Am supposed to use adobe after effects before or after making the home video?

Question

(im only using AE for stabilizer since i have a shaky hand). do i have to use adobe premiere, or can i use pinnacle studios and then After Effects?

Answer 1

From what I understand you are trying to correct jerky motion with After Effects.  

First: Use a tripod, or learn how to stand so you can not be shaky. Nothing looks better then good video in the first place. If you can't shoot with a tripod, lean against a tree or wall, put both feet in front of your body in a wide stance. Hold the camera with one hand and use your other hand to help. Keep your elbows locked, preferably against your body. Also, don't zoom in as far, as zooming in magnifies your shaky motion. Just get closer to your subject instead. Also, take breaks so your muscles don't fatigue, and if you shoot hand-held often, do a few extra push ups and ab crunches in the morning, as stronger muscles will fatigue less.

Second: Use the image stabilizer feature on your camera. This is a system that detects the actual motion of the camera body and corrects for that in real time. Much more accurate that trying to analyze the video content for jerkiness. This feature only works when you are recording, as it actually measure the physical motion of the camera and adjusts the lens or the CMOS sensor to compensate. Sony and Canon are superb at this because they adjust the lens instead of the video signal, and it looks better and more natural.

If it's too late and you already have that priceless footage that can't be recreated, try applying the "film look" filter to the footage, or a the very fastest strobe effect (preferably only removing one field). This will make the shaky footage much more watchable and it will also look cool. The illusion is achieved by the fact that you are dropping every even frame and holding the odd ones longer, so that the viewer perceives less motion. Subtlety is the key here. Finally, I would process a little footage first, so you get an idea of what it will look like, but then I would edit and render your home video. After you have a finished short movie, throw it in After Affects. That way the additional treatment will be uniform and you will be able to make other adjustments such as color from scene to scene. The best reason to process this after your edit is that After Affects is slow and you will only be processing footage you need.