Filed under: iLife, Video, Reviews
iMovie '08: It's not that bad
iMovie '08 has gotten a bad rap lately so I decided to put it through its paces and see what all the fuss was about. Now, I'm not a professional video editor -- just your average Josephine -- but, frankly, I think the new iMovie kinda rocks.
Most of the arguments against '08 center around the idea that iMovie has been dumbed down, and I agree with that. The new version is a more a quick and dirty editor for crafting YouTube videos than a tool for making high-quailty advertising spots (hello?) or putting together your sister's wedding video. Then again, maybe this is Apple's way of pushing serious video editors toward Final Cut.
Truth be told, I was never impressed with iMovie '06. Apple products tend to be intuitive to the nth degree so I was surprised when my first few go-arounds with '06 left me frustrated and wondering if I shouldn't go back to Windows Movie Maker. I mainly make personal-use movies with and for my kids, so I hardly need a full-fledged production studio at my disposal. Instead, I just need something that lets me easily import video from our cameras, slice and dice it into some sort of edited watchability, and maybe add a fun transition or two.
Splicing film together with '06 was a huge hassle and seemed to require precision mousing. With '08, frames are laid out in a such a way that you can easily grab just the clips you need and string them together quickly. Adding transitions like fade-to-black or screen wipes is simply a matter of dragging-and-dropping the effects right where you want them.
Adding a title card or scrolling credits is also a piece of cake. Just drag the effect you want to the beginning or end of the clip, click the text field, and type in what you like.
Since I'm an average consumer my litmus test was whether I could put together a quick film using '08 without reading the directions or using the help features. I recorded a four-and-a-half minute movie with my children, then imported it into iMovie '08 on my MacBook Pro. I boiled it down into a two-and-a-half minute clip with three transitions, a title card, and credits -- all in less than 20 minutes. And I never once used the help feature.
Contrast that to my first experience with iMovie '06 when I imported two four-minute video clips onto my iMac, and it took me over an hour to put them together using one of the native themes. Using '06 to make a video for our sister site, DIY Life, nearly sent me into fits when I tried "complex" touches like snipping off the beginning and end of a clip, then applying the site's title card to the front end.
Since I'm all about efficiency, I love that you can upload a movie to YouTube from right within the app. YouTube is hardly the only place to host video however, so I was surprised at the lack of integration with other services like Blip.tv and Google Video (in fact, the Google video issue is even more puzzling since Google owns YouTube). I suspect as those and other services grow, we'll see better integration in the future.
I do have one quibble with iMovie '08, though, and it's a biggie. The ability to effectively manipulate audio sucks sweatsocks. When I made the test video to accompany this review, I knew I was wading into unhappy sound territory. I put a disc in my MacBook Pro, then taped it playing the video. I wasn't expecting good results but I was expecting to be able to tinker with the audio output at least enough to make it upload-worthy. No dice. Having done the same thing with '06 and gotten good results, I'm surprised the audio editing seems to have taken a step backwards, but since everything else works well enough, I'm willing to come up with a workaround for future projects.
I'm well aware of the gripes people have about iMovie '08 and I'm sure they're perfectly valid, especially for people who have used the app far longer -- and more intensively -- than I ever did. My best advice is that if you're a novice movie maker, or new to movie editing in general, don't discount '08 right away. Give it a try and you might find that it's perfectly suitable for what you need.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Aaron said 11:13AM on 9-03-2007
Thanks for showing the doom-and-gloomers that things aren't that bad. In a lot of cases, but not all, the mourned lost features are still there, just in different form.
I think audio editing is the *most* upsetting change in iMovie '08. As I have been learning how to do stuff in '08 (I began as an '08 Hater), I have been putting tutorials up on a little blog. I did one on fading audio, which may have been the part you had issues with. (I couldn't quite gather *why* you thought audio editing sucked sweatsocks.) Anyway, here is a link to my post on fading audio.
http://imovie08.blogspot.com/2007/08/how-to-fade-audio-within-clip.html
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shaun said 11:16AM on 9-03-2007
I feel the same way. iLife is all about basic yet effective tools for the average consumer, and iMovie 08 really follows that mantra
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Jonathan said 11:40AM on 9-03-2007
hear, hear
finally someone who realises the true value of iMovie 08
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Roberto said 11:49AM on 9-03-2007
You know what kicks iMovie HD and iMovie '08 around the block?
Using them both, HD for the specialized, effect-heavy movie, and '08 for the super-long project, possibly spanning a lot of event content, with 100 or more transitions.
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lmo said 12:09PM on 9-03-2007
I agree completely. I have a hard-drive based video camera, so iMovie 06 didn't work at all for me. The new iMovie 08 supports my vidcam perfectly, and I managed to edit together 3 short videos from over an hour of recording, and upload them to YouTube in record time, without consulting the help at all.
It might have been better for Apple to rename this completely new product, but for my money, it's better than "not that bad"... it rocks!
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Bill said 12:18PM on 9-03-2007
Just a tip folks! One thing I can't seem to find in iMovie08 is chapters like imovie 06 had.
so i found a workaround. Put video that you would want to have in chapters in their own movie project. Otherwise, when you make the video available to other applications, you will only have 1 big movie with no chapters.
This is for of all of you who use iDVD and like to make chapters.
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Guy said 12:29PM on 9-03-2007
If you export the movie to the media browser, you can open it up in garageband and really fine tune the audio, adding layers and sounds effects etc.
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Aaron said 12:29PM on 9-03-2007
@ Bill,
I feel like I am spamming links (moderators, just delete this if you'd like), but there is a relatively painless way to add chapter markers by using GarageBand. I explain the process in this post.
http://imovie08.blogspot.com/2007/08/how-to-add-chapter-markers.html
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Cycomachead said 12:31PM on 9-03-2007
I think that iMovie 08 does what it Apple wants it to: I for making a home movie fast and easy. iMovie HD 6 was for creating a more fancy, more 'advanced' movie, but this required more time and yes was tricky to the average Joe. But at the same time the average Joe got used to the way iMovie 6 functioned, so completely redesigning it made it confusing.
I think we just need to give iMovie 08 some time. It's a good product, but different than the one it replacing. Missing things such as chapters and plug-in support should/could added while still maintaining the ease of use. Hopefully Apple will give us software updates that improve on it's short comings. Also MacWorld had a good review of iMovie. They over all like it.
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Brian Green said 12:50PM on 9-03-2007
Apparently you weren't using a Sony HDR-HC1 and an 8-Core Mac Pro. The combined results are so abysmally awful that I can't bare looking at the finished product. Apple seriously needs to address the issue here. I understand it's new software and that it won't work with all camcorders or with all Mac configurations but I'm really surprised that it doesn't work for me.
I'll stick with iMovieHD as it works wonderfully for me using the above mentioned equipment.
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Retro_X said 12:49PM on 9-03-2007
You know, with iMovie '08 and a little patience, you can do a lot. First movie I did in iMovie '08:
http://www.vimeo.com/268124
Took about 30 minutes.
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Osman S. said 1:42PM on 9-03-2007
You guys debate a lot for nothing. Just get Final Cut HD Pro.
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rpenguino said 11:01PM on 9-03-2007
While iMovie 08 definitely makes things easy enough for the so called average consumer, it lacks the polish that you could get with iMovie 6 for $80 bucks instead of $300 for Final Cut Express. Considering award winning movies started or were completely done in iMovie 6 (Blair Witch, Tarnation, etc.) It really is a shame to lose that power and iLife integration. Student like myself loved the possibility of getting Apple quality stuff out of iMovie. Sure this iMovie is different and is probably geared towards being dead simple, but the quality is aimed squarely at the YouTube crowed. Don't expect plugins or other export methods, this iMovie is for people who own MacBooks, and the cheapest iMac.
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djfred said 2:48PM on 9-03-2007
I agree. It's not something that would replace iMovieHD6 in my workflow, much less Final Cut, but it looks like it has some definite advantages advantages as a means to throw something passable together in five minutes time. Which, judging both from the tutorial and the fact that the installation doesn't overwrite the previous version, seems to be exactly how Apple is positioning it, so where's the gripe?
@ Osman S The writer plainly states in the third paragraph that her needs are limited to editing footage of her kids jumping rope in the playground so why all the noise about Final Cut unless you just wanted to anonymously brag that you use professional grade software. Talk about missing the point.
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helical said 2:51PM on 9-03-2007
Osman i don't think many can afford or have the need for Final Cut Studio!
good article and thanks Aaron for the links!
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Ronald Poi said 4:08PM on 9-03-2007
Actually i made a movie on the new iMovie '08 just a couple of days ago and the experience was very easy and pleasant... also, i think this new version is more stable. The problems, still, are the lack of chapters and video effects.
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JC said 4:03PM on 9-03-2007
I don't get it.....anyone who upgrades to iLife '08 gets to keep iMovie '06....so it's the best of both worlds.
Use '08 for quick movies and if you need more features...open up '06. You got both. Who cares about being dumbed-down? If you really hate '08, then just open up your copy of '06. What's the problem with the that?
Geez!! I'm no movie editor, but I've done more with '08 than '06.
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Trevor said 6:52PM on 9-03-2007
Typo: "put it through it's paces" --> "put it through its paces"
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HazKid said 5:46PM on 9-03-2007
Apple now has 4 video processing apps.
In order; basic to advanced:
iMovie
iMovie HD
Final Cut Express
Final Cut Pro
To continue this naming trend, Apple should continue updating both versions of iMovie, both renamed to "iMovie Express" and "iMovie Pro".
Both iMovies can then be bundled with iLife.
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Jeff said 5:50PM on 9-03-2007
It is interesting that you used YouTube to "post" your video. That is what iMovie 08 is for. The YouTube generation. Obviously you don't have lots of money invested in iMovie 6 third-party plugins. Someone, here, said that you can insert chapter markers by going through GB then to iDVD. Well, before some idiot Apple engineer got a hold of iMovie, we could do that in iMovie WITHOUT the addition of a completely unnecessary step. I don't "buy" every word that Steve Jobs says. Especially when he said that iMovie 08 is the latest and greatest. More or less.
>Also MacWorld had a good review of iMovie.
They almost have too! If they don't play nice with Apple, they won't get the latest Apple toys. Sometimes they almost sound like Apple shills.
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