Stiching Failure; Error: "failed to read frame 45" - GoPro8

1

This has been a recurring problem with the gopro, failing on frame 45.

When I was testing this, it wasn’t an issue, this happened so early that I just moved the start point beyond it. But for longer videos (in this case recording a soccer game), the GoPro chunks the videos into ~8:52 minute segments. So the result is that in my second file, I NEED frame 45 because its right the middle of the game.

Anyone else get these? Is there a way to just ask it to “skip frame 45” or any other missing frames?

The relevant log file:
2025-12-04 23:11:37,766 INFO 29289/164155 0.238 (0.050 0.062 0.012 0.115) 17.84% 8:41:23
2025-12-04 23:12:01,241 INFO 29390/164155 0.232 (0.050 0.062 0.012 0.109) 17.90% 8:41:00
2025-12-04 23:12:24,860 INFO 29491/164155 0.234 (0.051 0.061 0.012 0.109) 17.97% 8:40:37
2025-12-04 23:12:26,380 INFO stitch phantoms_12_4_2025_futsal.mp4: failed to read frame 45 from C:/Users/USERNAME/Desktop/actionstitch/left/GX020074.MP4
2025-12-04 23:12:29,939 INFO writing video file .actionstitch_0.mp4
2025-12-04 23:12:30,380 INFO stitch .mp4: failed to open C:/Users/USERNAME/Desktop/actionstitch/GX010457.MP4

2

I figured it out, or rather Grok did. This worked:

The error you’re encountering in ActionStitch, where it fails to read frames (around frame 45 in your case) from GoPro Hero 8 videos, appears to stem from compatibility issues with the software’s default video decoder handling certain GoPro MP4 files, particularly those encoded in HEVC. Research suggests this is a recurring problem for some users with Hero 8 and similar models, but it can often be resolved through a simple software configuration change without any video pre-processing like transcoding. If that doesn’t fully address it, adjusting your GoPro’s recording settings for future videos—such as switching to H.264 compression where possible—may prevent the issue, as H.264 tends to be more reliably decoded by tools like ActionStitch.

Key Steps to Try Without Pre-Processing

  • Update and Configure ActionStitch Decoder: Even with the latest version, the default OpenCV-based decoder can falter on GoPro frames. Switching to an alternative decoder (pyav, which leverages FFmpeg for better handling of formats like HEVC) has resolved this for multiple users reporting identical errors.
    • On Windows (based on your file path), open the Registry Editor (search for “regedit” in the Start menu).
    • Navigate to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\actionstitch.com\ActionStitch.
    • Right-click in the right pane, select New > String Value.
    • Name it: stitch_source.
    • Set its value to: pyav.
    • Close Registry Editor, restart ActionStitch, and retry stitching.
    • If you encounter a license-related error after this, delete the “License” value in the same registry path and restart the app.
    • This fix is documented in ActionStitch forums for versions 0.9 and later, including 1.0, and has worked for Hero 8 users without altering videos.
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