Tricks

In this section, you'll learn some classic iMovie tricks (Transitions and Titles) as well as some new ones (Color Correction, Cropping, and the Limitations of iMovie '08).

Transitions

Transitions are used to move between clips. To insert a Transition, simply click on the TRANSITIONS icon (far right on the toolbar, looks like a sealed envelope), choose your icon, and drag it to the Project Storyboard, setting it between the two clips you want to transition between.

To play the clips surrounding a transition, hold down the shift key and click on the clip before and after the transition as well as the transition itself. Then move your cursor (and therefore the playhead indicated by a red line) to the beginning of the highlighted portion and press the spacebar.

To change the duration of the transition, right click on the TRANSITION icon within the Project Storyboard and scroll down to Set Duration.

To remove a Transition, click on it and hit the delete key.

As some guidelines for using Transitions:

• Transitions usually imply passage of time. There's nothing wrong with leaving straight cuts.
• In general, choose one type of Transition and stick with it for the entire project.
• Cross-dissolve is the most subtle of the choices presented. Fade-in and fade-out (over black or white) are also subtle.

Titles

Titles are used to incorporate text into your project. Depending on the effect you want, a clip can have a title overlay or a title can be standalone over black background.

1. To insert a title, click on the T icon next to the TRANSITION icon.
2. From the Title menu, choose the format you like.
3. Click and drag the format onto the Project Storyboard. If you want the Title to stand alone, position your mouse before the appropriate clip before you release the clip. You'll know you're between shots if there's a green line.
4. If you want the Title over a clip, iMovie gives you the choice of overlaying the Title on the beginning, the end, or the entirety of a clip. The blue highlight will show you what you've chosen.

5. To change the actual text of the Title, double click in the Preview Window onto the placeholder text.
6. iMovie lets you individualize your titles. Click on the show fonts button in the top left-hand corner of the Preview Window. From here, you can specify Font, Font Size, Kerning, Alignment, etc.
7. To preview the title, click on the play button at the top right-hand corner of the Preview Window.
8. To exit the Title editing process, click Done.

To change the duration of a standalone Title, right click on the blue indicator dialogue window, and go to Set Duration.

Let's say you followed all the directions above and you have a working standalone Title, but it's not just right. You decide you want to move the text of the Title onto another clip. Just click and drag the blue dialogue bubble. Notice that after you move the dialogue bubble, the black background still remains. You can choose to use as-is, refashion, or delete this black screen according to your own purposes.

To delete a Title, click off the Title, and click back onto it so that it's highlighted yellow. Then hit the delete key.

Color Correction

The creators of iMovie '08 have incorporated possibly the most useful feature yet – the ability to correct the color of both individual frames and entire clips. Shooting under fluorescents? iMovie can help. Inconsistent coloring from one shot to the next? No worries.

One thing to note with the Color Correction feature is that you can only apply corrections to one clip at a time. However, you can copy the corrections to other clips.

1. Highlight the clip in need of color correction. If you highlight a clip in the Event Browser, the correction will apply to every project that you insert the clip into. If you highlight a clip in the Project Storyboard, the corrections will only apply to that Project.

2. Open the Video Adjustments window by clicking on the CIRCLE icon on the middle toolbar. Keep in mind that any adjustments you make are not permanent. If you make a correction that you dislike, click the Revert to Original button in the bottom left-hand corner of the window.

If you're not a Photoshop expert, you may be apprehensive about taking on this panel, but Apple has incorporated some nice features to hopefully make your life easier. Try fixing your color in this order, and feel free to stop the process once you're happy with your color.

1. Click the auto button on the bottom of the window. This asks iMovie to automatically adjust the color.
2. Move the Exposure slider. Right=light(er) and left=dark(er).
3. The White Point helps iMovie recognize that something in the clip is supposed to be white. All you have to do is move your mouse over the highlighted clip and click on something you know is supposed to be white or gray. iMovie will accordingly alter the color scheme according to what you have defined as known color.

**Note: When looking at the images below, your eye may not see much of a difference. Look at the Histogram (the colorful image at the top of the Video Adjustments window which looks like a set of mountain peaks). The goal is to have the peaks of color spread out over the entirety of the histogram window.

To copy your corrections onto other clips:

1. Select the clip you've made your color adjustments to.
2. Hit Apple C. (Or Edit >> Copy)
3. Select the new clip to which you want to apply the color adjustments.
4. Go to Edit >> Paste Adjustments >> Video.

As you've seen from the Video Adjustments window, there are many other ways to modify the colors. For the purposes of this intro tutorial, we won't be delving too far into them. Check David Pogue's iMovie '08 and iDVD, The Missing Manual for a more comprehensive explanation of the color features.

Cropping

iMovie '08 has a great feature which you can use to crop entire video clips much like you crop photographs and images. First, select the clip you want to crop. You can activate the CROP icon from two places: either on the main toolbar or one of the mini icons on the clip itself.

From here, you can resize or crop the image using the crop/fit buttons in the top left hand corner of the Preview Window.

To complete your cropping, simply click Done in the top right hand corner of the Preview Window.

Limitations

In iMovie HD, you could speed up, slow down, reverse, and go on a special effects bonanza. You could add chapter markers and export directly to iDVD by clicking on a button. These features simply don't exist in iMovie '08.

If there is something that you really want to do, and you know from our iMovie HD tutorial that such a task is possible, you'll love this feature:

iMovie '08 files transfer quite nicely to iMovie HD. Later on in the tutorial, you'll learn how to export to iMovie HD. Let us preface with some extra info, though. If you bought iMovie '08, you can go to the Apple website and download iMovie HD for free. However, if you already have iMovie HD, you have to buy the iLife '08 Suite. Apple won't let you upgrade for free. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.

On to happier topics…images!

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