iMovie 08 can only handle footage from DV, HDV and AVCHD camcorders as well as MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 footage.
For Mac users there is no easier application for creating a home movie than Apple’s own iMovie 08, which is included free with new Mac computers or available for purchase as part of the iLife bundle.
iMovie 08 provides a fast and intuitive way of editing clips of footage together, adding titles and sound effects and sharing the resultant project via websites such as YouTube or portable devices such as iPhones and iPods.
However, iMovie 08 can only handle footage from DV, HDV and AVCHD camcorders as well as MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 footage (formats typically employed for recording video on mobile phones), which means a variety of other most used video files are denied and can’t be imported, what a pity.
Importing video files to iMovie.
So, what if you have other video files already downloaded in your computer on your hard drive like RMVB, RM, YouTube video (.flv), QuickTime (.mov), MKV, WMV, MPG or AVI, MOD & TOD video files (formats can be produced by JVC Everio, Cannon or Panasonic camcorders), etc. and want to import them to iMovie?
Fortunately, we have video converter for Mac that is being able to convert all the video files listed above, but not limited to, to iMovie understandable formats like DV, MP4 even M4V. Video converter for Mac has a powerful codec pack that includes all the necessary codecs needed to encode almost all videos available around us and transcode to DV, MP4.
iMovie 08: Camcorder Support
iMovie ‘08 is designed to work with a wide range of digital video devices and formats, including tape-based and the latest tapeless camcorders that record to flash memory, a hard disk drive, or DVD media. The following information is provided for your general reference.
Tape-based Camcorder Support
iMovie ‘08 compatible with most Mini DV tape-based camcorders that use a FireWire cable (also known as IEEE 1394 or i.Link) to transfer data. iMovie compatible with DV (standard definition) or HDV (high definition) formats.
Note: Not all Macintosh Computers include a FireWire port. Check your system configuration to confirm your Mac includes FireWire support before attempting to connect a DV or HDV camcorder.
Tapeless Camcorder Support
iMovie ‘08 compatible with many tapeless camcorders that record to flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), or DVD media. These devices use a USB 2.0 cable and include camcorders using MPEG-2 (standard definition) and AVCHD (high definition) formats. If you use the AVCHD format you will need a Mac with an Intel-based Core Duo processor or better.
Apple has tested the products listed in this table. iMovie may not work with similar camcorders. Compatible iMovie features include device recognition when connected to a Mac, display of import controls for the device, and importing of the video to iMovie.
Due to the wide range of media types, and the different ways manufacturers store video on these media types, not all tapeless camcorders are compatible with iMovie ‘08.
* NTSC Camcorders
* PAL Camcorders
Note: If your compatible device has both a USB and FireWire port, you will only need to use the USB port to work with iMovie ‘08.
Other Tapeless Device Support
Other types of tapeless video devices—including digital still cameras, video phones and other hybrid devices—import their video clips into iPhoto if they are compatible with iPhoto. Some of those iPhoto-compatible formats can be accessed from the iMovie library, including video in MPEG-2 (standard definition), MPEG-4 (standard and high definition), and other formats.
MPEG-1 formatted movies from Sony Digital Still Cameras (DSCs) use iMovie’s Random Access Device (RAD) import window, you can use Importing video from a USB camcorder or camera to import these files.
Known Compatibility Issues
- Some DVD camcorders may start your DVD Player application. If this occurs, quit DVD Player.
- Video devices in the tables above may have additional compatibility information. If additional information is available, you can find the link to the article listed under “Additional Compatibility Information.”
Frequently used editing functions of iMovie 08
Audio extraction
Select a range of frames from which you want to extract from project browser. Then right click on the selection and choose “Reveal” in “Event Browser”. Hold down Command-shift and drag the video you selected then the audio was extracted. You can use it as background music.Video Trimming
Enable the “Show Fine Buttons” option in iMovie’s preferences and then click on a button displays an orange border to trim the videos.Apply transitions:
Go to File—Project Properties. Select Add Automatically in Transitions section, then choose a proper transition type and set the lengths.Cropping and Rotating:
Select the clip and you’ll find a crop button in the upper right corner of the clip. The rotate button is on in the “Viewer” window.