19.2. Transferring Footage to the Camcorder or VCRThe actual steps of transferring the project from iMovie back to the camcorder are fairly simple. The results are almost always satisfying , especially if you've had to look at your footage in its relatively coarse Mac rendition for hours or days. Finally, you get to see your masterpiece at full digital quality. Most people are particularly thrilled by the professional look of iMovie's transitions and titles when they see it on the actual TV (or camcorder LCD panel). In early iMovie versions, you had to begin the transfer process by sending your finished movie to a DV camcorder as a first step. Now, however, a new possibility awaits: You can play the finished movie directly from the Mac to a VCR, using the camcorder only as a pass through adapter that doesn't actually record anything. The following discussions cover both methods . 19.2.1. First to DV Tape, Then to VCRIf you'd like your finished movie on DV tape, preserving 100 percent of its original quality, proceed like this:
You're instructing iMovie to generate smoother, more professional looking versions of these scenesnot the quick-and-dirty, temporary ones it's been showing you during editing. Either way, after a moment, iMovie commands the camcorder to begin recording, and then begins pumping your finished video over the FireWire cable to the tape, from the very beginning of the movie (Figure 19-2). (There's no way to begin playing from the middle of your movie.)
While this process is taking place, you might want to open the LCD panel on the camcorder so that you can watch the transfer and listen to the audio. iMovie plays the movie simultaneously in its Monitor window, but the camcorder screen's quality is generally superior . When the transfer is complete, the camcorder automatically stops recording. Your finished production is now safely on DV tape. Tip: After the transfer is complete, drag the Camera/Edit switch on your iMovie screen (at the left edge of the screen, just below the Monitor) to its Camera position. Doing so puts iMovie into "I'm controlling your camcorder now" mode. Click Rewind, then Play to watch your newly transferred production. At this point, you can connect your camcorder to a VCR for transfer to a standard VHS cassette (or any other non-DV format). Connect the camcorder to the Audio and Video input jacks on the VCR. These jacks were once found exclusively on the backs of VCRs, but appear on the front panels of many recent VCR models for convenience at times like this. Make sure that the VHS tape is blank and not protected by its erase tab. If you're smart, you'll label it, too now , before you even record it, so that you won't forget. Put it into the VCR and cue it up to the right spot. Cue up the camcorder, too. Finally, put your camcorder into VCR or VTR mode, start the VCR recording, and then press Play on the camcorder. If your TV is on, you can watch the footage as it plays into your VCR. Press Stop on both the camcorder and VCR when the transfer is complete. 19.2.2. From Mac Directly to VCRIf your aim is to get your movie onto VHS tape, you don't have to transfer it to your camcorder first. Hook the camcorder to the Mac via the FireWire cable, if it isn't already, and then hook the VCR to the camcorder as described above. The trick here is to turn on the "Play DV project video through to DV camera" option in the iMovie Preferences Playback dialog box. Press Record on your VCR, then play your movie from the beginning (or from whatever spot you like). iMovie sends the full-quality video through the camcorder and into the connected VCR. When you reach the end of playback, hit Stop on the VCR. Tip: If you have an analog-to-DV converter box like those described on Section 13.9.4, use precisely the same steps. The converter replaces the camcorder in the setup described here. Of course, this technique bypasses the Export dialog box shown in Figure 19-2, and with it the ability to "lay down" some nice blackness before and after the footage. If you really want those bookends , just add black clips to the movie itself (Section 14.8.1). |