• Launch iMovie by clicking Go > Applications > and then choosing iMovie
• If a dialog box offers a button to start a new project, click on the New Project button
• Name your project -- make sure to remember where you save it
• If you are returning to iMovie choose Open Existing Project, browse to the file location and select

Import VHS video from the VCR:

• Make sure iMovie is set to Import mode
  • If not, move the toggle to the left
• Press the gray button on the Canopus converter box for Analog In
• Make sure that your video is paused several seconds before the beginning of the clip to import
  • You can easily trim the excess footage off later
  • You should see the paused movie in the movie window on your computer
    • If not, click the Import button once to set the mode

  To record from VHS:

• Press Play on the VCR
• Click the Import button in the iMovie window again
• The button turns blue
• A clip appears with time counting forward in the upper left corner to indicate the clip is being recorded
  

  To stop recording:

• Click on the Import button again
• The movie clip will be named Clip 01 and placed into one of the 12 "shelves" to the right of the recording window
  • You may also rename these clips
  • Click on the name, type a new name

  To continue recording, repeat steps above.

Remember to save your project periodically by choosing Save Project from the File menu in iMovie!

Connecting and importing video from a DV camcorder:

• If you have an iMovie project open, from the File menu, choose Save Project
• Unplug the firewire cable from the front of the Canpus box, and plug it into the DV port on your camcorder
  • When finished, plug the cable back into the Canopus box for the next user
• Turn on the camera in VTR /VCR (Playback) mode
  • iMovie should now detect the camera and allow you to control it using the player controls in iMovie
• Make sure iMovie is set to Import mode
  • If not, move the toggle to the left
• Make sure that your video is paused several seconds before the beginning of the clip to import
  • You can easily trim the excess footage off later
  • You should see the paused movie in the movie window on your computer
    • If not, click the Import button once to set the mode

  To record from the camera:

• Press Play on the camera, or using the on-screen controls
• Click the Import button in the iMovie window again
• The button turns blue
• A clip appears with time counting forward in the upper left corner to indicate the clip is being recorded

To stop recording:

• Click on the Import button again
• The movie clip will be named Clip 01 and placed into one of the 12 "shelves" to the right of the recording window
  • You may also rename these clips
  • Click on the name, type a new name

Remember to save your project periodically by choosing Save Project from the File menu in iMovie!

Editing options:

To use editing options, first:

• Move the toggle key to the right into Edit mode ->
• Click on a clip to activate; it will appear in color

Instructions for editing options:

• Play a clip
• Crop a clip
• Split a clip
• Assemble a movie
• Add titles
• Add transitions
• Add effects
• Add audio
• Edit audio

Play a clip:

• Select clip, use the iMovie controls
  • The button on the left will move the play-head to the beginning for playback
  • The middle button is the Play button
  • The button on the right will play the clip in full screen view
• When playing clip, note play-head traveling along the movie timeline
  • The number displayed next to the Play head is the number of seconds and frames up to that point in the movie
  • e.g. 05:12 means 5 seconds and 12 frames
• Move the Play head forward or backwards with the mouse
• To stop play, hit the Play button once again
  

Crop a clip:

To select a portion of the clip to keep, you need to crop.

• Use this feature if there is only one section you desire out of the imported clip.
  • Otherwise, you would be better off using the Split feature explained below

To crop:

• Select the clip by clicking on it
• Drag the set of gray triangles below the timeline (detail)
  • Drag the first triangle to the exact place/frame on the timeline that you would like your clip to begin
  • Drag the second triangle to the place on the timeline that you would like your clip to end
  • The clip's timeline will be shaded between the start and stop points
• When you have positioned your start and stop triangles properly, choose Crop from the Edit menu
  • This will crop the movie clip to the portion that you selected(in yellow), the rest will be discarded

Split a clip:

Split a single clip into two clips, split each of those subsequent clips as needed -- useful for saving an unused portion of a clip on the shelf for later editing. It is also the best way to cut off unwanted footage.

• Select the clip you would like to split on the clip shelf
• Move the play-head on the timeline bar under the monitor to the exact frame where you want to split the clip
• From the Edit menu, select Split Video at Play head
  • Shortcut key combination Apple Key + T
  • The clip will split into two individual clips
  • Discard any unwanted clips by dragging them to the trash
    • Otherwise, continue splitting

Assemble a movie:

Two views for the movie timeline at the bottom of the screen:

• One shows all of the clips in clip view (as on the shelf)
• One shows a complete timeline view for the movie -- including the associated audio tracks.
• To toggle between these views, click the timeline button.
• To assemble your movie, drag the clips from the shelf down to the movie timeline, and place them in any order desired.

Add titles:

• Select the desired clip down in the Timeline
• Click the Titles button button, located beneath the clip shelf
• Click on a style from the list in the titles palette to select
• Choose a font for your title from the font popup menu
• Un-check or check the Over Black box, as desired
  • Un-Check will create a title over video
  • Check will create a title over a black background
• Choose a color by clicking on the Text Color box next to color and clicking on the desired color.
  • Select the desired text size by sliding the blue knob size horizontally between the small 'A' and the large 'A'
• Type the text for your title into the text field(s) in the titles palette.
  • Depending on the style, there will be different options in the number of text fields, direction of entry, etc.
• Beneath the preview box, slide the blue knob(s) to designate:
  • Speed at which the title solidifies
  • Pause for the duration of appearance
• Click the Preview button on the top left of the titles palette to see a preview of the title over the clip in the monitor
• When adjustments are complete, drag the highlighted title style ("T" icon) from the list to directly in front of the selected clip in the Timeline
• A title clip appears in the clip viewer
  • A red progress bar will appear under the clip indicating the time remaining to render the title

Edit titles:

• Select the desired clip in the Timeline
• Click on the Titles button
• Make the desired changes
• Click the Update button in the Titles palette

Add transitions: Create a transition:

• Click the Trans button to display the options
• Select a transition style
• Adjust the round blue knob beneath the preview screen to change the speed of the transition.
• Click the Preview button on the top left of the transitions palette to see a preview of the transition between the clips in the monitor
• When adjustments are complete, drag the highlighted transition icon in front of the clip in the Timeline

Edit a transition:

There is no way to edit an existing transition, but you can:

• Select the previously created transition box
  • click on it once in Movie Timeline
• Drag it to the trash bin under the transition palette
• Create a new transition in the same location

Add effects:

Insert an effect:

• Select desired clip in the Timeline
• Click on the Effects button
• Select an effect by clicking on one in the Effects box
  • Drag the Effect IN knob to the point of the clip you want the effect to begin
  • Drag the Effect OUT at the point you want the effect to end
• Click the Preview button next to the clip preview
• Click the Apply button to administer the effect

Add audio in a movie:

Insert pre-recorded sounds:

• Select the Audio button
• Click and drag the sound effect to one of the audio tracks on the Timeline
• Select the sound clip in the Timeline and drag it to frame

Import a sound clip from a CD:

• Insert the CD
• Click the Audio button
• Select a track
• Use the playback controls to find desired start point
• Click Record Music to start recording onto audio track in the Time Line Viewer (TLV)
  • The CD will record on the lower track in purple
  • Click Record Music again to end recording

Insert your own recorded voice:

• Select the Audio button
  • Click Record Voice to start recording through the external mic
  • Click Record Voice again to stop recording
• The voice will record directly to the first track on the Time Line Viewer, and appear in orange

Edit the audio:

Volume control:

• Select the clip in the Timeline
• "Check" the Edit volume box
• With volume control, drag the knob to increase/decrease volume

Extract the audio from a clip into one of the separate audio tracks for individual editing:

• Select the clip in Timeline
• In the Advanced menu, choose Extract Audio
• Drag the ends of the tracks in the sound channels to edit the size of the audio clip

Divide an audio clip:

• In the Audio track, select the audio recording you wish to split
• Drag the Play head to desired split point
• In the Edit menu, select Split Selected Audio Clip at Play head
  • audio clip will split into two individual segments

Export to VHS tape:

• Put in a blank VHS tape in the VCR and set it for the correct position
• Press the gray button on the Canopus converter box for Digital In
• From the File menu, choose Export
• Choose Camera under Export; fill in the other values
• Click the Export button
• Press Record on the VCR
  • Verify that your movie is exporting correctly when it becomes visible on the TV monitor as it will be recorded by the VCR

Export to QuickTime:

• From the File menu, choose Share
  • Choose QuickTime under Export
• Choose the compression format desired:
• Email: will create a very small, very compressed format, so your movie could be attached to an e-mail. Note: the file could still be quite large, for conventional e-mail attachments
• Web: will create a compressed movie file suitable for posting and/or download from a web server
• CD-ROM: will create a medium quality file slightly compressed, so it will fit on a typical CD-R or CD-RW
• Choose Share
• Name the movie with the extension .mov (e.g., mymovie.mov)
• Choose a location you will remember for your file storage
• Click on the Save button
• A Progress window appears as the movie is exported
  • The export process can take anywhere between 3 to 10 times the length of the movie, depending on the compression level