How to get correct (actual - not import) date/time stamp to a clip in iMovie.

That's good Robert - I thought you may have found it by now, but thought I'd respond anyway (as it may help others here). The glitch has been around for quite a while. There are several bugs in iMovie that need attention - mostly long standing. I'm wondering if the Date/Time bug is common to one brand of camera - what camera are you using?

John

I called Apple and let them know about these bugs. Sony NEX VG30 is the primary camera I am using now. Same issues with the lower end Sonys that I have used

Another way to do this may be to install FFMPEG https://ffmpeg.org/trac/ffmpeg/wiki/MacOSXCompilationGuide, with appropriate configuration and dependencies, and then run FFMPEG as follows: http://avp.stackexchange.com/questions/4108/adding-a-time-stamp-to-a-video

That's interesting! As you may have picked up in my posts, I'm also using Sony. By the way, nice camera that you have! It would be good to know what others having the same problem are using.

John

Thanks for the tip about FFmpeg. I probably won't go further with that, but it will be helpful for others that seriously need a date/time function that works correctly.

John

I am pretty sure it will work, but it is a hassle and a half. I like the wine from your area, btw. A colleague of mine is using a Panasonic brand and has the same issues. He switched from PC to Mac, and is plenty mad right now, as he also needs date and time at all times. We will all get through this!

Robert

I just want to add that I have Canon AVCHD camcorder and having the time bug also. This is a pretty frustrating issue.

OK, it looks like the brand is not the problem. I've tested again with footage from my iPhone and my wife's Canon digital stills camera IXUS 80IS. All tests show the same results - the time difference is 11.5 hours. All test clips were shot during daylight savings time, so the time difference is consistent with my tests from the Sony clips. However, the difference is only 9.5 hours with clips shot during standard time (which is only a one hour difference to our daylight savings time). Not making sense at all. 😢

Thanks also to paulapp regarding information about the Canon AVCHD camcorder.

So far we know that the problem persists with models from Sony, Panasonic and Canon (probably the 3 main manufacturers), together with Apple's iPhone clips (I'm using the 4S model).

John

One more appeal for assistance. I cannot get the clip date and time to display the seconds, even though I went to iMovie preferences and set it for HH:MM:SS:frames Does anybody else get this? Does anybody have a simple solution? Thanks.

Robert

The Date/Time title only displays the hours and minutes (along with the date). This is taken from the start of the clip and doesn't update as the playhead moves over it.

If you wish to view the seconds and frames, you can access this by turning on "Playhead Info" from iMovie's "View" menu item. You will then see a black panel that moves with the playhead as you skim over the thumbnails. The panel shows the recorded time (with live updating) in hours, minutes and seconds (but not frames). The frame info appears below the date/time in the panel, but this is purely the elapsed time from the start of the project timeline to its end.

The "Playhead Info" can't be embedded in the video - it's simply there for display purposes.

John

Thanks. I had that going, but hoped I could see the seconds on the overlay on the video. Another strike against iMovie 11

Have you considered Final Cut Pro X. I'm sure that will have a decent date/time stamp function. I have FCP X but am still learning the ropes. I'll open it shortly and see what I can find. It's about $300 on the App Store and is a professional product - far more advanced that iMovie. Given the camera you have, I thought that you may already have it. 🙂

John

I've had a look at Final Cut Pro X and it appears that there is no date/time stamp function, unlike iMovie (but I could be mistaken).

I've also done some googling and it seems that using Motion 5 in conjunction with FCP X will allow you to use a generator for showing the date and time that clips were recorded. Although a year and a half old, this thread provides some information on how to get the job done:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3320986?start=0&tstart=0

Of course, if you don't have FCP X and Motion, this will be of no help.

John

John, I just did a quick test.

I re-set the clock on my camera to current time 7:32 AM and shot a clip.

Imported to event.

The clip in the Event is named 2013-03-23 07;32;10.mov as expected.

When skimming the event, the playhead info shows 7:32AM as expected.

However the Date Time Title show 10:32AM, which is three hours off. (And I am four hours off of GMT - while in daylight savings time).

I don't know what this means, except I can confirm the bug.

Thanks AppleMan (just got back from doing the dishes)!

I'm seeing exactly the same thing regarding the playhead info when skimming - all is well there. As to the title, I'm with you - I have no idea what it means. GMT may have something to do with it, but it's pure guesswork!

Anyway, thanks for confirming the bug. I won't be wasting anymore time on the issue (it's time Apple fixed it).

I'm now spending more time with Final Cut Pro X and can already see the benefits in using it. Watching some of Larry's work has been eye opening. I'm enjoying the flexibility with Titles and also trying to re-learn some of my previous methods with iMovie. Just wish I had a faster Mac. 😟

John