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How to Take Video
We put this guide together as a way to help users take the best video possible for processing with SportsTrace. It’s the SportsTrace Video Best Practices!
Read below on our simple how-to:
- Make sure subjects are in the full frame
- Make sure you have the camera as stable and steady as possible
- Single video will do…chances are your current cell phone is more than adequate if it was made within the last five years.
- Frame the subject (the person you are recording in the video) as close and tightly as possible
- Make sure nothing is blocking the subject
- Color video works best!
- Generally, front facing video is the best
- Single Video!
Make sure subjects are in the full frame
Subjects that are in the full frame of the video yield the best possible results. When parts of the subject’s body move outside of the frame of the video, it becomes difficult for us to analyze their whole body movement.
GOOD
BAD
Make sure you have the camera as stable and steady as possible
A stable camera that is focused on the subject is the absolute best scenario for analyzing that subject. Cameras that move around produce video that is difficult to analyze. Find a place to mount or rest the camera so that it remains safe and stable.
GOOD
BAD
Single video will do…chances are your current cell phone is more than adequate if it was made within the last five years.
Nothing special needed here, just one camera taking video. We can accept video from your tablets, your cellphones, your computers, and professional color cameras as well. Flip phones might be tough.
GOOD
BAD
Frame the subject (the person you are recording in the video) as close and tightly as possible
Better videos are from close up by following all the rules. When the subjects are really far away with lots of other things in the frame, our analysis sometimes has trouble and might not provide the most accurate results.
GOOD
BAD
Make sure nothing is blocking the subject
To measure the entire body, we need to be able to see the entire body. Some obvious things blocking the subject could be fences, other people, other equipment, something directly in front of the phone camera, a batting cage…all of those things between you and the subject could cause problems.
GOOD
BAD
Color video works best!
The best video for us to analyze is color video. The good news is that is the default of most cameras. We also ask for well lit, color video scenarios so that our AI automation can see the subject in the video. The problem with black and white videos is that our robots have a tough time seeing the subject.
GOOD
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Generally, front facing video is the best
We can identify humans in video, which is neat. But we have trouble seeing your left arm when…well, we can’t see it. That’s why front facing video is typically the best. For baseball hitting, that from the other batter’s box. For pitching, that’s from either behind home plate or from the arm side dugout. For golf, it’s across the tee box. For tennis, that’s typically from the net for most shots.
GOOD
BAD
Single video!
Single Videos are what works with SportsTrace. We mean a single:
- Pitch
- Swing
- Throw
- Drive
- Batted ball
- Bowled ball
You can always upload as many videos as you want with a SportsTrace subscription (restrictions apply to the free version of the app). But, each of those videos should be just one pitch, swing, throw…etc.