No Medium is an Island

Combining multiple media is a key part of audio-visual storytellingeven silent films had soundtracks played on mighty Wurlitzer theater organs.

Combining media is easy with the iLife programs. There's no need to plod through export and import chores to move, say, a photograph from iPhoto into iMovie HD. That's because the iLife programs have media browsers that make it easy to access your music, photos, and movies. The media browsers also have Search boxes to help you find the music track, photo, or movie you want.

You can also move items between programs by simply dragging them. Drag a photo from iPhoto into iMovie HD, iWeb, GarageBand, or iDVD. Drag a music track from iTunes into iPhoto, iMovie HD, or iDVD. And when you've finished a hot tune in GarageBand, add it to your iTunes music library with a click of the mouse.

These lines of communication extend beyond iLife, too. For example, Apple's iWork programs also provide media browsers that make it easy to add photos, music, and movies to documents and presentations.

The iLife programs work together in other ways, which I'll describe as we go. In the meantime, think about ways to marry your media and tell a stronger story.