The 60fps Video Interpolation Experiment

Shooting video is akin to taking pictures very quickly so that the eye perceives fluid motion.  It's basically a high-tech flip cartoon.  As technology advances and becomes more affordable, cameras can take more pictures more quickly, and displays can show these higher-speed flip cartoons.  How many pictures are crammed into a second of video is the video's "frame rate," and generally speaking, the higher the frame rate, the smoother the perceived motion is going to look.  60 frames-per-second (fps) video should generally look more fluid than 30fps video.

 

I always thought that the video frame rate was set in stone and determined by the hardware limitations of the camera used while shooting.  However, a very cool technology sprang onto my radar recently--a software-driven method to actually increase the video frame rate afterwards.  Using something called "interpolation" or "optical flow," the software looks at frame #1 and frame #2, and creates frame #1.5.

 

Yes, the software can sometimes make mistakes and create artifacts in the frames, but overall I was quite impressed with the results.  I never knew it was even possible to boost the frame rate in post-production.  I am happy with my current camera equipment, but unfortunately it cannot natively shoot 4K video at 60fps.

 

So I did an experiment with a recent video release (Rio's Fox Attack) and boosted its frame rate using interpolation software.  The customer feedback was positive, and I myself thought it looked very cool, so I did it again with the next release (There's a Ninja in My AirBnb!).  These 60fps versions are available exclusively in the CJ video store.

 

Going forward I'm considering offering these 60fps versions, so I appreciate any and all feedback from the fans.

 

Peace and Blessings,

CJ