Consumer Video Tips

I put iMovie 09 through its paces playing around with some cinema-like footage from the Canon HV30. You can see the results on f64.com.

But this is more about my experience than the result.

I never could get my arms around iMovie 08 and abandoned it for the original iMovie HD. I thought then as I do now that a real timeline makes sense for editing. But in iLife 09 things have been changed enough that I can actually use the program. There is no timeline, but there is a precise editor that gives you a hint of a timeline when you need it. You also have more professional-style control over the finished product since iMovie 09 allows you to more substantively work with audio.

The right side of the UI contains different bins for transitions and effects, similar to the bins in Apple’s Logic Pro 8 audio app. Once you realize what these are – they are a joy to work with and make adding effects and transitions

Dynamic Themes (such as Bulletin Board and Comic Book) help add “polish,” but they were a bit limiting and there are only a few of them.

Stabilization works at about a 3-1 time ratio and doesn’t look good on longer clips. For short clips, it works very well.

I am trying to commit to using iMovie 09 on all of my projects. I am tempted to go back to iMovie HD because I miss the timeline and heck, there’s no learning curve involved. But I want to give iMovie 09 a chance. So I’ll report on my progress here from time-to-time as I become more experienced with the program.