Importing Footage from an Analog Camcorder

The process of importing footage from an analog camcorder in iMovie is much the same as when importing from a digital camcorder. However, you need a go-between device that converts the camcorder's analog signal to digital information on the Mac. Products such as Dazzle's $250 Hollywood DV-Bridge (www.dazzle.com) feature a FireWire port for connecting to your computer and RCA-style inputs for connecting to your camcorder; some devices may also include an S-Video port (Figure 7.6).

Figure 7.6. Analog-to-video converters enable you to use a non-digital camcorder with iMovie.

graphics/07fig06.jpg

Since you're importing converted analog data, iMovie doesn't automatically split clips according to scenes. You'll have to use iMovie's editing tools to trim and organize the clips, or manually start and stop importing according to scenes.

To import from a non-DV camcorder:

  1. Connect the conversion device to the Mac via FireWire, and to the camera using RCA or S-Video cabling.

  2. Switch the camcorder to VCR or Play mode.

  3. Push the camcorder's Play button.

  4. Click the Import button in iMovie.

  5. When finished, click Import again to stop capturing video, and press the Stop button on the camcorder.

Importing Old VHS Tapes Using a DV Camcorder

If you have a digital camcorder, but still have some older VHS (or other format) tapes, you can bring that footage into iMovie to edit or even just store digitally. Connect your VCR to your camcorder and record the contents of the VHS tape to the DV tape. Then you can import your footage into iMovie normally.

Another option is to use a recent Sony DV camcorder, which performs the analog-to-digital conversion.

Analog tape doesn't last forever save your wedding/graduation/school play on disk (and maybe even edit out a few of those more embarrassing moments).



iMovie 3 for MAC OS X. Visual QuickStart Guide
iMovie 3 for Mac OS X (Visual QuickStart Guide)
ISBN: 0321193970
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2003
Pages: 125
Authors: Jeff Carlson

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