How to stabilize shaky footage using software - Filmora and Movavi for video stabilization

Unless you own a gimbal a tripod or you have a camera with in body image stabilization (IBIS) there is a chance to have shaky footage that sometimes it is almost unwatchable. But let us see first what is image stabilization and the techniques that are used for this purpose. Image stabilization is called the technique or the techniques that are used to reduce shaky footage induced by the movements of a user (pressing a button, shaking) or the motion of the camera (vibration) while recording. For example when you drive a car. Most camera companies use some techniques like 5 axis OIS or EIS to improve or eliminate motion blur and shaky footage but in many cases this is not enough and videos need correction during post processing. Now lets see some cameras and the techniques that they use to stabilize jumpy footage:

• Sony a6000 - a6100 - a6400 : The camera does not have IBIS and it can stabilize footage only if you attach a stabilized lens. The performance is poor though and it is enough mainly for shooting pictures. But if you use a vintage lens you cant do much unless you own a gimbal. 
• Sony a6500 and a6600: Those cameras have in body image stabilization but the performance is poor again even if you use a lens with image stabilization. You cant combine both techniques to achieve better video. It is useful though if you use a vintage lens.
  
• Action cameras (GoPro, Osmo Action etc) : Action cameras use EIS (electronic image stabilization). They realign the images from frame to frame and stitch them to counteract vibrations and movement probably with the help of a gyroscope. Anyway what you need to know is that this technique is very efficient and the video is super smooth. The problem is that if you use EIS there will be a crop on the video. That means that the field of view (FOV) will become smaller. The only action camera that does not use EIS but OIS is the Sony FDR - X3000.     
• Micro Four Thirds cameras - Olympus and Panasonic : Those cameras usually combine OIS- Sensor Shift, a stabilized lens and electronic image stabilization and the results are stunning. The video is gimbal smooth. 
• DSLR's: Most DSLR's do not have IBIS. Some Pentax models like the Pentax K1 iii do have but it is usable only to shoot pictures.
  

 

Anyway, despite all the techniques that are used you may have to further stabilize your video. The solution here is to use software. Popular video editing programs offer video stabilization using techniques similar to electronic image stabilization. That means that your video will be cropped even more but sometimes it is the only way to make a jumpy footage watchable. For this purpose lets see how we can smooth out a shaky video with Wondershare Filmora and the Movavi Video Editor.     

Wondershare Filmora

Using Filmora to stabilize shaky video

Wondershare Filmora is a user friendly but also powerful video editor for Windows and Mac. Among its many features, it can fix shaky footage. 

• Open Filmora and select New Project. If you have an older version you may have to select the Full Feature Mode. 
• Then go to File --> Import Media Files and select the video that you want. You can also simply drag and drop the video and import it to Filmora. 
• Now drag and drop your video to the timeline and select the framerate of your choice. Either the prefixed framerate of the project or keep the original frame rate of the video. 
• Right click on the video and select Stabilization. If you like using keyboard shortcuts press Alt and S. 
• Filmora will start automatically to analyze and stabilize the video. This may take a while depending from your CPU. The default option here is smooth level 10. There are also some options for edge processing. The default option is Reflect.  Do not press OK and preview the stabilized video. As you can see the video is less shaky now but it is cropped. If you are not satisfied increase the smooth level value. But keep in mind that the more you increase the smooth level the more the zoom in - crop. Press OK only when you are happy with the result. If you recorded with an action camera like a GoPro or a Sony FDR you can also use the Lens Correction tool.  
• Now you can edit the video as usual and export it.
  

 

Movavi Video Editor 

Movavi is another user friendly video editing program for Windows and Mac Os X systems. Lets use it to see how we can stabilize videos.  

 

 Improve shaky videos using Movavi

• Open Movavi and go to File --> Add Media Files or drag and drop the video.  
• Then select Edit --> Tools --> Stabilization or right click, select Tools --> Stabilization. 
• Now press Stabilize. The values options to reduce shaking in the video are Accuracy 15 and Shaking 5. Movavi has also Advanced Settings that allow more control. For example Adaptive or Fixed Edge Cropping. The more you increase those values the more smooth the final video will run. But on the other hand it will have more crop. 
• The final step is to select Export and save your stabilized footage.
  

 

Either your camera has no IBIS or EIS, Wondershare Filmora and Movavi Video Editor have the tools to improve your shaky footage. All you have to do is to be patient and play a bit with the values and the stabilization settings. Happy video editing.