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Mar 23, 2010
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Cafilornia
Probably already picked this up on the other threads, but if you have an iPhone or iPad, Ubersense will probably show you everything you need as long as the lighting is good.
I show them to DD's hitting and catching coaches all the time, and never heard them say "I wish we had more frames".
 
Sep 10, 2013
603
0
Canon P&S

Yep I got tons of them... Here's one... got night stuff too :{)))

1.gif


2.gif

as others have mentioned, some canons have slo-mo. SX2?0 series (230,260,280). slo-mo clip is limited to 30 seconds only which is more than enough for pitch or swing analysis.
 
Jul 17, 2012
1,091
38
Bringing this one back to life. I think I've learned through a few threads on here that 60FPS is actually good enough to capture pitching and hitting mechanics for the sake of analysis. I think we've also learned that 5he blur is not a result of the fps, but rather shutter speed. Since most affordable video cameras capable of 60 FPS have automatic shutter settings, we need to to "trick" the camera into using the fastest shutter speed it is capable of. To do this we need bright light....so obviously sunny days outdoors is ideal. But in colder climates...outside is a challenge in the winter......a time when many are working on mechanical improvements....and have the greatest need for video analysis. So what I still don't know, and have not been able to find on the net in limited searches........is what is the BEST form of artificial light for the sake of high speed video capture. Anyone have that knowledge? Standard incandescent, halogen, LED, fluorescent?
 

JJsqueeze

Dad, Husband....legend
Jul 5, 2013
5,436
38
safe in an undisclosed location
not a photo guy, but I did sleep at a Holiday inn Express last night.....anything without a flicker should do fine so no fluorescent lights. Otherwise just make sure it is well lit and you should be fine.
 

javasource

6-4-3 = 2
May 6, 2013
1,347
48
Western NY
I'm going to try and answer all the common questions in 1 post...

Here is a good artcle on the 3 important pieces of the exposure puzzle: aperture, ISO, and shutter speed. It ought to help those wanting to learn more about their camera and the capabilities... as well as help those shopping, look for the right product for their needs. It's a relatively simple explanation of a complex subject, and I highly recommend it.

Camera Exposure: Aperture, ISO & Shutter Speed


Casio has been the leader for point and shoot models, but what you gain in high speed video capabilities, you often lose in image quality. For most, that sacrifice is probably minimal.

It's also important that you understand the limitations with 90% of point & shoot models. They are automatic. Shutter and aperture are adjusted on the fly, by the camera. As such, lighting is important.

I highly recommend The Casio FH100 and FH25 Models. They will shoot 120fps and 240fps. They also handle 1000fps, but I think that the resolution limitation at this frame rate, makes this more of a marketing tool, than a useful one. They are decent cameras - but incredible high-speed options - as they allow the user to MANUALLY adjust the aperture, ISO, and shutter speed.

If your budget limits you to automatic cameras, try and find one that has at least a 1/10,000 shutter speed option in its automatic "portfolio".

CALCULATING MOTION BLUR IN INCHES

If you have one of these, or another MANUAL model (please share that camera with us!!!), knowing the formula for limiting the inches of blur, will help you get the most of these cameras. Here it is:

MOTION BLUR = OBJECT VELOCITY X SHUTTER SPEED


Example: A 60 mph pitch - i.e. the ball... (this is the formula for OBJECT VELOCITY, in equation above):
(60 MPH /3600 SEC/HR X 5280FT/Mi X 12 INCHES/FT) X SHUTTER SPEED = INCHES BLUR FOR A 60MPH BALL

So...

1056 IN/SEC X SHUTTER SPEED = INCHES BLUR FOR A 60MPH pitch

So... if given 1/1000 speed... (.001) - you'd have 1.056 inches of movement blur in every frame

at 1/10,000 (.0001) speed it would be 0.1056 inches of blur... A much, much larger improvement over 1/1000 shutter speed.

Some get confused about shutter speed lingo... it's expressed as linear math. 1/2000 does NOT equal .002 (2 thousandths)- it is literally, 1 divided by 2000... which equals .0005

Indoors, it gets much more difficult... because the shutter speed of 1/10,000 won't capture enough light. Manually adjusting the ISO (800,1600,3200) will give you some flexibility... but you're probably only gonna get a max of 1/2000 shutter speed.

UNDERSTANDING FRAME RATE
and what it means IN PITCHING ANALYSIS is important.

There are measurements of the linear velocity of the arm (feet per second) available for softball pitching. A fast pitcher (read: college-level) has arm speeds that exceed 70 linear feet per second. If filming them pitch, here are a few examples of the amount of movement their arm will have for each frame:

(linear feet per second/frames per second)
30fps camera = The arm will have moved 2.33 feet per frame (28 inches)
60fps camera = The arm will have moved 1.17 feet per frame (14 inches)
120fps camera = The arm will have moved 0.58 feet per frame (7 inches)
240fps camera = The arm will have moved 0.292 feet per frame (3.5 inches)

... you can see the pattern... a doubling of frame rate = 1/2 the movement

So, as you can see - if you're just looking to analyze your DD's form - 60 & 120fps are adequate. If you want to analyze release mechanics... you're going to need a minimum of 240fps... but ideally more...

UNDERSTANDING LIGHTING:

Your biggest obstacle when filming high-speed video will be lighting. Sunlight is easy. Indoor lighting is brutal.

Tungsten lights are the best option.

AC power cycles about 50 to 60 times per second. See the problem? As the filament cools off, a high speed camera will pick up this dimming, causing flicker. The only way to get past this is to introduce a SINGLE light source with over 5000 watts of power. Lights this large will not cool enough to dim before the next power cycle, and your flicker will go away. With DC power, the flicker will go away entirely - and will lower your lighting requirement to no lower than 2000 watts.

Under 100fps video can be tackled with HMI and fluorescent lighting as a general rule. Anything greater... it's not worth it, the artifacts in these lights appear as bands... pretty cool stuff.

Some LED lighting options are out there... but not affordable.

As far as the lumens needed... I've read you need over 200,000 for indoor video.

As you can see... this is absurd at times... and the best option is sunlight. It's free!

There it is... Hope it helps you all maximize your current and future investments.
 
Last edited:

JJsqueeze

Dad, Husband....legend
Jul 5, 2013
5,436
38
safe in an undisclosed location
Amy/Sluggers- if possible I would like to see JS' post as a sticky so we could consolidate the camera/slo/mo tech stuff into one thread. I think a lot of people get to the point where they want to get no blur slo motion footage and they have to try to become camera experts. If we had a sticky on video analysis we could get this info, video software/gif animator advice. etc. in one location for future newcomers.
 

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