HomeFeaturesDetect Shaky Footage
Detect Shaky Footage

Every Shaky Shot Found
Before Your Client Sees It.

Frame-motion analysis catches handheld instability, camera vibration and tripod slippage. Every unstable section gets a severity-ranked marker so you can decide: stabilise, cut or replace with B-roll.

Premiere Pro Final Cut Pro DaVinci Resolve 3 severity levels
What Triggers the Detector

Three types of camera instability detected.

Motion instability takes different forms depending on shooting conditions. EditLint AI identifies all three categories with separate severity thresholds.

Handheld Shake

High-frequency, low-amplitude vibrations caused by holding the camera freehand. The detector measures inter-frame motion vector variance — a handheld signature produces a distinctive noise pattern across multiple axes that distinguishes it from intentional camera movement or panning.

Camera Vibration

Higher-frequency shake caused by vehicle movement, machinery nearby, or DSLR mirror slap. Vibration produces a periodic oscillation pattern in the motion vectors that differs from organic handheld shake. Detected as medium or high severity depending on amplitude and frequency.

Tripod Slippage

Slow, low-frequency drift caused by a pan head that wasn't fully locked, or a head that slipped slightly during recording. Unlike handheld shake, this produces a slow unidirectional drift in the motion vectors that's often invisible to the eye on playback but noticeable to viewers subliminally.

Severity Levels

Ranked so you fix the worst first.

Not all shake is equal. A tiny handheld wobble on a wide shot is far less noticeable than the same motion on a tight close-up. EditLint AI's severity scoring factors in both the motion amplitude and the focal length metadata so you see an accurate picture of real viewer impact.

  • High (red) — immediately distracting. Viewers will notice. Stabilise or cut.
  • Medium (amber) — noticeable on close inspection. Consider stabilising or covering with B-roll.
  • Low (cyan) — subtle. Often acceptable. Review in context before deciding.

Severity thresholds are adjustable per project. Broadcast and documentary editors often lower the threshold; run-and-gun and vlog editors often raise it.

What To Do With Each Issue
HIGH SEVERITY → Apply Warp Stabiliser
Use Premiere's Warp Stabiliser (or equivalent) on the flagged clip. EditLint adds a marker and notes the recommended stabilisation method based on the detected motion type.
MEDIUM SEVERITY → Cover with B-Roll
Place relevant B-roll over the shaky section to maintain the audio while replacing the distraction on screen. Use with Add B-Roll for an automated suggestion.
LOW SEVERITY → Review in Context
Click to jump the playhead to the marker. Watch in context at full resolution before deciding whether to stabilise or leave as-is.
How It Works

Motion analysed. Markers placed.

1

Optical Flow Extraction

For every clip in the selected range, EditLint AI samples frames at regular intervals and computes dense optical flow between consecutive frames. This produces a motion vector field that captures the direction and magnitude of movement across the entire frame.

2

Instability Scoring

The motion vector fields are analysed for patterns characteristic of shake, vibration and drift. A rolling instability score is computed for each second of footage. Sections where the score exceeds the configured threshold for more than the minimum duration are flagged as candidates.

3

Markers Placed

Each flagged section gets a colour-coded [EditLint] marker placed at its start point on the clip's timeline. High severity in red, medium in amber, low in cyan. The marker comment includes the detected shake type, average severity score and a suggested action.

Find every shaky shot before it reaches the client.

A 60-second full-sequence scan catches every unstable section with severity ranking so you fix what matters first and skip what doesn't.

No credit card required · Works inside your NLE · Cancel any time