Video looks perfect in imove, shaky and jumpy after export

Hello!
I'm brand new to video editing... and I have a strange problem with my very first video.

The video looks perfect in imovie but when I export it either with Export movie... or Export movie with QuickTime... it results in a shaky, jumpy video.

See an example here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRLCVVWeuYA

I've tried all different kinds of settings as suggested in http://www.macprovideo.com/forum/video/imovie-idvd&id=13011&sid=0 (Rough motion when exporting to quicktime).

I've filmed with a SAMSUNG HMX-Q10 which (I think) has some kind of automatic built in anti shake function.

I've tried to import both with and without "analyze for stabilization".

I'm on Imovie '09 8.0.6 (swedish edition)

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

/Johan

Hi Johan L,

Welcome to the forums. Well, that video is crazy shaky!

When you choose "Export Movie" in iMovie which settings are you choosing?

What are the settings of your project in iMovie?

Thanks
Rounik

Hello!
Here are some images of my settings (time to learn swedish):






I've tried a number of settings, all with the same result. For example H.264, MPEG-4, no compression, quality medium/high/best etc. Different sizes.

I think it's the anti shake data from the camera that messes upp things. Strange though that the video looks ok in imovie... Unless I "analyze movie for stabilization" then the clip starts shaking inside imovie too (timeline only [lower view], not clip preview [upper view]).

This is really weird...

/johan

Hi Johan,

That's odd. So what format settings is your SAMSUNG HMX-Q10 recording to?

What about the "frame rate" when you export from iMovie? Is it set to at least 25? Have you experimented with different frame rate settings and quality?

Also, do you have the latest updates for your version of iMovie (via Software Update from the Apple Menu)?

Thanks!

The camera only has a resolution setting which is set to "Full HD 1080/60i: Records in the Full HD (1920x1080/60i) format"

It also has some settings for white balance and exposure. These are all set to "auto". That's it.

This is taken from the manual

1. This camcorder records video in H.264 (MPEG4/AVC) format.

2. You can play back and edit the video recorded by the camcorder on a personal computer using the internal software of this camcorder.

3. Please note that this camcorder is not compatible with other digital video formats.

Do #2 and #3 mean that I can't use iMovie?


I've tested with frame rate set to 50 with the same result.


My iMovie is up to date, though it's iMovie '09. Maybe I should upgrade to iLife '11?

/johan

Now I've upgraded to iLife '11.

iMovie produces the same result as before (I reimported the clips with the new version before trying again...)

I really don't know what to do next?

Any ideas? Buy a PC or a new camera?

/Johan

Hi Johan,

I'm sorry to hear this...

I've tried iMovie 06 to iMovie 11 with different camcorders and never come across this issue.

It sounds like it must be an issue with a setting on the camcorder itself... Have you double-checked all the record and playback settings on the camera?

Thanks
Rounik

Hello again!
Problem almost solved!

It turns out that importing via Import from camera... doesn't work, but if you import via Import > Movies... and browse the camera files from the file system then everything works fine (the camera shows up as an external disk when plugged in).

Thanks for your time and efforts! :-)


BTW: Samsung gave no help at all! "Try another software, we don't support iMovie".

/johan

Hi Johan!

This is great news!!

Of course, I should've asked you in the beginning how you were importing the clips from the camera(!)

Really glad you discovered the solution & thanks for posting back here!

Happy Editing :)

Rounik

Hello,

I have the same problem with Samsung HMX S10. Shaky video. I tried Import>Movies (from external backup). Doesn't work.
Until this day, the video was only shaky after export and not in iMovie.
Now its shaky in iMovie preview !

I'm going mad !!!!
Thx for help

I'm having the same issue, and I can't find any help for this. It is very frustrating, someone please help! asap!

its a shame that Samsung let their customers in such a bad situation. I've tried a lots of ways, but nothing works. So my 800Euros camcorder now deeply sleeps on a shelve. Unacceptable !

Did you try the different ways of importing as described above? It worked for me!
/johan

yes i tried all the different ways. Cool that it woks for you.... but not for me. Really don't know what to do more. No help from f*****g Samsung !

My camcorder is a the new Samsung BSI Sensor OIS Duo. I can watch the video footage properly when viewing it BEFORE importing, but the minute I import into iMovie'11 the shaking starts! I have used 2 other camcorders and the same procedure and this never happened.

Is there any other way to not directly import into iMovie, say onto a hard drive and then open from there?

Please help...it's a wedding video that I volunteered to do...

I solved the problem after weeks of researching.
I have a samsung hd camcorder (HMX-S15BP) with an internal harddrive. (H.264)
1. Set your camera on the menu on "resolution 720 HD". Make your film
2. Import in iMovie as is shown before.
3. After finalizing your project, export it in this way:
a. Choose quicktime-movie format. (MPEG4-video). Put on "best" quality
Choose HD 1280x720 (16:9)
Sound: choose AAC
Rate 44.100. Here quality "better".
With these settings I het a good quality HD-movie.
I also replaced the sound in the footage. Even this operation got very good quality in sound.