Does iMovie support any webcams? In the camera select section of the software my webcam does not appear as an option. It seems that the only web camera supported is the imbedded Macbook camera. Are there any workarounds?
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.15
Hi, RodG1,
According to the Apple Community Specialist, it does not appear that a webcam can be used as an external camera with iMovie.
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251193166
However, I have found that an iPhone, in conjunction with QuickTimePlayer, can be used as an external camera. See my comments in the thread link below:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/251298783
I would think that if an iPhone can be used then a webcam might work as long as it is recognized by your Mac. So, I think that you just need to try your webcam and see what happens. Might or might not work. Also, as you mention, you can use the built-in camera to record directly to iMovie.
-- Rich
The FaceTime camera can be used with iMovie and Final Cut Pro but external webcams cannot.
I can confirm Rich's assumption that external webcams can be used with QuickTime Player along with the FaceTime camera.
As you can see from this QT Player screenshot, my Logitech USB camera is recognised.
Ian,
Ian R. Brown wrote:
The FaceTime camera can be used with iMovie and Final Cut Pro but external webcams cannot.
I can confirm Rich's assumption that external webcams can be used with QuickTime Player along with the FaceTime camera.
Thanks for confirming the above. Not having a webcam I wasn't able to do my own test. I figured that since the iPhone can be used with QuickTimePlayer as an external camera that webcams might be able similarly to be used with QuickTimePlayer. Happy that you were able to confirm that.
-- Rich
Webcam use on iMovie
