Image stabilization is OVERRATED | 5 tips to capture stable handheld footage!

In this video I explain you why, in my opinion, in-body image stabilization (IBIS) is overrated and I will also give you 5 tips to capture more stable footage without the needs of stabilized lenses or sensors.
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[@matteobertoli]

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[@aaronwalterscheid4496]

Man, I really appreciate you being one of the few camera related channels not constantly obsessed with AF and IBIS. Both incredibly overrated. Even when IBIS works decently, it’ll never match a gimbal or steadicam if that’s the level of smoothness someone’s looking for.

[@philippscheithauer]

to be honest, most youtubers are no DPs. Most of them just review gear for a living without actually being on sets. Although I enjoy some of the videos, how valuable can that opinion be in all honesty?

[@GCHUSTLEHAWAII]

Because he’s an actual filmmaker and not pushing these cheap ass gear to get commission. Most people who obsess over af and ibis is your typical “cinematic filmmaker “ lol

[@buknar456]

It's because he's an actual cinematographer - the comments here are mainly videographers (YT population) vs industry folk (a small minority on YT) two entirely different worlds. Matteo is one of the only Director/DPs on YT that knows how to bridge the gap in a knowledgeable objective way, he understands both sides

[@zanderwilll]

IBIS is great if you’re using a super stripped down lightweight setup. Also if you want super smooth shots on a cinema camera you’ll be using a gimbal or steadicam. Just different kinds of stabilization

[@matteobertoli]

I think the first part of your comment is what a lot of people don't get. IBIS looks horrible, it's not great. I shot plenty of stuff without any rig and with a super light camera. You just need to practice.

[@zanderwilll]

@@matteobertoli people also set IBIS to the max setting which yeah looks bad. But if you have it on a low setting and pair that with smooth movements the footage will look good. Especially for normies that just want to document their lives

[@matteobertoli]

@@zanderwilll I think it’s still looks bad and it’s also bad having a sensor that shakes inside your camera.

[@maximilianw.6841]

"Our minds can handle some shakiness but it cannot handle warping in a video." That was my Profs explanation as to why we don't use AIS.

[@matteobertoli]

Wow. You had an amazing prof! He should definitely open a KZbin channel 😂

[@IronGlass_Support]

I’m writing in the comments for the first time, although I’ve been following your videos since the appearance of pocket 4k, and learned from many videos, and then I also fell in love with a watering can, but managed to buy only 1 50 f2 lens before quarantine and make a cinema mode. very good video for beginners and for us, from some of the experienced, this is an important repetition) I have not yet had a chance to work on cool projects like yours, but I believe that I will be able to break out into this world of big filming and show my skills to the world, otherwise I am stuck here in Ukraine, we live, and now we are shooting a documentary about the war, not to be inactive. and I use almost all of these tricks. thanks for making useful content.

[@mcswing2001]

As a classical pianist, I love how you emphasise on the importance of developing skills and not focusing in the gear capacity. Good comments for the new generations

[@abandonshipproductions]

Great video!! And helpful for aspiring filmmakers to start thinking like professionals and not just consumers when looking at camera features.

[@joelarvidsson]

There is a room and place for handheld. But today its used as a plague. I much prefer graceful movements from dolly, crane or steadicam or even gimball. The most important thing is that we dont make the audience reminded that theyvare watching it throw a camera. Keeping the camera on the shoulder can be allright. This is just mine opinion that I want to balance out the discussion with:) Just watched the movie ”Astrid” thats about the swedish child book author Astrid Lindgren. And eveything was shot hand held. It takes me about an our to accept it and stop thinking so much about it. Then here and there shots pokes my eye and remind me that some one trying to keep trying to frame the subject. Even if the subject is stationary, the hunt to frame the subject is very much visible. My to cents.

[@aybee5908]

for action - (running) and Tele-shots, I definately use all stabilization I can get (gimbal prefered). In your examples there`s no need to stabilize indeed.

[@joshdiditt]

Guess he never used Panasonic or Olympus cameras, their stabilization is great. I'm pretty sure if Red and Arri put autofocus in their cameras, Hollywood Directors would utilize it. AF is great for gimbal work if you are by yourself or have a small crew.

[@matteobertoli]

What’s a gimbal?

[@BushmanMedia]

I also use panasonic S5 for fast instagram reels. Stabilization sucks. Even when i stand still, the image jumps at small movements. It doesn't happen to me with bmpcc 4k, especially after gyro stabilization.

[@Sundirre]

i hate IBIS look too, only positive i tihnk its if you are filming on 85mm or 135mm, the artifacts arent seen as on wide lens because of the compressed backround and i dont know how to shoot handheld on those lenses on my pocket, i always use tripod. So that might be only positive in my opinion

[@robinreso6240]

I want to replicate the 28mm look s35 but on a m43 sensor witch focal length do I need to replicate this look on m43 sensor? Thx!!

[@bmkhalidhasan]

Image stabilization are for noobs. These are for amature who do not have gimbals to take smooth shots. But in real cinema, the makers needs shaky shots that portrays thetension and eye movement appear in real life situations. When we shot with mirrorless, it shakes a lot for less weight. But with cine camera + rigs, the shakes are controlled and feels more natural. I will always support controlled shaky shots over artificial IBIS shots.

[@AgustinDavidF]

A true cameraman! I love handheld filmmaking. Thank you so much

[@dudepersonvids]

Your videos help give me the confidence to keep refining and honing my handheld/shoulder rig technique - my favorite and most comfortable way of shooting with my blackmagic - even when a lot of my peers (and some bosses) are all about gimbals and IS or IBIS etc. I've used slow motion, wider lenses, and rested the camera on my hip or belly, and am always practicing how I move or even how I pull focus to get smoother footage. (And lucky enough, my first DSLR was a Canon Rebel back in 2012... the video autofocus was so bad I pretty much learned to manually focus from the start.)

[@tds3653]

Would you say top handle is better than holding the camera on the sides concerning micro jitters?

[@aurorahiraeth5896]

I feel like IBIS and Autofocus are meant for photography.

[@diassmaker]

Thanks for the honest approach on the subject!

[@rafibenatar2519]

Great information 🙏🏻

[@iakovoscinematographer]

liked before even seeing it

[@FilmSpook]

Eternal Thanks, Matteo!! 🙏🏾Very helpful, no-nonsense tips. Much love for you, my Brother!!

[@MisAnkic]

Do you know maybe how many dr stops xt4 has?

[@hyperborean2576]

#6 - break your back or buy very expensive gear to support it's weight

[@matteobertoli]

Welcome to the film industry

[@Mraz75]

Thank you sir.. you really help me boosting my confidence.. i thought having shaky footage is wrong.. and i will practice more with my camera..

[@GregTurismo]

This was great and you sound very wise

[@MrIanWebb]

Great tips! Lately, I've been shooting a lot of my lifestyle content at 33fps. I find it helps to stabilize the footage a bit, without the shots lasting too long.

[@polarisworks]

Or just use a wider lens 😉 to make it all less shaky. Thanks for your video Matteo!

[@tangibleplanetvisualmedia1138]

First, I agree with you about autofocus though, I don't use it and I think everyone should learn to focus manually. As far as IBIS, I agree that IBIS isn't that big of a deal but that's because you should be rigging your camera up to some other type of stabilization in 90% of situations. Everytime I see BTS shots from any major hollywood production, the camera is on a stedicam. I don't really understand this hatred of stabilization that I see online. You need to get stable footage, and no matter how heavy your camera is, or if you have a shoulder rig, it's still not going to be stedicam/gimbal smooth. A lot of the example footage you played wasn't very stable, I"m not really sure what you're getting at with this video. If you want to get to a certain level in this industry you will be excepted to have stable footage, just like you said at the beginning.

[@matteobertoli]

I don’t shoot any major Hollywood production and my camera is always minimally rigged because I do a lot of docu and run and gun shoots. If you shoot handheld well, of course you won’t have tripod stable footage. That’s exactly the reason why people shoot handheld, to get that “handheld” camera movement. Pretty logic. The point I made in this video is: if you wanna become a real cinematographer just learn how to capture stable footage without IBIS, because that is one of the most important skill an operator should have. The other point is to NOT disregard a camera only because doesn’t have IBIS, which btw looks terrible and you can clearly tell when it’s used. Pretty straightforward

[@Ramziestephan]

Thanks for the tips Matteo! You’ve been a big inspiration for shooting handheld and manual focus. I wanted to ask you which follow focus you use on your Pocket 6K rig?

[@matteobertoli]

Thanks! Ikan stratus

[@Andrei-sb6lp]

if you shoot everything in slowmo as shown in your examples, then of course you don’t need stabilization, but if you shoot with a small camera weighing 1kg without an easy rig or 10kg weight, then you will have technical shaking that looks disgusting. If you shoot on arri alexa which weighs 15kg+ of course there will be no shaking. in-camera stabilization is great for removing that technical shaking on static shots and handheld camera, obviously if you want to shoot something in motion put it on the gimbal

[@matteobertoli]

I shot plenty of stuff without any rig and in 24p (see all my original Pocket footage). Camera stabilization just looks terrible. I rather have some micro shakes than those artifacts.

[@AudioVideo_IT]

I am filming with my cheap FZ1000 at 600mm equivalent focal length wildlife. I managed it to get usable content on handheld and with IBIS on. The bad thing is sometimes the IBIS helps and sometimes it ruins my videos. So I did buy an old shoulder rig turn the stabilization off. After the post image stabilization the videos with shoulder rig and without IBIS are much better and more reliable than the video with IBIS on! At this focal length IBIS sometimes even fights against you in pointing to the animal you want to film. I fully agree with you!

[@itsmarcocanlas]

Followed this advice from you when I was using the pocket 6k, I love it better than any other ibis cameras! I use a nFX3 now and hate the ibis! So I tried turning off the IBIS and rigged it up for weight and it's not the same as pocket 6k rigged up. Do you know why?

[@matteobertoli]

My guess is that the sensor still shakes inside the camera? Not sure tho, I used the fx3 once

[@itsmarcocanlas]

@@matteobertoli I had a feeling, trying to do more tests! Kinda regret switching systems

[@PeterTheodore91]

Never use any camera with IBIS, only IS from the lens long time ago so i don't know how it feels, But i like how the gyro data from BMPCC6K and FX6, not using it so often but so far it feels more natural like using easyrig.

[@local130]

I see you holding your camera with two hands only in some shots and they look almost locked off! 2 points of contact not 3. YOUR THE ICE MAN!!!! I don't even believe your real. Your some kind of avatar.

[@Giacomoso]

That's why I always thought that having a soft belly is required if you want to be a good cinematographer. Less IBIS, more belly.

[@12darinho]

What about walking with EasyRig? Does it make footage more shaky or it helps a little bit? I am going to buy BMPCC 4k and looking for something to be able to walk with it a little bit and it seems that EasyRig would be perfect, it will take away weight (my rig will be around 3,5 - 4 kg) and stabilize footage a bit. Thanks for answer.

[@ZESTfilm]

Great Maxim - "Practice! Practice! Practice"

[@reytampubolon6390]

Thanks for the video Matteo, Very good info indeed (especially for newbies like me) 👍

[@cinema8564]

Loved your emphasis on PRACTICE. The only way.

[@_mannyponce]

thank you for another great video. How do you travel with gear? pelican case?

[@ixlndvsxtc]

I noticed that using image stabilization on panning shots adds stutter to the footage where the sensor is resetting itself after reaching edge of stabilization area.

[@simonesalvatore76]

100% with you, Matteo. This is what separate film from video.

[@alexanderwelsh]

thank you Matteo

[@emreakgun9160]

very helpful video thanks Matteo ✌

[@filmyardart]

Cineseddel is also great thx for ur content

[@ahilltodieons]

While I think it's vital to develop these manual skills, as new videographer without much of a budget, you may find yourself struggling to get stable shots, especially when walking or side-stepping. Even honing your "ninja-walk" cannot eliminate all of the micro-jitters from your shots. I notice that Matteo seems to shoot at 60fps for many shots, which obviously will smooth footage when slowed down. For those with more low-tech cameras, Power IS can definitely help until you have the MONEY for an EasyRig, gimbal or matte-box and rail setup. You still need to work on your handheld image stabilization even with an IS lens. I'm curious to know what Matteo would say.

[@matteobertoli]

I would say that I’ve been doing this job since 11 years and I never used IBIS or AF once. Shot many weddings on the Original Pocket, events etc. LEARN YOUR CRAFT. That’s what I say :)

[@rgomezq]

Thank you !!!!! Great video ! Muchas gracias !

[@areito5]

Hi Matteo. I did an update firmware on my BMPCC 6K PRO and I lost your in camera luts (buttery luts). How can I re-download it? @Matteo Bertoli

[@matteobertoli]

Email us ;)

[@cinematools9621]

These are good tips but I disagree that video autofocus and image stabilization are not important. In a documentary world I see more and more mirrorless cameras being used in productions. A lot of Sony FX3's and A7SIII's. And people use autofocus and stabilization on these cameras and especially when shooting verite. These are useful tools and people are using them.

[@matteobertoli]

They are useful if you can’t pull your own focus or capture stable footage. That’s for sure and there is nothing wrong with that. But they also look terrible.

[@cinematools9621]

@@matteobertoli the people who are using these tools are DPs with 20 years of experience. They're using the tools that are appropriate for a job. I'm not arguing that a DP shouldn't know how to use manual focus and know how to hold a camera. The more tools the better.

[@matteobertoli]

@@cinematools9621 ok. And those features still look terrible. So?

[@cinematools9621]

@@matteobertoli no, they don't. They look good enough to be on Hulu, HBO and Netflix.

[@PeterTheodore91]

Not a big fan of AF but it always depend on what project or situation, we use FX6 for bigger projects and we never use auto focus unless we shooot a long interview or shooting myself.

[@renouncreation]

Love the tips. Now I gotta hit the gym.

[@furkonige]

I consider it appropriate to mention that if it is a production in which you decide whether you approve or reject the final product, it's fine what you expose in this video, but if it is the work that is paying a client, then buy a gimbal and try to save headaches to your client, greetings!

[@matteobertoli]

I am working with clients since 2012. Never used a gimbal and clients are always happy. Go figure ;)

[@micheleballarini2900]

Grazie Matteo per i tuoi consigli e valutazioni

[@danielchacin]

Hi Matteo, your content is always very good. I wanted to ask you if your course has the option of subtitles in other languages, for example Spanish

[@matteobertoli]

Hey Daniel! Thanks! Only in english sorry!

[@yothomasbarnes]

Love this, thanks Matteo.

[@NineSevenPictures]

thanks...!!!

[@francescorungo]

Matteo grande come sempre! Io pure con la 7s3 vado sempre con fuoco manuale ma lo stabilizzatore sinceramente lo uso anche se ho riggato la camera, perché, con tutto che la camera è pesante perché ho anche l atomos ninja 5 collegato, non riesco a tenere "a mano" un 85mm... Però è vero quello che dici, che si deve stare attenti perché poi da scossoni a dx e sx.. Si deve comunque stare fermi. Ne mio cuore c'è sempre la ursa 4.6 g2 o la 6k pro 😢

[@matteobertoli]

Carissimo, se vuoi usare un 85mm prendi un cavalletto. Girare a mano con un 85mm è da pazzi. Pure con l’ibis

[@lattor-archivni]

Thank you, man!

[@MacVitRu]

Matteo, do you still stick to white balance tint=0?

[@matteobertoli]

Yeah but I change it sometimes depends on the situation. Maybe in a forest I will shoot tint 10. But doesn’t really matter

[@joshkiddfilms1295]

Fuji ibis is total trash, even on the newer stuff (xh2s) albeit a little better. Don’t care for Sony’s either. Panasonic is really the only company whose ibis looks even remotely natural.

[@matteobertoli]

Still think that if you can’t capture stable footage without IBIS you should rethink your filmmaker career

[@joshkiddfilms1295]

@@matteobertoli I wasn't even talking about that. I agree that it's important to have the skills to get stable footage without a form of stabilization. I was just giving my opinion on the current offered ibis options because you made a very general comment on how bad ibis always looks...and hearing how you were using Fuji and your xt4 experience as your frame of reference...its worth noting how bad and jerky the ibis on xt4 is...probably the worst of all of the cameras I've messed around with...practically unusable...and that there's some that perform much better and in a more usable way like the Panasonics...and reality is, there are certain things where having some stabilization can be helpful...like for me certain times when I'd want to use really long vintage zooms for fast event work like concerts, but not be locked to a tripod...but of course fully relying on it like anything else that isn't manually done is counterintuitive to growth.

[@joshkiddfilms1295]

I don't have cameras anymore that do ibis...but there were some times while owning s1h in the past where it was helpful

[@jessecumberledge4530]

Yep the GH6 IBIS is just next level. Very helpful. BTW I have and still use a BMPCC4k and learned to get smooth shots with it. The GH6 IBIS is just another tool that you can use to your advantage, depending on what you are shooting.

[@zeidaghabi7284]

Good advice 👍🏻

[@jakubmicka]

Great tips Matteo 🔥

[@bacnic]

Fuori contesto ma un po' sembri Francesco Renga

[@matteobertoli]

😂 mio ex vicino di casa. Non sei il primo che me lo dice 😆

[@DineshBhadwal]

What you are also saying is filming without autofocus and in body stabilisation is a completely different style of filming. The whole planning, blocking and even editing of your shots change when you are working with a system which rely on your skills rather than the technology. At this point i am undecided between the 6KPro and the S1H. The Panasonic has probably the best in body stabilisation not to mention the APSC punch in which changes your prime lens into two focal lengths without any loss in resolution. The Panny is also great in low light making it the smallest 6K camera for documentary work. What are your thoughts on S1H?

[@matteobertoli]

Hey! This really comes down to what you do. For example, I could never, EVER, sacrifice Blackmagic color science, codec and workflow for anything else. Only camera I feel it gets me the same kind of images is the Arri Alexa. But for me the film look and the super solid image quality is a priority over everything, mainly because I know my skills and what I can achieve with my camera. And trust me, I tried Canon, Panasonic, Sony many times, still I can tell right away is not Blackmagic. So if you are a true operator and you can manage manual focus and get stable footage with your skills, I don’t think there is really another option other than Blackmagic. If ibis is all you need, then yes, Panasonic :)

[@DineshBhadwal]

Makes sense. Thank you for the reply. I also understand what you mean when you say that a stabilised sensor has its own problems since the sensor moves. Right now what I need is a solid image which can do justice to my craft which I learnt at the Film School. I can't pay for an Arri so Blackmagic is the nearest which costs way less. The only thing stopping me is we do not have a Blackmagic service centre in my country. So if the camera fails i am without a camera for a number of months. How is the 6K when it comes to reliability?

[@matteobertoli]

@@DineshBhadwal never had an issue with BM cameras since 2013. But I did have an arri alexa failing in the middle of a feature so… things break!

[@DineshBhadwal]

@@matteobertoli That's reassuring. Thank you.

[@tokekkk]

As still photographers: it is NOT overrated.

[@matteobertoli]

Still photography has nothing to do with cinematography. In facts this is a photo feature, not a video feature. You need it way more in photography than video

[@tokekkk]

@@matteobertoli yup, agree.

[@troywalt4834]

Or just buy ronin 4d but its expensive lol

[@matteobertoli]

That's for another video: why I never used a gimbal in my entire life lol

[@MassimilianoSB]

@@matteobertoli bought a gimbal system two times, I almost never used. Never used autofocus in video, what you can do hand focusing is just wonderful. Actually trying to master handheld out of my tripod, still have lot to learn.

[@tomruckes562]

Hey Matteo, As always, an excellent video. Thanks for your input. I own the bmpcc 6k pro and I know this topic is covered by many and I'm sure it's a pain to answer all the time. But I would like to know from you if you mainly stay with the Ist 400 and add more light if it should be too dark. Do you also expose your image to the right and pull down the shadows and blacks in post or how do you do that. Saw your color grading tutorials, every shot there was virtually noise free. Hope you can answer my question, I already have the feeling that something is wrong with my sensor.

[@matteobertoli]

Hey Tom, thanks! I have a video about false colors and how to expose. With the Pocket I shoot at any iso, depends on the situation. Typically 400, 800, 1000 and 12500. In rare occasions I go up to 2500

[@tomruckes562]

@@matteobertoli Thanks for your quick response..Don't you have tons of noise with iso 800, 1000 and 2500? My Footage at that Iso is awful.

[@matteobertoli]

@@tomruckes562 nope. But if you are shooting in a pitch black scenario yes, you will have noise like with any other camera

[@ardiyanto.t]

@@tomruckes562imho, its software problem.. re instal/ fw update once available

[@bjornsahlin]

​@@tomruckes5623200 is the second stage native ISO. That should give you lower noise to signal ratio than 1600, 2500 etc

[@IkennaVisuals]

Great video Matteo! What are your settings usually if you are shooting in 48 fps?

[@matteobertoli]

Thanks! What kind of settings you mean?

[@IkennaVisuals]

@@matteobertoli , you’re welcome! And when using 48 fps 180 degrees shutter angle?

[@matteobertoli]

@@IkennaVisuals you never change the shutter angle ;)

[@IkennaVisuals]

@@matteobertoli , okay! Never, noted :)

[@Sundirre]

@@IkennaVisuals great DPs do change their shutter, to avoid flickering or to add more light in night scenes