Mini DVD files

Question

I was recently contacted about getting the footage from a mini DVD camcorder into iMovie. I know these cameras aren't mac compatible and I told the guy that but, does anyone know what kind of files are made when it's put onto a PC? I thought there might be a pain in the *** workflow to get the files in a proper iMovie format. I've already suggested if he needs to film footage often that he may want to look into a different camera.

Answer 1

Can somebody please walk me through this step by step please?
1) Open MPEG Streamclip.
2) Drop a VTS_01.VOB file on the MPEG Streamclip work/display area. (Note: Not familiar with Sony Mini naming here. Regular DVDs contain file series like VTS020.VOB, VTS021.VOB, VTS022.VOB, VTS023.VOB, etc.) The first two numbers refers to the "title" and the third (if present), refers to individual "segments" constituting parts of the entire title. In any case, if no third number is present, drop the VTS_##.VOB file on the work area. If a third number is present, drop any non-zero VTS_##.#.VOB file on the work area and select all when the application asks if it should load "1 file" or "all files.")
3) Slide the display slider to a point where your movie is clearly displayed.
4) Open the File "Show Stream Info" option window and note the audio sampling rate.
5) Open the file menu and select "Export to DV" option.
6) Select a compression format. (I usually use DVCPRO25.)
7) Change Aspect ratio if necessary.
8) If current audio sampling rate is other than 48.0 kHz, set the "Resample Audio to 48 KHZ" option.
9) Set "Split DV Stream in Segments" if using older version of iMovie.
10) If display of your movie has black bars (overscan), set the "Cropping" option and enter crop "guesstimations."
11) Set adjustment options ( brightness, contrast, saturation, volume) as needed.
12) Press the preview button and check "crop" setting if needed.
13) Press the "Make DV" button and enter required information.
That's all there is to it. File(s) should work directly in iMovie. Movies imported to FCE/FCP will require rendering but are otherwise good to go.