Hero 7 Black - Hypersmooth Panning Issue

[quickhero77554]

This has been noted before by others but it deserves another mention.

The Hypersmooth feature on the Hero 7 Black completely ruins any type of slow pans. It creates an obvious slow-fast-slow-fast pan which ruins the shot.

When directly compared with the Hero 7 white/silver, and Hero 6 Black, the problem becomes even more obvious. Those other less stabilised cameras have no issue panning without issue.

I am very concerned about this and I think this needs to be a priority fix in the next frimware update.

I have seen others posting things along the lines of "this is normal with stabilisation", or "all camera do this", and to be honest I don't know where you're getting your facts. The panning on this new camera is by far the worst I've ever seen on any GoPro let alone other cameras and sweeping it under the rug by saying those things doesn't help matters.

See this video below for a comparison between Hero 7 Black and other Hero 7 models (5:40).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsnCKIKO5Ok

[stanleym7236]

Depends on the kind of shooting you do?   For frequent slow pans of still objects, I'd use a tripod or gimbal.   Since the standard stabilization on the 6 for example is not steady enough.   That one has some of the stuttering too, i just handle this by setting the shots up as I'd like.   I still use my karma all the time and with the 7 too.   

I need to look into it further but I am noticing possibly improved rolling shutter and also a change in lens flare behavior.   All part of learning a new device, stuff you put in the back of your head for the next shoot or to do some testing on.   Both RS can be an additional factor in panned shots depending on the subject and motions.  

GoPro may be able to add a stabilization tab or two (tuned for specific things)  from which we can select, which would be great.   But I have shooting to do in the mean time.  

[quickhero77554]

While using a gimbal is a solution, it's an expensive one that most won't be able to utilise. I myself do have a gimbal and will be using it for my pans BUT I shouldn't have to. A camera should be able to pan without video breaking mechanics. My Hero 6 Black never had these panning issues. I really do think it's essential GoPro address it cause a lot of people (probably a large majority) will need to pan at somepoint while using the camera.

[swifthero28110]

So I keep tryng to commnent on this post and it seems my post keeps getting marked off and removed. If we can not voice our opinions and concerns here in this like minded small group then maybe public youtube videos will serve the wider public better! Shame.

[nicevista74482]

I'm very dissapointed, because panning is one of the basic movement for movie making, especially for travel video. If I disable the stabilization, then,  the video is worse than handphone's recording and it defeats the purpose of purchasing hero 7.  I hope gopro will fix it

right away.

[nicewave25336]

Yes - really good stabilization and panning do not go together. The stronger the stabilization the more difficult it is to pan smoothly. This is true for professional video cameras.

The reason is that stabilization is designed to resist movement. It cannot always discern intentional movement from shake. When you start to pan fast it initially resists.

On some professional cameras there is a setting which turns off horizontal stabilization so the user can pan. This is a rare feature. So what do pro's do? They turn off stabilization before they pan. You can do that too. This is the price for realy good stabilization, true for the best cameras.

[agilestoke40735]

http://abekislevitz.com/gopro-hero7-black/

HyperSmooth Limitations - Slow Horizontal Panning

The way the algorithm works, the one use-case that gets left in the dust is slow horizontal panning – meaning you’re steadily moving the camera laterally from left to right or vice-versa. It will attempt to “grab on” to the scene, and realize it has to keep moving so you’ll get those tell-tale pops and jumps. For these uses I would turn off HyperSmooth. If the pan is quick enough such as mounted on your head, it has no problem knowing where it should be.

[dennobundy]

I totally agree here.. and if its impossible to fix that Problem in firmware then please do a quick button in the display to Switch it off and on..