Importing Footage from an Analog Camcorder

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 ).

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 QuickTime Movies

iMovie is built on QuickTime, Apple's technology for playing and creating all sorts of digital audio and video. iMovie 3 gains the capability to drag and drop QuickTime movies onto the Shelf or Timeline.

To import a QuickTime movie into iMovie:

• Drag a QuickTime movie file from the Finder to iMovie's window ( Figure 7.7 ).

  Figure 7.7. In iMovie 3, add a QuickTime movie to your project by dragging it to the iMovie window.

  

  or

1. In iMovie, choose Import from the File menu, or press Command-Shift-I.

2. Locate the file in the Import dialog box, then click the Open button ( Figure 7.8 ). The clip appears on the Shelf.

   Figure 7.8. Instead of dragging a file into iMovie, use the Import command to locate a QuickTime movie.

   

Tips

• Most QuickTime movies are small in size and compressed, which is great for viewing on the Web but not so good-looking compared to a DV clip taken from a video camcorder ( Figure 7.9 ). So don't be surprised if the clip looks highly pixelated or blocky.

  Figure 7.9. To compare image resolution, I exported some DV footage (top) as a QuickTime file, then imported the file back into iMovie (bottom).

  

• You can import media files from other iMovie projects, which are in the DV format and feature full resolution.

How iMovie Manages Clips

If you're casually flipping through this chapter, I'll understand it if you skip everything else - except this section . It's important to understand how iMovie handles clips as you're working with them, especially when you begin deleting unused clips.

Clips can be made up of either video footage or imported still pictures. Each clip includes a thumbnail image of the clip's first frame, a timecode noting the clip's duration, and a title that you can edit ( Figure 7.10 ).

When you import footage, iMovie creates a new clip for each scene, which then adds a new clip file to your hard disk. However, even if you rename, split, reverse, or otherwise edit a clip in iMovie, the media file stays the same ( Figure 7.11 ). iMovie actually records only the changes made to the clip, and doesn't alter the clip's original media file.

This clip management style comes in handy in several ways as you use iMovie.

Advantages of iMovie's method of managing clips

• Undo. iMovie offers 10 levels of Undo, enabling you to recombine split clips, move clips back to their original locations, and other actions.

• Deleting clips. iMovie's Trash is something of a digital Roach Motel: clips go in, but they don't come out! This doesn't mean the clips are gone for good, though (see "Moving Clips to the Trash," later in this chapter).

• Restoring clips. If you're not happy with your edits, or something has gone horribly wrong, you can always restore the clip to its original state, because the original data is always on file. See the next chapter to learn how to restore clips.