footage. I think this definitely has its place, but folks that use gimbals probably don't want to lose 25% of their footage.

[Inazuma]

The thing that killed it for me is that it needs access to the mic and HDMI slots

 

[Rinad Amir]

I think this is gona kick off with success with go pros big time

about dslr looks smooth with H/shutter as well 

if am correct concept of this gadget is shoot 4K and get steady 1080P

[DBounce]

Limited usefulness due to the massive crop. Next please... 

[Nate]

Interesting so it's basically an accelerometer for your camera. I remember thinking that someone should have this to make 3d Tracking camera movements in post production much easier but i guess it works for stabilizing footage too. It looks way superior to the warp stabilizer in after effects. If you don't have crazy camera movement then the crop will be much less and maybe you can maintain some resolution.

[wolf33d]

Indeed, if you use your camera normally, you only need few% crop. 

[The Chris]

I think I'd rather have a gimbal for more control of framing or just use warp stabilizer. But I need the mic jack for a mic. What's the actual software like too? Dan Chung said he had to send them his footage to get processed. There's just not enough footage for me to hit buy just yet. Once it's in the wild so we can see the limitations I'll reassess. 

[wolf33d]

Have you been through all the videos on the kickstarter page ? I have rarely seen a project with that much footage on the site actually. 
He has to send the footage cause the soft is not finalized. 

You can't compare this with warp stabilizer. It is miiiiiles away in term of stab quality (and way faster too) 
The mic jack is just for sync at the first 2 seconds of the shot then u can remove it. Also there is a technique to synchronize without using the mic at all (see FAQ on the website)...

[racer5]

I think this is a great approach to stabilization, and also a perfect, real-world use of 4k. Most of us are using 4k footage on HD timelines for cropping flexibility anyway. 

[The Chris]

Have you been through all the videos on the kickstarter page ? I have rarely seen a project with that much footage on the site actually. 
He has to send the footage cause the soft is not finalized. 

You can't compare this with warp stabilizer. It is miiiiiles away in term of stab quality (and way faster too) 
The mic jack is just for sync at the first 2 seconds of the shot then u can remove it. Also there is a technique to synchronize without using the mic at all (see FAQ on the website)...

Since I can't actually test it, I can't ultimately say how good or bad it is, neither can you. Not fond of the crop either. Again I'll reserve final judgement until I see actual users instead of promo videos. Till then gimbals are alive and well.

cheers

[Michael Ma]

Since I can't actually test it, I can't ultimately say how good or bad it is, neither can you. Not fond of the crop either. Again I'll reserve final judgement until I see actual users instead of promo videos. Till then gimbals are alive and well.

cheers

Totally agree.  Conceptually, it's good, but I've placed my bets before on ideas before, not the actual product, and it always didn't end well.  What they are showing is only the best usage case.

The best camera for this application is something that can shoot 4K at 60p at super wide.  That camera doesn't exist yet.  GoPro Hero 4 Black does 2.7K at 60p.  Maybe the new Sony sensors can do as much as the GoPro ~2.7K at 60p.  Pretty sure nothing does 4K at 60p.  Also, with the higher frame rate and resolution, all that high bitrate is going towards something else other than image quality.  You can see the compromise in the details in the samples.

Also, I'm still not sold on the fast processing.  Sure it can crop and stabilize at that speed with an average computer.  But keep in mind you are still left with frames you probably shot at 1/120 shutter.  So you're gotta need to add motion blur and maybe even convert it to 24p.  This all adds significant processing to your workflow.

Lastly, we're completely ignoring the lens and composition in respect to DOF.  We're going to shoot extra wide just to stabilize later meaning if we want any background blur, it's just going to be difficult to find the lens that capable.

All this is addressed by the gimbal.  But I'll be happy if I'm proven wrong.

[DBounce]

The 3 axis gimbal may well be in danger, but it's demise will come at the hand of the 5 axis gimbal... not this.

[tosvus]

I can definitely see a use for this. Sure, when you do pro/cinema stuff, gimbals are a better solution, but just imagine how nice it will be to shoot videos of your family with this. Combined with some restraint in movement, and perhaps built in IBIS(?) it could work fairly well with smaller crop.

Of course, this would be best with 4K where most people can afford more crop.

[jax_rox]

This is essentially software stabilisation with a lot more information to get you a better image. Steadicams and gimbals are very safe for now. As an aside, I'm not sure if it's this guy or someone else - but this was being pushed on Indiegogo a year or more ago, so the technology is not super new. I remember saying then that the functions are pretty limited. Great, perhaps, for a GoPro shooter, but it's quicker and easier (not to mention much less computer power) to simply stick the camera on a gimbal or steadicam.

Now - putting this and the camera on a gimbal or steadicam might be interesting.

[m~Daniel]

perhaps built in IBIS(?)

I guess it won't work with IBIS enabled... how should the device know how much correction IBIS is doing when the algorithms are based on acceleration sensor.