TERRIBLE quality of SDHC camcorder imported clips.

I'm trying to import my JVC GZ-MS90 videos, stored on a SDHC card. If I play those videos in VLC the quality is OK but when I import the same videos into iMovie the quality looks TERRIBLE, even in the preview window. When I export my project the picture quality gets even worse. Is there anyone with the same problem?
Thank you!

I'd suggest running through mpeg streamclip, convert to AIC, de-interlace, and then import that into iMovie '09. That is now my preferred workflow.
Look at the 4th post down (by fausto.sapiens) in this link. It refers to DV video, but I find that it improves SD mpeg-2 video greatly.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=1891925
I'm using a Sony HDD SD camcorder and it made a major improvement in my video. I follow the workflow outlined by fausto.sapiens as I find it is the easiest for keeping the original filename, and hence the timestamps in the event library and playhead indicator.

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Trying to Import Clips from Camcorder; iMovie Plays Completed Movie Instead

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Hi there,
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Hey cagafromgbr!
Here is an article that can give you an overview of the different ways to import videos in iMovie:
iMovie (2013): Importing overview
http://support.apple.com/kb/PH14670
Thanks for being a part of the Apple Support Communities!
Regards,
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I used to export cut clips to tape (version 9.0) but recently I bought the 13.0 version of PREMIERE and after cutting (etc) - to keep having the exàct same video-quality as what I IMPORTED/CAPTURED via an (analog) source - I export cut material simply to

I used to export cut clips to tape (version 9.0) but recently I bought the 13.0 version of PREMIERE and after cutting (etc) - to keep having the exàct same video-quality as what I IMPORTED/CAPTURED via an (analog) source - I export cut material simply to external HDs (so, actually to the computer)... but whatever I am trying I notice that when I check the export-material with the original clip the first is NOT ONLY SMALLER but ALSO DOES NOT SEEM TO HAVE THE SAME RESOLUTION, DETAILNESS, SHARPNESS (or whatever you may call it) as what I origanally captured !! ... What am I doing wrong? WHICH SETTINGS DO I HAVE TO MAKE - at least- IN ORDER TO KEEP THE SAME IMAGE-QUALITY (or even to enhance it) IN STORING ON THE COMPUTER ?! Thanks, RVH

Don't triple post, and especially not in the wrong form.

Importing clips from iMovie HD to FCE4

Hi. Have read with interest a couple of questions on this same issue, with the advice from Tom Wolsky seemingly being to not mix the two applications and just get stuck in with FCE. However, i'm finding FCE difficult to like/get to grips with. But more importantly, after attending some Apple onetoone sessions, it seems my Canon camcorder might be a little long in the tooth and there may be some tape slippage as I was getting time code errors when trying to import directly to FCE. The fix seemed to be to capture the footage via iMovie and import to FCE using 'show package contents' route. Having now though imported some footage from a second tape, I have some of the clips showing as Offline for some reason. Is the trick to import clips from IMovie as per Tom's suggested route on 9/8/08?

I import video from my camera into iMovie 4, because that is the last version of iMovie, I believe, that was capable of flushing unwanted video off the hard drive, and I can bring an entire tape into iMovie, trim it down for FCE, and then get rid of the unwanted footage. iMovie 6, like Final Cut Express, is a nondestructive editor and can't erase unwanted footage from the hard drive, and as you know, video uses up hard drive space FAST. To get rid of discarded edits, you either have to use iMovie 4 or Final Cut Pro.
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What can be used to connect Panasonic Full HD SD/SDHC Camcorder to the iPod

I am thinking of buying the Panasonic Full HD SD/SDHC Camcorder which uses the new SDHC/SD Memory Card to store the movie clips. What I would like to know is there anything in the iPod accessories range, that I can connect to a Fifth Generation iPod so I can store all the clips from either the camcorder or the SDHC/SD Memory Card, so I can re-use the memory card. I understand that I will not be able view the moive clips on the iPod as the camcorder uses the AVCHD format.
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http://www.youtube.com/user/dhelmly#p/a/u/1/_YtF0c2bmkw
Dave export the video from PremiereProCS5 as "MPEG2-bluray" format with "Match Source Attributes (HighQuality)" Preset, and build the Bluray Disc in EncoreCS5, with the footage as MPEG2 with .m2v file extension:
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well, I simply either drag them in to the new/different project from the finder, or drag or copy and paste between open fcp projects. Never had any problems working this way. Just remember that if you delete a specific project scratch disk folder, you may be deleting media used in another project.

Help urgently needed: bizarre problem - no audio in imported clip!

Hey there!
I have a bizarre - never the less urgent problem:
When I import some material (presentations) which I have recorded on Mini DV with my Canon MVX10i Camcorder the following problem occurs:
There is one particular presentation which somehow looses the audio during the import process!
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A bizarre but serious problem for me. Any suggestions?
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I had a similar problem. When I started the tape from the beginning no audio would import. To solve it I started the tape a few seconds in and It seemed to work.
Hope this helps.

Length of imported clips?

I have just begun to import movies from my camcorder and they all are defaulted at 9:28. Is there some reason for that, and is there any way to change the length of imported clips? That is such a basic question that I am surprised it is not prominently addressed.

Actually this WAS prominently discussed in these groups a LOT way back when. However you are talking about a version of iMovie that is now three versions back and that limitation was taken out with iMovie version 5 (only exists in iM4 and earlier). So no one talks about it anymore because most people are aware of it, except for the rare person who is actually NEW to iMovie4.
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RT playback on imported clips

I'm new to FCP, I've been reading up on various basic differences between how Final Cut and Avid handle imported clips. I know that FCP doesn't recreate media for imported clips, simply references wherever they lay. I know that the imported clips need to have the same settings as the sequence you add them to, otherwise it needs to be rendered. (Side note: Is there a way to conform all clips to be the same format? I will be using lots of QTs and they won't all be the same format. Seems a pain to have to work outside the app to get them to import and play nicely inside the app.)
I can play the clips just fine in the Viewer, can't get them to play in the Canvas. I've made sure the frame size, compression, pixels (square), frame rate are the same. The only difference is the audio rate - the QT has audio at 22 KHz and I can't find that as an option in the Sequence settings. Could that be why I get a red bar requiring rendering in the Canvas/Timeline? I tried turning off audio, but I still have the red bar. It's driving me mad!
I've read through the manual, the help and a reference book but all I get is "they need to have the same settings and then the clip will play in the sequence." There must be a setting someplace I haven't read about.
Thanks!

jlplasterer wrote:
What am I doing wrong? I'm working off internal storage and 1 firewire drive. I've tried moving the clips off the internal over to the firewire storage before importing, and I've tried keeping them on the internal. All this talk of RT playback on FCP with various formats is great, but I can't get 1 stream of imported material to play back at all.
You need to share much more about the clip(s) in question. What codec? frame size?
Certain formats - especially what we call delivery formats (Sorenson Video 3, H.264, MPEG-4) - will not play in realtime on many systems, due in part to lack of horsepower from the playback machine (your computer) and/or bandwidth from the storage device (your hard drive or disks). There are other codecs that fall into this category (non-real time playback) but since your audio is 22 kHz, it sounds like heavily compressed, delivery codec files are what you're working with.
FCP 6's Mixed Format Timeline can require substantial horsepower and bandwidth, depending on the codecs/frame sizes involved, so one trick might be to lower the setting for Playback Quality and Frame Rate in the RT settings in your Timeline.

Gaps in audio when importing clips?

When I try to import clips from my camcorder to imovie, quite often it happens there are little gaps with no sound (easy to hear, and visible in audio wave as gaps as well).
When I connect the camcorder to the TV set, then the sound is fine, thus assume it cannot be a mistake in recording.
I've also exchanged the firewire cord, still the problem continues...
Would be extremely grateful for any help...

Hello BCRC,
What make / model computer are you using?
What operating system?
What program are you using to burn the DVD's and CDs?
By gaps are you meaning that there is a gap from one track to the next and you are looking to burn gapless discs, or are you referring to the audio actually skipping parts of the audio when burning?
If I have helped you in any way click the Kudos button to say Thanks.
The community works together, click Accept as Solution on the post that solves your issue for other members of the community to benefit from the solution.
- Friendship is magical.

Problems with artifacting when importing clip from After Effects...

I have spent nearly 100 hours creating some effects in After effects within the last few weeks but have noticed some terrible verticle artifacting when I import them into FCP. I have tried exporting using Uncompressed quicktime codec as well as DVCPro/DV and the "none" option with the best quality settings(all using the same FPS) and it still creates these verticle lines. I have also tried not only using the settings for anamorphic(720x480) but exporting with naitive 16x9 (which I believe is 856x480)and still get these lines.
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I would appreciate any help!
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My FCP settings are 24p advanced pulldown removed using DVCpro/DV 16x9.
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I am not viewing on an external monitor, only on the canvas. Could this just be a display issue?
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Audio distortion from camcorder import

Hi! After importing from my camcorder, the audio has a static distortion sound running through it along with the normal audio (although the distortion sound is louder than the talking). The movie sounds find on the camcorder and also on the DVD's I transfered them to with my DVD recorder. The odd thing in imovie is that in this 3 minute movie I'm transferring (which was made in Adobe Premiere), whenever I did a video drop in over the video of someone talking (while keeping the audio still being the person talking), the distortion stops????
BTW, is it possible to import into imovie from that DVD via the Apple drive?
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The DV converter is locked for 16-bit, 48kHz. I have the option to move it to "unlocked audio"....have no idea what the coverter would do to the bit rate then. Might be something for a trial. Thanks for the advice.
As a temporary workaround (but a big hassle), I extract the audio from my imported clip in iMovie. I then take that extracted audio .AIFF and import it into Audacity. The first three or so seconds of the video is just the hum....perfect for Audacity to recognize it for it's noise filter. I then apply the noise filter to the entire .AIFF file, then move it back to the iMovie media folder.
The resulting movie still stays in synch between audio/video, but now the hum is greatly reduced due to Audacity's noise filter. I notice a small loss in fidelity, but it's worth the tradeoff to (almost) reduce the hum.
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Can I selectively import clips from a DV tape?

i have a couple hours of footage on DV and only need a fraction of the clips. is there any way to import only specific clips... or, is my only option to import the entire tape and then get rid of excess footage once it's in iMovie? if my only option is to import all the footage, is there any way to expedite the importation process? also, is there any way to compress the imported footage so that it doesn't take up so much HD space? lots of Q's here... thanks for any guidance!

Hi TexanMac - yes you can control the import, but only manually, by alternately turning on and off the import button in iMovie. That is a very sensible way to reduce the import size. Carefully preview your tape first, so you know when keepable segments are coming up. In iMovie Preferences you can also control whether or not new clips are created at each scene break. Note that if an imported clip is not used at all, it can be trashed and it disappears from the project entirely. However if even a small portion of a clip is edited into your iMovie, the entire source clip will be retained in the project's media folder, and cannot be removed.
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1. reducing its size and quality (for the web, for example), or
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Imported clips playback fine on camera, playback at 2x speed in iMovie 2009

anyone know what is going on ?
1. shoot video on Sony camcorder
2. import clips via iMovie 2009 (version 8.0.4)
3. clips seem to playback at double speed

What is your system configuration: include your OS version & iMovie version.
What is your Camcorder's Make & Model?
Take a look at the iMovie Video Camera support list: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3290
Make sure your device is supported.

TERRIBLE quality of SDHC camcorder imported clips.

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