Finally, you can add video from external sources to iMovie on the iPad
The iPad edition of iMovie is a slick, easy-to-use, inexpensive video editing tool. But it’s designed only to edit video shot with the iPad 2, iPhone or iPod Touch.
If you have video shot with another device, like a camera, you need to do a little work to get it working with iMovie on the iPad.
This appears to be because the hardware video chips inside these devices are tuned to very specific file types. This is why iMovie on the iPad can process video faster than a Mac. It is also why iMovie is so fickle about the video formats it will accept.
Even if video can be played back on the iPad, and shows up fine either in the Camera Roll or the native Videos app, iMove likely can’t see it. To fix this, you need first to convert the footage into the right format, and then introduce it gently to iMovie in just the right way.
There are two ways to do this: On a Mac, using a couple of applications and then syncing the converted file back to your iPad; or right on the iPad itself, using certain iOS apps.
Converting Video With a Mac
I have spent the last month, on and off, trying to get video shot with my Panasonic GF1 to show up in iMovie on the iPad. I gave up with the iPad 1, thanks to iMovie not working so great on the older iPad, but with a brand new iPad 2 in the Gadget Lab Spain offices, I finally cracked the code.
My examples use MTS files from the GF1, but should work with anything.
The trick is to turn the file into a specifically crafted MP4 with the H.264 codec. Most cameras already shooting something like this anyway. If so, proceed to step 2.
Step 1: Convert to MP4. The MTS from the Panasonic is an AVCHD file. This is just a container, which has an H.264 file within. This can be extracted without transcoding, which means it’s fast and — more importantly — there is no loss of quality. For this stage I use an app called ClipWrap. You just drop the files onto the app and then press go. It re-wraps the video into a nice MP4. At this stage, you may well be able to view the result on the iPad, but it still won’t work with iMovie.
ClipWrap converts AVCHD and DV files in seconds
ClipWrap costs $50. There is a trial which will work only the first minute of each clip. Unless you’re Alfred Hitchcock, you shouldn’t need much more. There are also free (and often clunkier) alternatives.
Step 2: Convert to “iMovie format.” For this you need a free app called MPEG Streamclip. There may be others, but this one works for me. Drop your freshly-minted MP4 file onto the app and then dial in the settings.
These settings are where the magic lies. I found them in a YouTube video how-to from user MyGreatiPhone, a young man from England (near Bristol, judging by his accent). First, go the menu bar and select File > Export to Other Formats:
The magic begins…
You will then see this monstrosity:
Make sure yours looks just like this
Change the format to MPEG-4, and then press the “Options” button to the side. You’ll see this:
This one might be even uglier than the last one
Here, the file format should read simply MP4 (not MP4 (ISMA)). You should also make sure your image size is 1280 x 720 HD and that the frame rate is 30. Don’t touch anything else. You can see the output details in the block of text at the bottom of this window.
Click OK in both windows and choose a file name. Make sure you have the MP4 extension and don’t make the name too long, or put any weird characters in there, as they may upset poor Princess iMovie.
That’s it. Now You need to get the file onto the iPad.
Step 3: Transfer to iPad. You may think that you could just drop the file iMovie’s file-transfer area in iTunes, but that would be too easy. That appears to be meant only for getting iMovie project out of the iPad to work on in desktop iMovie.
What you need is iPhoto.
Add the movie to iPhoto, preferably putting it into a special folder. Then flip back to iTunes and plug in your iPad. In the “Photos” section of the iPad sync screen, make sure “Include videos” is checked, and make sure that your folder is either checked to be synced, or you have chosen to sync everything from iPhoto. Hit sync.
Make sure you sync movies, too
Now, the moment of truth. Open up a project in iMovie on the iPad and your clip should be there. As I said, I have tried this with files from a Panasonic GF1 and found it to work. Let us know the make and model of you camera if you are successful, or if you fail.
Written here it seems like a long process, but in practice it is pretty fast. Both ClipWrap and MPEG Streamclip can batch-convert files, and you can save your Streamclip settings as a preset. Also, the iTunes step will be automatic now it’s set up.
Still, it would be nice if you could do these conversions on the iPad itself, right? Well, it turns out you can. I shall now permit myself an exclamation mark: !
Converting Video With the iPad
As we know, the iOS app for playing videos is a lot less finicky than iMovie, as all it has to do is play back video. Third-party apps, too, can read any movie file stored in your camera roll. And here’s the trick: Many of these apps will edit video or add special effects and then spit out the results in an iMovie-compatible format.
That’s right: If you’re prepared for a small loss in quality, you can convert video right there on the iPad.
ReelDirector ($2) is a venerable app that arrived on the iPad before iMovie. It’s clunky, slow and doesn’t even allow you to view your edits before rendering them. But it will take a clip and crunch it into a format iMove can understand.
Shoot a clip, put the SD card into your camera connection kit and transfer the movie right to your iPad (Motion JPG, AVI, MOV and MP4 should all come across fine). Then open up ReelDirector, make a new project, switch off all the options in the pop-up and hit the plus button to add a clip. It will compress the video. Then go back to the “My Projects” tab, hit render and wait. You’re done. Your clip will now show up in iMovie. Pretty rad, right?
But wait. If you’re going to degrade the quality then you may as well have some fun. Luckily, there are plenty of iPhone apps that Lomo-ize your footage. And they will pretty much all spit out iMovie-friendly files. I used the $2 iSupr8 (which is also made for iPad), but there are plenty of iPhone apps that can be used in pixel-doubled mode.
And that’s it, apart from one question that has been nagging at me. I swear that I once imported a movie clip direct to my iPad, and then was able to edit it right there in the Photos app. Somehow, I selected the clip and it was highlighted with a yellow outline. I could then trim the clip and save it as a new file. This new file was recognized in iMovie.
However, I can’t repeat it. I have a feeling that the file was from a Canon G9, but I tried it again today on an iPad 2 with the latest iOS, and an iPad 1 with an older version of iOS4, and it didn’t work.
Any ideas? Answers, along with questions and reports of success, can go in the comments.
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