AVCHD Import And Editing

[dextern1]

thanks dude figured it out!!!!!!!!!

[rayandjoanne]

Can you export to AVCHD to use in a Blu-Ray player?

Or do I need to export to AVI then put the file on my windows pc, put it into sony Vegas and create a disk that way?

[DizzyDougTV]

@rayandjoanne Yes. You can output to Blu-ray.

[rayandjoanne]

@DizzyDougTV cheers for the reply but how would I output to blu ray?

[DizzyDougTV]

@rayandjoanne You need a Blu-ray burner, and an application capable of authoring a Blu-ray disk. So whatever you use to edit with, you would export the video to an h.264 encoded mp4, and use something like Toast to author the Blu-ray disk. Good luck...

[vwlover94]

People use freemakeconverter google it!! There millions of avchd users problems with conversion, gone!!!

[MsMakeupEmma]

i have a acer laptop which is 2 years old, i put windows 7 on yesterday and its super fast now, i am buying a JVC Everio GZ HM30 Camcorder, but it records in AVCHD. please dont use big words, i am not a techy person and have no clue lol, what video editing software can i use thats cheap and affordable and is compatible for AVC-HD video clips. All i want to do is cut up some clips, delete some clips, add some music or text, speed it up etc. like what windows movie maker does, thankyou so much

[wallyman1948]

1080p editing is not available on macbook o9. Is this true? Do u know  when this may be possible? walter

[DizzyDougTV]

@wallyman1948 No idea where you heard that from, but that is not true.

[wallyman1948]

@DizzyDougTV How do I go about editing my 1080p/60 when loaded into i movie 09 it will not upload these files?  I'm using a panasonic 700 camcorder & recording in 1080p/60 can u advise?

[DizzyDougTV]

@wallyman1948 It's possible that your camcorder is not supported by whatever version on iMovie you are using. Which may be why you can't import the video. Check apple.com for the camcorder compatibility list for your version of iMovie.

[popitn2nd]

why would the fan go crazy when transferring a 5min clip? the CPU gets hot and reach 98 F' .. the fan goes at 7000 rpm! i can't imagine what damage can do to my mac when transferring an hour video. hmm!

[Eddyles]

@popitn2nd Which imac do you have?? I'm considering getting an imac this week

[kycruisecrazy]

So I'm guessing it's easy to take AVCHD/MTS file from a Sony HDR-CX110 on to a Mac so I can make movies to both put on DVD and on YouTube?

[rawatpatna]

I am planning to buy a 35mm camera Say AF101 of panasonic that shoots in AVC HD. Is it a good enough format to convert on 35mm.

[LK1998]

Would you show two clips put together

[FCO0710]

does iMovie convert AVCHD to another format to work with?

[bikrman1]

Hi, that was very reassuring. I saw that you just ignored the box warning about degraded video playback -whats that all about then? Also having problems getting unpixelated dvds from the projects -any suggestions really welcome, many thanks anyway, really helpful and clear

[3IGGB0SS]

I get horizontal lines on my AVCHD video when I export it in HD from iMovie 09 do you know why this is?

[NJRonbo]

Doug,

Have a 5-year-old Sony HD camcorder that uses tape. Takes forever to download footage to my Mac. 1 hour of footage takes 1 hour to transfer.

I want to move to AVCHD because I want to cut that transfer time out completely.

Thinking of buying the Sony CX550v which is listed as being compatible with iMovie '09

I just need to know if my iMovie experience will be painless with AVCHD. Can I simply drag and drop the movie clips? Will there be video degradation?

[NJRonbo]

I apologize for not looking over the several pages of responses you have received already.

I am about to buy my first AVCHD camcorder and quite frankly I am scared about AVCHD and iMovie. You seem to be one of the few people I have come across on the Internet that has been able to import over files with no effort.

What brand camcorder did you use?

I am looking at purchasing the Sony CX550V and have no idea how their AVCHD format plays with iMovie.

Look forward to your response

[adobePC]

Why didn't you use a 5 minute long clip? I am under the impression that iMovie had to convert the native AVCHD into an intermediate codec. I wonder if it would take 5 minutes to convert a 5 minute AVCHD clip.

My system can edit native AVCHD. I will post a video link.

[DizzyDougTV]

@adobePC Why would I use a 5 minute long clip, when I had a 10 minute time limit on you tune at the time this video was posted?

[adobePC]

@DizzyDougTV

You would not have to let the screen capture software capture the enitre conversion if that is what iMovie must do. In my video response I am using AVCHD clips that are 2 hours long dude. On the PC side most of the software can edit native AVCHD. Please let my video response post dude.

[spacykid]

Ur hte man , thankkkkkks

[ReviewerXD]

It doesn't read .m2ts. Help?!?! ASAAPP!

[basicsforsuccess]

I'm having troubles getting my AVCHD files to show up on my iMovie 09'. Got the Panasonic HS 700 and when I connect via usb, it won't pull up anything on iMovie. If I record in the smaller HG1920, it will show up and I can import, but the 1080/60p clips won't show at all for me to import. Any ideas what I'm doing wrong? I upgraded to Snow Leopard and iLife 09 just so I could be ready to go like you in the video....to no avail.

[MissLai1219]

i just purchased a HD cam that films in AVCHD and Ive got a Windows Visa, (currently saving up for a mac). Would you know how I would edit these clips to a lower res and then publish in HD again? thanks

[DizzyDougTV]

@MissLai1219 Once you compress a file to a lower resolution. You can't or at least shouldn't try to convert it back to HD. You lose all of the quality. Once you throw that data away, there is no getting it back.

[MissLai1219]

@DizzyDougTV thanks dude!

[ciencin]

@MissLai1219 you can do exactly that in proxies

[EpicDubz]

What are the specs from the computer used in this video?

And is it just as easy to import directly from the hard drive on the camera instead of from the card??

[reindog107]

hey i was wondering if you could help me out? i'm borrowing an sd card from my friend and when i go to upload my footage it only shows the stuff he recorded on his camera. do you know y?

[DizzyDougTV]

@reindog107 You can't take a memory card from one camera and use it in another without formatting it with the camera. All cameras use and create a directory structure on the cards to be able to read and write to it.

[reindog107]

@DizzyDougTV how do i format the card?

[DizzyDougTV]

@reindog107 With your camera. Look in the menu system or your manual. You'll find it.

[reindog107]

@DizzyDougTV if i do that it will erase all the footage on the card and i need the footage

[DizzyDougTV]

@reindog107 If you format, yes. That's what it will do. Seems like your only choice is to copy the entire card to your computer. Format the card in your camera, and then copy over whatever you shot from your camera. Again, you need to know what the directory structure needs to be, and copy it back to where it needs to be.

You will need to format it again when you are done with your friends camera, then copy back his data. Again. In the correct directory and structure.

Gold luck!

[BoardCanAB]

my computer is pretty old like over 5 years old but the specs on the camera im getting match up with my computer specs. i have vegas pro 9 and i was wondering if i recorded in like low hd and maybe lets say not 15mbps like 10 or something. would it play back alright on my computer. im getting the canon hg10 if that helps

intel pentium 4 3ghz(2 cpus)

1022mb RAM

NVIDIA geoforce4 mx 440

[DizzyDougTV]

@BoardCanAB Personally, I think it's best to use a dual core processor when editing AVCHD video.

[wfwillett3]

OK, I have my movie imported. How can I get a high def file on a dvd that will play on my blu ray?

[Sheety33]

Very nice demo! Did you have to update your iMovie 09 by chance or your operating system in order for the AVCHD files to be compatible with iMovie 09? I'm looking into getting the Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-HX5V, and shoots 1080i @ 60i in AVCHD format, and says that to use it on a Mac I would need Mac OS X v10.5.8 and iMovie 09 v.8.0.3 in order for this video format to work with iMovie 09 and edit. So my question is, did you have to upgrade at all? Thanks!

[rneo]

If you don't have a key card reader do you know how i can do this?

[daftpunk20001us]

Dude..this is great stuff. Aight here is my problem. Been messing around with imovie for the past month. Do exactly as u do.

I open imovie and then go to capture from camera and it keeps opening the isight camera. Have you had this problem? The computer reads the sd card because it shows up on the desktop and i can manually view the files but i cannot transfer anywhere. Every time i hit the import from camcorder it opens up isight build in camera.

This just started happening today. HELP!

[DizzyDougTV]

@daftpunk20001us This typically happens when people use their computers to format the cards.

Flash memory cards should always be formatted with the camera they are going to be used on.

Since you can access the files and and folder structure on your Mac. I would copy everything (as it is on the card) format the card with your camera. Then copy the files back. And see if you can get them off.

[daftpunk20001us]

Hey.....just before you had replied i tried swapping out SD cards and it worked so you response made total sense.

For the old sd card, i reformatted like you mentioned and imovie reads it again. Thanks so much for your inputs!!

[AcunaMedia]

Dude Awesome video thanks man keep making them. the idiot under me should just be blocked.

[DizzyDougTV]

You're welcome. I don't know where that crap came from. I guess he/she was having a bad tech day and was pissed at me for having no issues. He/she is blocked.

[chrislumix]

Dizzy Doug..you are a con. Nothing in this video is information. Simply hook up and paly and you are getting lucky. So many people arnt. You ask for questions and comments and they go unanswered. Pathetic. Try harder please.

[DizzyDougTV]

Con? Pathetic? Getting lucky? Comments unanswered?

Look, I don't know you, and you certainly DON'T know me so perhaps you should just shut the fuck up?!?!

I do my research, I learn how to use my gear. There is no "getting lucky"...

Perhaps you might want to take your own advice and try harder. Perhaps that way, shit might work for you.

[chrislumix]

all you are doing is plug and play...monkey style...nothing in this.....sadly

[DizzyDougTV]

And sadly enough, as easy as this is, you can't figure it out. And you're trying to get pissy with me? You sir, or ma'am need to get a life.

[poprocz]

Excellent video Dizzy.

If someone finds a solution to the imovie not importing AVCHD/.mts format please hook me up.

This is quite frustrating having a top of the line HD cam and imac with no where to go.

Thanks in advance.

[DizzyDougTV]

Thanks. Check the support docs on the Apple website. They have a list of compatible cameras. Just because it shoots avchd, doesn't mean it's compatible. That's where I would start.

[jstyles3000]

i followed your steps but the files are light grey and imovie 09 won't let me select them and import...it shows the files, but thats it..any ideas?

[DizzyDougTV]

@jstyles3000 You're missing something, or the file types are not compatible with iMovie.

[johnnyViDeO]

Apple is falling behind the PC editing world. Even their pro app, Final Cut, can't edit AVCHd natively. One has to transcode to ProRes, which takes time and produces huge file sizes. The other failure is that Apple's pro DVD authoring package, DVD Studio Pro, can't yet author BluRay DVD's. NOW HOW PROFESSIONAL IS THAT, APPLE? And when will Final Cut take advantage of the 64-bit operating system that OSX affords?

Sony Vegas can do both. Time to switch?

[vacationboyvideos]

i agree i just bought a mac, im taking it back and going back to sony vegas....its the best

[jstyles3000]

I'm going out to get a macbook pro to go with my HF200 which uses AVCHD. Can you give me help with the specs I should get so I can edit and playback MTS with no issues. THANKS! Great video

[MatsVidar]

Thx :) think il get the i7 Quad with 8 gbs of ram xD

[MatsVidar]

I've got a Canon HF10. Full HD camcorder.

AVCHD formats just like you. My old Computer was to old and it also broke down a while ago. Now i want to make a movie with some friends. its going to be over a hour long. Now what kind of computer do i need do be avaible to edit it perfectly. I tried with the old one it got all fuzzy and lagged when i tried to play the clip. and it was just inpossible. now this is a computer from 2005 so. I want to go for Apple. What do i need to edit AVCHD perfectly?

[MrBizzy2010]

@MatsVidar you need the new imac with snow leopard nothing works better from apple

[schnurmac]

Can you tell if I edit and add menus and transitions how do I burn that to DVD5 or 9 in full HD on my macbook? I know iDVD will only burn a SD disk. I have TT10 and I am able to burn the MTS file to DVD only. If I export the project in QT will this be possible. I just want to create a DVD with menus, titles and transitions in the full res.

[DizzyDougTV]

It's possible to burn HD content to DVD's, but we're talking about a few minutes. That's all that will fit on that media.

[schnurmac]

Thanks for the reply. You can fit about 30-45 minutes on a DVD5 and twice that on a DVD9.  I already knew this.

My question is how can I edit add titles and transitions like in iMovie and burn that in full resolution to a DVD? My thing is why would I shoot in HD if I cant edit and burn that to a media to watch and save. Its really a waste to me to have invested in this format.

[DizzyDougTV]

Well, I had to assume you didn't which is why I mentioned it. To help.. Any hoot. The amount of video you are going to be able to fit depends on the quality of the video, size and bitrate etc.

You need to author the disk as a BD disk, not a DVD.

Also, it's hard to call HD a waste. Maybe you should invest in a BD burner and media. Just a thought. Good luck!

[schnurmac]

@DizzyDougTV I didnt want to invest in a BD drive right now. If I did how can I do this.  I dont mind just fitting 30-40 min home movies on DVD. What workflow would I use to Import, edit , & burn the full HD movie with? I have poured over articles for a week on this. To me it seems PC users has tons of options. I have FCE that I dont know how to use. I tried installing windows 7 on my mac and Pinnacle but that didnt work very well. Please help me with this thanks.

[masterDJ32]

My 13 inch macbook pro with snowleopard is having problems importing to imovie 09. The file my camera exports is a .mts file which my computer doesn't recognize it!

what do i do!! do i have to change the camera, get a new one?

[DizzyDougTV]

Make sure it's supported by Apple and iMovie. Go to their website and look for the iMovie compatibility list.

[multimediaeducation]

Thank you so much for this easy to understand-follow this video. Do you use Screenium for recording your desktop?

[DizzyDougTV]

You're welcome. I think I used ScreenFlick for this one.

[multimediaeducation]

Thx!

[sengkangboy]

my canon hf200 works for the first time with imovie and then the subsequent time it doesnt work anymore ( the import window doesnt pop up anymore ). now i dont know how i can get the vids into imovie...

[DizzyDougTV]

Try clicking on the import icon to trigger the import window.

[sengkangboy]

Doesnt work, it only shows my iview cam as the only source. Sighz. Is there any known comptability issues between imovie and canon camcorders? What i am trying to do now is to convert the mtf files to avi before importing them. Takes me so much longer :(

[DizzyDougTV]

Have you uninstalled and reinstalled iMovie? Also, check Apple's website. They have really good documentation for what cameras work with the different versions of iMovie..

[sengkangboy]

found the solution. Thanks.

The problem is because i use explorer to delete away scenes from a previous event. The camera read it as invalid file. Seems like the formatting of the card needs to be done via the camera itself before it will work.

[dinnerandashow]

strange ... my snow leopard imovie refuses to import MTS files (AVCHD).

also what computer are you using?

my brand new macbook pro crawls when playing MTS files with Video Lan player (because quicktime is not compatible).

[DizzyDougTV]

2.4Ghz MacBook Pro. Intel Core 2 Duo. 4GB RAM. iMovie 09. May have been iMovie 08 when I did this screen capture.

[DizzyDougTV]

What are you using to import and edit with? Also, check with them to see if your cameras video is supported. I've never heard of that brand of camera, and there is a possibility that it's avchd footage isn't compatible with the application you are using.

Good luck!

[WhoaGRL20]

I HAVE A MACBOOK PRO WITH TIGER (OS X) WILL THIS STILL WORK? I HAVE A CANON HF 20

Thanks!

[DizzyDougTV]

It should, yes.

[adigitalb]

sweet im getting my Vixia HF200 tomorrow so excited;DD

[DizzyDougTV]

Awesome. Congrats!

[kustomcougar]

Would the imac 2.66Ghz be able to handle avchd footage from my sony hdr cx7?

[DizzyDougTV]

If it's a dual core, it should have no problem.

[andrewsing]

Hi! I have a CANON VIXIA hf s10. My iMovie 09 cashes when I try to import from the SD card from my camera but it works perfectly well with my internal hardrive for my camera. The weird thing is it worked fine the first time I imported from my SD card.

[DizzyDougTV]

Seems like your Mac may have an issue with your card reader. Is your card reader compatible with SDHC cards? I would start there first, as many SD card readers are not SDHC compatible.

[StephenNguyen]

I have a canon HF10, but when i try to import into iMovie 09, none of my footage shows up. The footage was in the highest quality setting.

help

[DizzyDougTV]

How are you trying to import? And what are you using?

[StephenNguyen]

I'm doing the same exact thing as you are doing. I'm using iMovie 09.

[babyjaby]

Thanks so much for this! :)

[DizzyDougTV]

No problem. Hope you enjoyed it.

[OKCFrog]

Thanks for your help! I own a Sony CX100 which records in AVCHD. I tried to use iMovie08 to edit, but the AVCHD footage was not recognized on my roommates Macbook. Only the SD footage was recognized.

I want to buy a Macbook with iLife09 - do you know if I can edit footage from a Sony CX100 in iMovie09? I keep finding mixed answers..  Thanks for your help!

[DizzyDougTV]

MacBook Pro 2.4Ghz Intel C2D 4GB RAM.

[finisherer]

What spec mac did you use???

[andreashurtig]

Thank you for this, keep doing these helpful videos :)

[DizzyDougTV]

You're welcome. Thank you for taking the time to comment.

[jonypooh]

Another great tutorial. Thanks!

[DizzyDougTV]

No problem. Glad you found it useful.

[DizzyDougTV]

No problem. Glad you found them useful.

[honitsten]

Good timing. Before watching this, I was just thinking about the avchd format.

I am doing research on what I need before I buy this camera. Your videos are very helpful and thank you for answering questions about your camera and mic.