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SteadXP’s DSLR stabilizer is a gimbal with no moving parts
If you've ever shot video handheld with a mirrorless or DSLR, camera shake may have ruined your day. To deal with it, you need a heavy-duty gimbal, but that can cost more than the camera. Another way is to fix it in post-production, but the results can be less than optimal. That's where the $350 SteadXP stabilizer comes in. It mounts on your hot shoe and measures all the motion with an accelerometer, then uses an included app to cancel it out. The results, I found, are quite good -- provided you keep its limitations in mind and have the time and patience for the process.
Windows Photo Gallery and Movie Maker refresh: Vimeo integration, camera stabilization
Microsoft's stalwart Photo Gallery and Movie Maker won't be hitting high-end studios anytime soon, but a new refresh for Windows 7 and 8 adds useful features that the teeming masses might appreciate. Topping the list for Movie Maker is video stabilization, which fixes camera jitter and "wobble" or rolling shutter -- a desperately needed feature for free software chockablock with shaky soccer mom and skater videos. Redmond has also added audio waveforms and an extra narration track, simple audio cleanup tools and text effects to the video editor. As for Photo Gallery, the only new tool of note is "auto collage" which should let you create spectacularly cheesy montages using seven or more photos, regardless of artistic talent or effort. Finally, the software giant announced Vimeo as its new "publish partner," letting you upload your Gadget Cribs rip-offs from either program directly to the site. Let's see if the video hoster figures out a way to cordon off the onslaught of new freeware riff-raff from its regular hipster / film school crowd.
