iMovie 09 Image Stabilization Test
The Flip UltraHD doesn’t have built in stabilization which is disappointing. So my only option is using the stabilization feature in iMovie 09. I have never used it before so I thought I would create a quick test to see if it really worked. I had my doubts.
Before you can use the image stabilization iMovie needs to process the video. This is easy to do but take time to complete. On my Mack Book Pro it took about one minute for every fifteen seconds of video. In iMovie you can access the stabilization feature by right clicking on your video clip in the project window and selecting Analize for Stabilization. Here is a screen shot showing the option.
After your video is done with the analizing part you need bring up the clip options and check the stabilization box and set the amount. See the screen shot below.
The test clip I am using is from my backyard that I shot just for this test. The video below show the clip with no stabilization, then cuts to stabilized, then show both clips together using iMovie 09′s picture in picture feature. Have a look.
So the question is did it make an difference? After giving it a few rounds of comparison it does make a pretty big difference. If you missed it watch the last picture in picture part again and pay attention to the roof top and the fence. The stabilized clip on the right has little or no shake like the unstabilized version. I was impressed.
iMovie 09′s stabilization feature should help compensate where the Flip UltraHD falls short.
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About Husar
Blogging geek Dad that loves to do long runs, ride his bikes, partake in frosty beverages, listen to live music, watch movies, hike high into the mountains, and hang out with his family doing any of the above. Oh, and write code late into the wee hours of the morning. 
Not bad. I would be interested to see how this looked if you were to go out for a walk with the camera. As a note, check out this link:
http://www.boingboing.net/2008/09/16/stabilized-bigfoot-f-1.html
The more shake you have the more you would lose on the resolution. The way it works is that is zooms into one of the frames and then makes the other frame zoom to that and adjusts the shake as best it can. You you do loose a little of the video to make the stabilization work. Basically just like that bigfoot clip was stabilized.
I have some walking footage that I can test it with from our vacation. Look for that soon.