Apple iMovie '08 - Manual (Page 18)

18 Chapter 2 Learn iMovie
iMovie HD Projects or Other Movie Files on Your Hard Disk
You can import the video that you’ve already stored on your computer’s hard disk, or
on any supported external hard disk connected to your computer with a FireWire cable.
To import video from a hard disk:
1 Choose File > Import Movies, and then locate the project in the Import window.
If you’re importing high definition (HD) video, the 1080i HD Import Setting dialog
opens. If you’re not importing 1080i format video, just click OK. If you are importing
1080i format, or if you will do so in the future, select the size in which you want iMovie
to import your video. The Large size video is recommended for most ordinary uses
(including viewing on Apple TV) because it saves hard disk space and may play back
more smoothly on some computers. However, if your camcorder records in true 1920
by 1080 HD video, and if you will use this video for broadcasting or exporting to
Final Cut Pro, select the Full size, which better preserves the original quality of the
video but uses more disk space. (For more detailed information about this, search for
1080i in iMovie Help.)
2 Choose a disk where you want to save the recording in the Save To pop-up menu.
You can choose any supported hard disk that’s connected to your computer with a
FireWire cable. It can take several GB of space to store one hour of video, so make sure
you have enough space on the disk you choose. The amount of free space on each
available disk is shown in parentheses next to the disk’s name in the pop-up menu.
3 Choose how you want to organize the imported video in your Event Library:
 To create a new Event with the imported video, type a name for it in the Event Name
field (for example, “Birthday Party”).
 To add the imported video to an existing Event, select “Existing Event” and then
choose its name from the pop-up menu.
4 If you’re importing 1080i-format video, make a size selection from the pop-up menu.
Large size video is of high enough quality to view on a high definition television
(HDTV) and for most other uses. However, if you’ll be exporting your movie to
Final Cut Pro, or if you have some other reason to maintain the original, full size of
your video, choose “Full - 1920 x 1080” from the “Import 1080i video as” pop-up menu.
5 Choose what to do with the original files:
 To delete the original files after they’ve been copied into iMovie, select “Move files.”
 To keep the original files intact even after they’ve been copied into iMovie, select
“Copy files.”