Editing home movies on DVDs

I'm not sure if this is the right area to post this in but here goes. I recently purchased a Sony VHS to DVD converter. I've copied and finalized one of my tapes to DVD. It will play on my Mac using DVD Player. But so far I've been unable to import it onto my hard drive so that I can edit it. I keep getting unsupported file format messages. Anybody know of a solution to this problem?

Welcome to the forums.
This question comes up fairly often, although asked in other ways. Here are some basic options:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=2468468&tstart=0
There will be some quality loss going through the DVD compression process (to create the DVD) and then the uncompression process (to make it editable in iMovie). Then when you're finished editing, the video gets re-compressed to go back onto a DVD.
You can try the suggestions to see if it results in satisfactory video. It may well be perfectly acceptable since VHS is a relatively low resolution, and a minor degradation may not be noticeable.
John

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Help!! I can't get my new macbook to print with my Dell 155w OR burn a home movie to DVD

I cannot get my very recently purchased macbook pro to burn a home video to dvd OR connect to my dell 155w printer. I bought a macbook because it was so highly recomended. But I don't want to keep replacing things. I am so frustrated. I wanted a macbook because of its reputation. But I can't seem to figure out anything. I'm dissapointed and thinking I will just return it.

Your problem may be able to be solved but take this from a Long time Windows user and current Mac owner. Macs are not easier to use. Mac break down just as often as PCs, percentage wise as to how many are sold/produced.
They use the exact same hardware as Win PCs.
The learning curve for OS X is greater then for Windows.
Not sure of the age of your printer but it may not be supported in the newest Mac OS, Lion.
We would need a little more info on how you are trying to connect TO the printer. USB cable or Wirelessly.
As far as burning a Home Movie to DVD. Apple use to supply a program called iDVD for this but with the introduction of Lion OS they stopped supplying that program. You could try another burning program. Try Burn or you could buy something like Toast (Burn is free).
Personally I would return your Macbook Pro and stick to what you know with a good PC notebook.
Apple has a 14 day No Questions Asked return policy for Full refund. Take advantage of that policy.

I have my home movies on DVD from Windows. I am trying to import them into iMovie but it won't recognize the files. The movies will play on my Mac but I can't seem to import them.

I have my home movies on DVD burned from Windows and am trying to import them into iMovie. The DVD will play on my Mac but I can't seem to import the movie. Can anyone help?

See my post here for how to do this.

IDVD is not on my system and I cannot download it from the App store. How Do I burn my home movies to DVD?

iDVD is not in my macBook pro and I need an iDVD or a good program to burn my home movies on DVD with menus. I cannot download iDVD or any other professional programs like DVD Studioor ... from App store. Please help me how do I burn my short films to DVD? Also please tell me any other free programs alternate it for burn DVD with putting menus.

Hi
iDVD is not or never been free !
there are up-dates but still You need the original iDVD v. 7.x.x to use them.
Best of program - not sold by Apple any more but on Amazon or e-bay in boxed versions of iLife 11
If there is no iDVD on Your Mac (and it's not on newer Macs as Apple discarded it) then You need a program that can do this.
Your Mac can burn CDs and DVDs - BUT DVD as Data-DVDs not as Video-DVDs - they need a program to be encoded and STRUCTURED as such.
• iDVD is part of the boxed version of iLife'11 and can only be bought outside Apple as on Amazon and e-bay
• DVD Studio pro - Part of FinalCut Studio Pro bundle - this to has expired and can only be bought second handed. (High price and tough learning Curve - but best ever done.)
• Roxio Toast™ - Not as elegant as iDVD - but has many other positive additions (I like it as 10-Pro incl BD-component) (now version 11)
• Burn - only free alternative I know of on Internet. Very simple - Just for doing a plain Video-DVD
Burn http://www.digital-digest.com/software/Burn.html
only You can buy from Apple is
• FinalCut Pro-X which also can burn to DVD but without any nice themes.
AppleMan1958
You can also buy Compressor from Apple for $50 US. It will also create DVD and BluRay but without the nice themes.
Yours Bengt W

I'm not very techy, so be gentle! i am using midvd app to burn home movies to dvd from iMovie '11 version 9.0.9. It now burns the dvd but there is nothing on the disc. its not recognised by the iMac or any other dvd player.

I was using midvd app(i never had idvd) to make home movies on dvd from imovie '11 version 9.0.9 with no problems before xmas 2013. ive just tried to make a new one today and it wont work.
It seems to burn to the dvd (you can see a mark on the back of the dvd as if it has some info on it) but it wont play on imac (just says blank disc) or any other dvd player.
I have tried reinstalling midvd app and also tried 2 other dvd creator apps and the same thing happens the app says its burning and the external superdrive whirs like its doing something but it wont play.
The only thing i have done since xmas is all the updates to the operationg system and updated imovie (i didnt like the new version so went back to using the previous one)
Any ideas - i am new to all things mac!

When you export your movie from iMovie, are you choosing H.264? That is the only compression method supported by this miDVD. Youc an give this a try first:
Use Share > Export to Quicktime > Movie to Quicktime Movie > choose Options and then make your choices in Settings, etc (you can choose whatever size your video is - mine was 720 HD at that time):
If that does not work, I'd suggest going to their support site as they claim to be able to burn to DVD.... I just checked their site and here is their list of supported file types:
http://shedworx.com/midvd-supported-file-types

How can I import a home movie from DVD

I have a home movie on DVD I'd like to get in imovie...can this be done?

You need to convert the VOB files in the TS-Folder of the DVD back to DV which iMovie is designed to handle. For that you need mpegStreamclip:
http://www.squared5.com/svideo/mpeg-streamclip-mac.html
which is free, but you must also have the Apple mpeg2 plugin :
http://store.apple.com/us/product/D2187Z/A/quicktime-mpeg-2-playback-component-f or-mac-os-x
(unless you are running Lion in which case see below))
which is a mere $20.
Another possibility is to use DVDxDV:
http://www.dvdxdv.com/NewFolderLookSite/Products/DVDxDV.overview.htm
which costs $25.
For the benefit of others who may read this thread:
Obviously the foregoing only applies to DVDs you have made yourself, or other home-made DVDs that have been given to you. It will NOT work on copy-protected commercial DVDs, which in any case would be illegal.
And from the TOU of these forums:
Keep within the Law
No material may be submitted that is intended to promote or commit an illegal act.
Do not submit software or descriptions of processes that break or otherwise ‘work around’ digital rights management software or hardware. This includes conversations about ‘ripping’ DVDs or working around FairPlay software used on the iTunes Store.
If you are running Lion:
From the MPEG Streamclip homepage
The installer of the MPEG-2 Playback Component may refuse to install the component in Lion. Apple states the component is unnecessary in Lion onwards, however MPEG Streamclip still needs it. See this:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3381
To install the component in Lion, please download MPEG Streamclip 1.9.3b7 beta above; inside the disk image you will find the Utility MPEG2 Component Lion: use it to install the MPEG-2 Playback Component in Lion. The original installer's disk image (QuickTimeMPEG2.dmg) is required.
The current versions of MPEG Streamclip cannot take advantage of the built-in MPEG-2 functionality of Lion. For MPEG-2 files you still need to install the QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component, which is not preinstalled in Lion. You don't have to install QuickTime 7.

How do I import an old home movie on DVD into iMovie with video_ts content and .vob files

Hi, as a new mac user I would appreciate any help to use imovie to import an old home movie on DVD with movie_ts content and .vob

You need to convert the VOB files in the TS-Folder of the DVD back to DV which iMovie is designed to handle. For that you need mpegStreamclip:
http://www.squared5.com/svideo/mpeg-streamclip-mac.html
which is free, but you must also have the Apple mpeg2 plugin :
http://store.apple.com/us/product/D2187Z/A/quicktime-mpeg-2-playback-component-f or-mac-os-x
(unless you are running Lion in which case see below))
which is a mere $20.
Another possibility is to use DVDxDV:
http://www.dvdxdv.com/NewFolderLookSite/Products/DVDxDV.overview.htm
which costs $25.
For the benefit of others who may read this thread:
Obviously the foregoing only applies to DVDs you have made yourself, or other home-made DVDs that have been given to you. It will NOT work on copy-protected commercial DVDs, which in any case would be illegal.
And from the TOU of these forums:
Keep within the Law
No material may be submitted that is intended to promote or commit an illegal act.
Do not submit software or descriptions of processes that break or otherwise ‘work around’ digital rights management software or hardware. This includes conversations about ‘ripping’ DVDs or working around FairPlay software used on the iTunes Store.
If you are running Lion or later:
From the MPEG Streamclip homepage
The installer of the MPEG-2 Playback Component may refuse to install the component in Lion. Apple states the component is unnecessary in Lion onwards, however MPEG Streamclip still needs it. See this:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3381
To install the component in Lion, please download MPEG Streamclip 1.9.3b7 beta above; inside the disk image you will find the Utility MPEG2 Component Lion: use it to install the MPEG-2 Playback Component in Lion. The original installer's disk image (QuickTimeMPEG2.dmg) is required.
The current versions of MPEG Streamclip cannot take advantage of the built-in MPEG-2 functionality of Lion. For MPEG-2 files you still need to install the QuickTime MPEG-2 Playback Component, which is not preinstalled in Lion. (The same applies to Mountain Lion and Mavericks even though they have it preinstalled.) You don't have to install QuickTime 7.

How can I convert a home movie on dvd(vob file) to edit on imovie?

I had home movies converted to a dvd- the files are vob. Now I want to edit the movies in imovie.
I am having a difficult time converting from vob straight to mov files.
I purchased Quick Time Pro thinking that could do it, but I haven't been able to.
Also, it just says QuickTime Player Version 7.6.4 (518.35) on my computer.
Is it supposed to say QuickTIme Pro?
Thank you in advance for any help you can provide.

The "Pro" option just unlocks a lot of features in QuickTime Player. If you look at the registration info, it will show if you have Pro installed.
For converting DVD's you have two options; hardware or software.
The hardware option involves connecting a DVD player's analog outputs to a qualified "DV device" (DV camcorder, VTR or converter) then connecting the DV device's Firewire port to your Mac to capture the footage.
The software option involves using an application like DVDxDV or MPEG Streamclip to convert the DVD's VOB files into an editable format that works natively with your chosen NLE.
-DH

Home movies on DVD into iMovie for editing?

I've had home movie video cassettes transferred onto DVD professionally and want to move them into iMovie so I can do edits and create new movies. The DVDs play fine but I can't figure out how to get them into iMovie so I can manipulate

As Peter Joshua stated, Instant Handbrake will do the job and it is free, but you will have to check the settings to conserve the original quality because HandBrake is made to convert for iPod and will condense the movie. I have an app called Cinematize Pro, which is a perfect app for doing this. It is not free but conserves the full quality of the video and allows you to convert selected chapters or clips and not the whole DVD content.

How to transfer your home movie from DVD to imovie for Editing?

How to transfer home movie already on a DVD to IMOVIE for editing & enhancement.

Simple idea-but not always easy. Get a dvd ripping program (or find a trialware version of one). Insert dvd. Rip DVD. save dvd as either DV or MP-4.Open with iMovie. Fiddle around,VLC might be helpful??
John B

Burn edited qt home movie to dvd?

hiya everyone, please help me ive recently recorded my mate wake boarding and wanted to edit the clips together and play some music over the top, i purchased qt pro and have managed to make a kick *** movie, my problem is there were 7 seperate clips which i copied - pasted together and saved sucsessfully and can watch the whole thing as one complete 21 minuite movie with new music tracks playing over the top, but when i went to burn it to dvd using nero i added the 21 minuite video file as usual but it only recognised the first clip 3 minuites long (where have the other 18 minuites gone?), i exported it to avi which gave me a poor quality video with no audio (no good) but nero did recognised the whole 21 minuite movie!. How can i put my edited movie on to disc as one complete 21 minuite movie and keep the high quality. original video format is mov and audio format mpeg layer 3 and im using windows xp. any info would be greatly appriciated. regards fulbz ps im a newbie to this so go easy on me. ;o)

hiya quicktimekirk,
Its the first time i have edited a movie using qt pro and followed the step by step instructions to the letter, so i assume i have done everything correctly.
Yes the file works perfectly if i play it in quicktime, it plays as one complete 21 minuite (209mb) movie and is saved as one complete 21 minuite (209mb) movie with my added music playing over the top, its all perfect in quicktime.
But if i play it in nero show time it will only play the first 3 minuites and the screen will freeze, the audio continues for the entire 21 minuites but its not my added music, its the the original audio of the speed boat and me talking rubbish to the driver. exactly the same problem as when i try to burn it with nero.
So from what i can gather is basically nero cant read my edited movie file, how can i convert it so nero can recognise it?
Once again thankyou for you help and your patients it is greatly appriciated.
kindest regards
fulbz

Home movies from DVD to Mac hard drive

I am an absolute neophyte at playing with video files. I have some VHS camcorder home movies from when my kids were little. A few months ago I asked the local photo shop to copy the videotapes onto DVDs. Now I'd like to save those videos as computer files on my mac, both to preserve them and (some day) edit them. I can't seem to figure out how to do this and any advice would be most welcome.
A week or so ago I tried Handbrake and it only copied a few seconds of video with audio that didn't match. Their support forum had something about using DVDtoOne but I couldn't understand what that was supposed to do so I didn't try it.
Yesterday I downloaded a trial copy of DVDxDV and asked it to make a file compatible with NTCS, Quicktime and iMovie. It seems that it worked wonderfully. However, the file it created from a two hour DVD is more than 25GB! I can't reasonably keep files that huge on my hard drive.
Is there a way to compress the file so that it is more like the size of the original DVD and still preserve the quality? (Maybe Quicktime Pro?)
Or, is there a better way to proceed so that I can preserve/edit these DVD files?
Thanks,
Perry

Moreover, you could try Handbrake.
Handbrake is a software that converts DVD to any format you specify, and it does rely on the popular ffmpeg Unix program. (In fact, I bet most conversion software do rely on ffmpeg...).
I garantee Handbrake is not another of those programs, commonly called thing like DVD2iPod (I don't mean to harm this software if it does really exist) or DVDRIPMAGIX, or well... you know.
So, in Handbrake, there's a list of presets from which you can choose to convert the video to. You should perhaps leave it to Normal (which will encode it to a .mp4 movie, thus rendering you with a far lesser file than 25GB).
Of course, the 25GB you were prompted is an uncompressed file, like DV format is. It is used for editing from uncompressed source, but you are coming from a DVD, which is in the base, not an uncompressed source as far as I know. Thus explaining why the movie on the DVD is not 25GB.
I hope all this will be useful to you!

Can't import home movie from DVD to iMovie HD

I have recently had over an hour of old home movies without sound (Super 8mm, not video tape) professionally transferred to a DVD. The DVD was delivered in both VIDEO_TS (VOB) and in MPEG 2 formats.
I am unable to import either of these formats into either iMovie HD or Final Cut Express. Each attempt results in an Error Message that file type is not supported or that QuickTime cannot parse it, Error -2048.
I have also tried DVDxDV which generates a .mov file, but get the same error message.
How can I get these analog-to-digital converted DVD files to import into iMovie/Final Cut Express so that I can edit and rearrange clip sequence?
The video transfer firm has no answer to this problem either. (It works fine on their iMac G5 equipment running Final Cut Pro).

I have also tried DVDxDV which generates a .mov file, but get the same error message.
I'm surprised at that. Did you check out the DVDxDVD FAQ at http://www.dvdxdv.com/DVDxDV.faq.htm
You might want to also look at ffmpegX at http://homepage.mac.com/major4/
The ffmpegX installation and operating instructions could be a little clearer, but it works.
BTW, when having film transfers made like that, find a place that will transfer to a miniDV tape. You will get maximum quality this way as DV compression is much lower than the MPG-2 compression on the DVDs you were given making DV a much better starting point.
The video transfer firm has no answer to this problem either.
It doesn't sound like a very "professional" place. A professional service would have suggested output to miniDV tape so you could easily edit the clips.

Ripped home movie off DVD; imported it to IMOVIE6, ratio wrong

I ripped a 15 min home movie that had been shot in widescreen from a DVD using HandBrake. It plays in the correct ratio aspect on IDVD player, but when I import it to my Widescreen IMovie project, it imports 4:3.
Is this because I can't increase the size in the Handbrake picture settings prior to ripping?
Why does IDVD Player PLAY the movie in 16:9 but not IMPORT to another application in 16:9?
Thanks so much folks!
snaildix
Message was edited by: snaildix

HandBrake
That's not a good choice if you intend to use iMovie which uses DV as its native format.
Use other apps like MPEG Streamclip (or VisualHub, DVDxDV etc) which can convert straight to .dv with the 16:9 flag set. Then iMovie imports it correctly to a widescreen project.

Home movies on dvd not allowed in imovie 4 error messages 2048 & 1409

hello:
i just put some home movies on a dvd and would like to edit them via imovie4. but imovie will not take the dvd. i keep getting the error message 2048 "error during import. file could not be imported. the file video.rm can't be imported. quicktime couldn't parse it."
i've tried dragging the dvd icon onto imovie but i keep getting that same 2048 message.
help!!!
thanks.

A DVD is always digital. The problem is that the video on it is highly compressed and in a form that doesn't allow editing. It needs to be converted to DV in order to edit.
You don't have to have a DV camera, you can also use a DV converter to import directly into iMovie.
There is a commercial application called DVDxDV that you can use to convert your DVDs.
http://www.dvdxdv.com/
A bit more expensive than the previous suggestion, but hopefully easier to handle.
A final option is to use a DVD recorder with a hard drive. If all you want to do is edit out parts of the video, this option is fine. I use one where I copy from my VHS tapes to the hard drive in the DVD recorder, edit out the commercials and then burn the DVD. This avoids the computer altogether, but you can't add stills, titles, transitions or effects.

Editing home movies on DVDs

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