I've just imported a 60 minute DV tape into imovie 09. Now on my old apple mac I used to be able to select smaller segments from the 60 minute clip. I literally just dragged them onto my desktop so as I could put them on an external memory stick. However with imovie 09 it wont let me do this simple task? Am I missing something here? All I want to do is take a minute here and a minute there, put them onto my desktop, then onto my memory stick and take the files to university so as I can use the more sophisticated apple programs on some of the footage there.
Any help on this matter would be greatly appreciated
Right-click (or Control-click) on a clip in either the Event or Project, then select Reveal in Finder from the pop-up panel. Now copy then paste the source clip to your Desktop, or simply drag it to your memory stick. If desired, you can trim the clip using QuickTime (either with version 7 or the new Snow Leopard version X). Please post back if you need help with this.
Right-click (or Control-click) on a clip in either the Event or Project, then select Reveal in Finder from the pop-up panel. Now copy then paste the source clip to your Desktop, or simply drag it to your memory stick. If desired, you can trim the clip using QuickTime (either with version 7 or the new Snow Leopard version X). Please post back if you need help with this.
Brilliant thanks! However I don't actually have Windows 7 or the new Snow Leopard. Does this mean I can't trim the clips in imovie 09 to export them as a smaller file? Can I only export the whole 60 minutes that I have captured?
I could purchase Windows 7 as it's only £20 but wondered if there was a cheeky way around this at all?
No, not Windows 7 - I was referring to QuickTime version 7, which you should have if you are on Mac OS 10.5 (which is Leopard). You don't need QuickTime X (the Snow Leopard version) to do trimming. It's quite straightforward in QuickTime 7. The latest version is 7.6.6. I'll post this and come back with some instructions for you.
Kev - locate the clips as I described, using Reveal In Finder. With your memory stick plugged in, just drag the clip to the stick's icon on your Desktop. If you wish to trim the clip, it's probably best if you copy the clip then paste it to the Desktop, rather than dragging straight to the memory stick.
Open the clip on the Desktop with your version of QuickTime Player (it's probably version 7). Double-clicking the clip should open it in QT Player, otherwise right-click (or Control-click) on it and select Open With>QuickTime Player. In the Player you will see a playhead under the viewer. Directly under the playhead are 2 L shaped markers. Drag the markers to the start and end points of the section of video you want to use. You can drag the playhead between the markers to check that you've selected the exact frames you need. Now go to the menu item Edit and select Trim to Selection.
To save this edited (trimmed) clip, go to File and select Save As. Give the clip a name different to the source clip and save it to the Desktop. Now you can drag that clip to the memory stick icon.
If you need other sections from the original source clip, go through the same routine using QuickTime Player to Trim to Selection for the piece you want, again saving with a different name. So, even if you have a one hour clip with no breaks sitting on your Desktop, you can continually edit out sections with QT Player and save them independently.
The only caveat here, is that you may need QuickTime Pro to do the trimming, available for purchase from the online Apple Store for about $US20. I'm not sure if QuickTime Player has the trimming feature, as I'm using QuickTime Pro.
Sorry I did mean Quicktime 7 (not been to sleep and my brain is turning to mush). If I already have it thats smashing! I will await you instructions.
Kev - QuickTime 7 will be in your Applications folder. But as I said in my "instructions" post just now, just double click on the clip - it should open in your version of QuickTime given that it's a DV file. You don't need to open QuickTime separately. Follow my earlier instructions and you should be right! Don't hesitate to post back if you have any issues - I'll be up for another couple of hours!
The version of quicktime I have will not allow me to trim clips. It did invite me to purchase quicktime pro so I guess thats what i'll do! Your instructions will no doubt be spot on once I've purchased Pro so i'll give it a bash.
I should have mentioned this earlier Kev, but if you prefer not to purchase QuickTime Pro there is a free alternative that will enable you to do trimming. The program is MPEG Streamclip - a highly respected and widely used video tool that, among other things, can also convert between video formats.
