Many are familiar with the problem: You want to take a few photos quickly, but the lighting conditions are poor. Without a tripod and by hand, not even the professionals are able to take shake-free shots under such conditions. In such cases, an image stabilizer helps. So how does the technology behind it actually work? In our article we reveal the secret of the image stabilizer.
The idea of stabilizing images dates back to the late 1980s. At that time, the first compact camcorders celebrated their first triumph in domestic living rooms. Spurred on by ambitious videographers, camera manufacturers developed the first solutions to make filming smoother without a tripod. The image stabilizer was born.
When filming, shots are blurred at close-up shots. Everyone trembles imperceptibly. This trembling is extremely visible, especially in zoom shots. Therefore, the experts in the development laboratories of the camera manufacturers are working on technical possibilities to counteract the shaking. However, the development towards the image stabilizer as we know it today took some time.
First solution: smart lenses
The first image stabilizer worked in the lens of the video camera itself. To do this, the developers built an additional, movable stabilizer lens into the lens. This lens is controlled by a small motor.
During movie recording, this lens corrects minor camera shake caused by human tremors. The lens takes the incident light rays as a scale. Deviations are recognized immediately and compensated for by a corresponding movement of the lens in the opposite direction.
Of course, the whole process takes no longer than a blink of an eye. It is therefore also clear: Larger camera shakes cannot be compensated for with this method.
By the way: The first image stabilizers in the lenses of cameras only appeared in the mid-1990s. Here, too, the technical development only came about through passionate hobby photographers. Fired up by more and more small, compact SLR cameras, people discovered their love for photography.
When taking photos, images blur if the subject is not properly lit and a longer shutter speed is therefore necessary. The longer the aperture is open, the more clearly even the smallest movements affect the quality of the recording. The principle described above also helps here to stabilize images within the lens.
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Further development: Electronic image stabilizers
Above all, the advent of digital single-lens reflex cameras changed the technology to take pictures without shaking. There is an electronic image sensor in the digital camera. Similar to the stabilizer lens in the lens, the image sensor is movably mounted. This allows it to perform up to five different axis movements.
To get an idea of how fast the image sensor can move: the sensitive sensor compensates for wobbling movements up to 1000 times per second.
However, the electronic image stabilizer built into the camera can only compensate for the smallest shaking movements. Extremely shaky recordings can then only be justified with artistic freedom.
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Master class: The dual image stabilizer
There are now photo and video cameras that intelligently combine both technologies. In this case, the stabilizer lens in the lens and the electronic image sensor in the camera work together. This method currently delivers the best shots when no tripod is available.
However, only a few camera manufacturers offer such a solution. Unfortunately, the different systems cannot be combined with each other. Therefore, you have to choose a manufacturer in order to enjoy razor-sharp images even under difficult conditions.
However, the best image stabilizer is of no use if the subject is moving extremely quickly. In this case, the camera should have a sports mode that optimizes the aperture time for lightning-fast subject movements. Manufacturers of action cams, for example, offer such solutions – such as DJI or GoPro.