Q: How to import video into iMovie on my MacBook Air?
I'm almost at my wit's end with this problem.
Back in the day I would import video from my camcorder to my desktop computer via a Firewire 400 cable.
Then I bought a MacBook Air, which had no Firewire port. But since it came with iMovie, I assumed there was a way to get the video footage from my camcorder into the computer and iMovie. (If you couldn't import video, why would they have iMovie on the computer in the first place, right?)
But I have not yet found such a way. Someone at AppleCare told me to use the USB port on the MacBook Air to connect to my camcorder. Didn't work.
Then another AppleCare person said to use the Thunderbolt port. I bought an Thunderbolt/Firewire adapter, but turns out the adapter only works with a Firewire 800 cable, which I don't have (as I said before, I have a 400).
So I bought an adapter that turns a Firewire 400 connector in to an 800 connector. So I hooked the whole thing up: Firewire 400 cable from my camcorder > FW 400/800 adapter > FW 800 adapter/Thunderbolt > into my MacBook Air.
I then opened up iMovie and tried to Import from Camera. But no dice. It did not recognize this connection and instead gave me a picture of my own mug through the FaceTime camera.
So… anybody have any ideas? It seems that the Thunderbolt port should work, but I don't know how to get it to talk to the camcorder. Thanks for your help!
MacBook Air, Mac OS X (10.7.5), 1.7 GHz Intel Core i5, 4 GB 1333 Mz
Posted on May 12, 2015 8:21 PM