In shortTo display footprint charts in MotiveWave, download the WyckFlow.com study bundle, insert the JAR file into your 'MotiveWave Extensions' folder, and restart the platform. Then, add the Volume Imprint study to any chart. The WyckFlow.com footprint supports Volume, Delta, Bid x Ask, and Profile modes, provides customizable diagonal imbalances and extreme absorption highlights, and includes a bottom Totals table (running session delta, delta change, volume, etc.) for a premium charting experience.

Footprint charts (referred to as Volume Imprint in the MotiveWave platform) are an indispensable tool for anyone serious about intraday trading. Unlike standard candlestick charts that only show open, high, low, and close prices, a footprint chart deconstructs every single candle to show exactly how much volume executed at the bid (sellers) and at the ask (buyers) at every price level.

This guide will show you how to add footprint charts to any MotiveWave edition and how to configure them properly for reading order flow.

1. How to Get Footprint Charts Without a Premium License

The free MotiveWave Community Edition and the Standard edition do not include native footprint charts. However, you can add them easily using the WyckFlow.com study bundle:

  1. Download the .jar extension from WyckFlow.com.
  2. Copy the file into the MotiveWave Extensions directory on your computer.
  3. Restart the platform.
  4. In the top menu, click on Study -> select the WyckFlow menu group -> choose Volume Imprint (Footprint).

2. Key Features of the WyckFlow.com Volume Imprint Study

The study is designed as a clean, highly optimized replacement for native order-flow tools. It features:

A. Multiple Cell Visualization Modes

In the study settings (under the General tab), you can toggle the cell rendering style:

  • Volume Profile: Displays volume as a horizontal profile histogram inside each candle.
  • Bid x Ask: The classic bid-ask split (e.g. 120 x 85) showing precise executed contracts on both sides of the spread.
  • Delta: Displays the net difference (aggressive buys minus aggressive sells) at each price row.

B. Smart Text Autohide on Zoom Out

A common issue with standard footprint charts is text overlapping and becoming an unreadable smear when you zoom out. The WyckFlow.com study addresses this with an Autohide mechanism – once a price row's height shrinks below the font size, the numerical labels hide, leaving only the colored profile. Zoom back in, and the digits reappear instantly.

C. Diagonal Imbalances (Aggressive Pressure)

The study automatically compares diagonal price levels (aggressive buys on the ask against aggressive sells on the bid one tick below). If the ratio exceeds your threshold (e.g. 300% or 3:1), the cell is highlighted. You can also enforce Stacked Imbalances (multiple consecutive highlighted rows), which flags concentrated institutional activity.

D. Extreme Absorption Zones

When price hits the high or low of a candle with high volume and gets rejected (leaving a wick), the study draws an absorption block at that level. This highlights where aggressive market orders were absorbed by passive resting limit orders.

E. Pinned Totals Table

Directly below the price chart, you can toggle the Totals summary table. This provides column-by-column metrics for each candle:

  • Total volume per bar.
  • Net delta per bar.
  • Cumulative delta from session start.
  • Proportional delta ($\Delta%$).

3. Recommended Settings for Futures (NQ & ES)

To keep your footprint charts clean and readable, we recommend:

  1. Tick Interval (Price Binning): Nasdaq-100 (NQ) futures move very fast. To avoid massive vertical charts, we recommend grouping ticks (setting Tick interval in study settings to 4 or 8 ticks, which equals 1 or 2 index points). For S&P 500 (ES) futures, keep the default step of 1 tick (0.25 points).
  2. Color Profiles: Select a color scale based on volume size so that the highest volume nodes (POC – Point of Control) inside each candle immediately stand out.

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't I see any numbers on my footprint chart?

Make sure you have zoomed in sufficiently. If the chart is zoomed out, the Autohide feature conceals the numbers to prevent overlap. Also, confirm that you have a Level 2 data feed connected – bid/ask numbers cannot be calculated without tick-by-tick prints.

What is the Point of Control (POC) on a footprint?

The POC is the price level inside a candle where the absolute highest volume of contracts was traded. It indicates the fair value price where buyers and sellers agreed most in that timeframe, acting as a strong intraday support or resistance.

What is the difference between Bid x Ask and Delta display modes?

Bid x Ask shows the raw volume split (how many market buys hit the ask, and how many market sells hit the bid). Delta mode subtracts these values and shows only the net difference (e.g. +35 for buyer dominance or -12 for seller dominance).

Can I turn off the Totals table at the bottom?

Yes. Every row in the Totals table (Volume, Delta, CumDelta, etc.) can be toggled on or off in the study settings (under the Totals tab), where you can also change the font size and colors.

Ready to add footprint charts to your trading workflow? Download the Volume Imprint study as part of the WyckFlow.com bundle, install it in your free platform, and start reading the market tape. For a complete market view, combine it with the liquidity heatmap study.