Michael, I sent you a PM with detailed info, but yes, the Sony and Mac are compatible. I've used a Sony many times on my iMac, iBook and mini-Mac and it works perfectly. The Mac should recognize any device that connects via Firewire. I've used Sony, Panasonic and Canon camcorders, all with no problems. I've heard that Samsungs might have issues, but I don't have any first-hand experience. The Mac come equipped with all the connectors and software you will need for easy and successful video work. By the way, do NOT load or use any software that might come with the camcorder.
You won't need it and it's typically meant for a PC that sadly does not come with any connectors or software to capture and edit video. If you can, buy the camera from a store that will allow you to exchange it if it has issues. By the way, you will need to buy a Firewire cable with the proper connector sizes (probably 4-pin / 6-pin ends). No, I would never get a DVD camcorder if your goal is to import video into your computer for editing purposes. A DVD records video in a compressed MPEG format, so if you plan to do any editing to your footage (really important when you want to eliminate the extra fluff footage, to add titles, add music and to get professional results), you will need to take the footage from the DVD, uncompress it back to DV footage, then import it into your editing program. This results in a degraded image.
The DVD camcorders are good if all you want to do is to shoot footage then watch the DVD. The problem with this is that you have no ability to edit out all the stuff that will bore your audience (like 5 minutes of shooting your feet that I typicially do). There is nothing like being able to import footage into an editing program and add fun transitions, add titles, add music and sound effects and trim your footage into a professional finished piece. The best way to do this is to use a DV camera and download via firewire. This is what your Mac is built to utilize without any issues. If you shoot on DVD, then you will also need to acquire another two pieces of software to uncompress your footage and convert it into DV.
Skip the DVD camcorders and do it right with a mini-DV camcorder. Last weekend I borrowed a Sony DCR-HC35 Handycam and took it to my son's wedding on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond in Scotland where I filmed about 40 minutes of the reception and the music and dancing in the evening featuring my daughter playing her fiddle. I thought it would be straightforward to copy the film from the tape in the Handycam to my iMac 1.9 GHz PowerPC G5, operating system Mac OS X version 10.5.4. I purchased a cable which connects to the Handycam Station and then into one of the Firewire ports on the Mac. The Mac does not seem to recognise that there is a camera attached at all. I consulted various items on the CNET Forum which described how to copy from a video camera but nothing is working yet. I downloaded MPEG Streamclip and followed advice about Image Capture but still nothing.
I confess that this is the first time I have ever attempted something like this and only have a limited understanding of the technology and software involved. It would be great to be able to transfer the taped video footage to my Mac and then to be able to burn it to dvd for family and other wedding guests to view. Can anyone offer advice, please? Captures standard definition DV to the miniDV tape. This camcorder should work back to the original iMovie that was delivered with MacOS 9.2 or so. The camcorder will not 'mount' like an external mass storage device - hence will not be 'recognized' - at least not in the traditional manner of being visible in the System Profiler.
A few assumptions (and I can't see what you see, so please bear with me it I am redundant). 1) The firewire400 port on the Mac is working. Check System Preferences: Network: show Network Port Configurations: There is a checkmark in the 'Built-in Firewire' selection.
2) You got a 4-pin to 6-pin firewire cable. You know it works. 3) The camcorder is in 'Play' or 'VCR' mode.
4) The camcorder is also plugged into AC power. 5) The camcorder does NOT have its USB port plugged into anything. 6) You have not made any changes to the camcorder menu settings related to 'iLINK conversion' or anything associated with video playback options or i.Link (or firewire) connectivity). When you launch iMovieHD (does not matter the version since this camcorder does standard definition only): a) Click the button associated with 'Create a New Project' b) Name the project (default is 'My Great Movie.iMovieProject'. The ONLY part of this file name you want to change is the 'My Great Movie' part - leave the '.iMovieProject' alone. At the bottom middle of this window, there is a drop-down that lets you select the video format.
For the HC36, select 'DV' if your captured video is 4:3. Select 'DV widescreen' if you captured 16:9. Pick the location you want the video file stored. Click on 'Create'. C) The iMovie blue window showing 'Camcorder connected' should appear. Using the iMovie tape controls, rewind the tape in the camcorder (You can use the camcorder controls, too). D) When ready, Click 'Import'.
Standard definition will import real-time - one hour of video takes one hour to import. There will probably be no audio during the import. Don't worry about it. When the import is complete, the blue screen will return. Click the 'Stop' tape transport control. Save the file.
E) The clips will most likely import to the Clips pane. Drag what you want to the Timeline. Add transitions, credits, titles. E) Click the DVD button. Add Chapters. F) Export or Share in whatever formats you want to write to.
Computer readable data files, or click on iDVD again and then click burn DVD. IDVD will launch automatically. Customize the menu selection, use a still from iPhoto to customize the background. G) Add a sound track from iTunes. You do not need MPEG StreamClip for the DCR-HC36 - StreamClip is for use with hard drive and flash memory camcorders saving to very highly compressed MPEG2 data files. One of my computers is a 17'flatpanel iMac running OSX 10.4.11 and iMovieHD06 on a 2 GHz PPC. I connected one of my Sony camcorders and went step by step through this process to provide some of these instructions just to be sure they are accurate.
If this still does not work, there is something else happening, so additional troubleshooting will be required. Let us know how it goes. 'camera not being recognized', can you elaborate? What are you expecting to happen? Is the HC52 in 'Play' or Play/Edit' mode on the power switch? Is the firewire port on the iMac active?
What version OSX is the Mac on? (System Preferences: Network.) I use a iMac G5, early intel iMac and a 24' CoreDuo iMac - the first two use a 6-pin firewire connector; the last one uses a 9-pin firewire connector. All can import DV and HDV format video from my Sony camcorders. You should not have to change anything in the camcorder.
If you cannot find the i.Link conversion, don't worry about it. Greetings, I saw your replies and it seems like you know a lot about connecting firewires on an IMAC. Here's my dilemma. I have 2 DV cameras running through a Belkin Firewire 6 Port hub.
One is a Sony DCR-HC32 and the other is a Canon ZR500. Like I said both are DV. The hub is connected to my IMAC. I do a radio show called USTREAM and I use an application called CAMTWIST which allows me to use multiple camera angles. However, for some some reason it is only recognizing one of the DV cameras and not the other.
Can you assist me? I'm not too sure why the IMAC isnt recognizing the other camera. When I go to SYSTEM PROFILER it shows that both cameras are recognized. You will need to add some software to your Mac. Flip4Mac MPEG StreamClip HandBrake Should be downloaded and installed.
WHich converters have you used and what file type did you same to. And was a lot of compression applied? The giveaway is smaller file size of the converted file. Video compression discards video data and reduces video quality.
As a point of reference, low-compression DV format files are imported to the computer and 60 minutes of this video on the computer hard drive is around 12-14 gig. You're right, they don't! My recent experience with Sony video was a wake up call at how screwed up (read 'uncaring') the computer programer guys are.
I recently bought and took to Europe, a middle to high-end Sony digital drive camcorder, where I recorded 4 hours of irreplaceable shots. Imagine my dismay when I loaded them into my MAC; all without audio.
The geniuses were at first stumped, and I later spent 2 hours on the Sony customer service line with 2 very helpful techs. They remotely took over my computer, and at last, they surmised that there was something amiss with Apple; it didn't seem to want to communicate with the Sony.
Another trip to the Apple store where I found a genius who knew a lot about iMovie. To the shame of both, or either, programmer, the consumer camcorder that Sony made and sold to the public (knowing the vids would have to be loaded eventually into a PC or Mac) was platformed at.mov - The Mac will only accept.m4v I had to go to a 3rd party program ( Handbrake). I am now faced with 40 hours of converting each shot individually (I have over 3000). Where is the corporate flaw here where your off-the-shelf camera and your expensive 'magic Mac' can't be simply plugged in together and it downloads immediately; ready for edit. It would appear neither programmer was interested in a compatible compromise.
Sd news; Marc It seems we have to pin the Best Buy clerk to the counter and grill them if the Sony will record in m4v; or at least will this work with a MAC. I think I was assured 'yeah, it'll work with any computer'. Mrmac, Interesting, all my stills went out from the camera first thing and were deleted, then I turned to addressing the videos. Who knows what's going on in any hard drive; possibly one or two stills may have remained, but out here in the real world I had deleted them all.
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(I am absolutely paranoid about anything on the hard drive that's not necessary). Your explanation brings up another programming foilble; why would a still picture screw up a whole load of 4 hours of raw video. Sounds like a design flaw to me.
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Quite a convoluted way to get these machines to talk nicely. I've been waiting 8 months to even begin to edit.
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Your last sentence ran counter to my (and the techies') experience (.mov can be imported to iMovie). Otherwise why am I having to convert 3000 video shots to.m4v The Apple genius confirmed that my imovie needed.m4v, which is true because the converted shots play okay with the proper sound. Does anyone from SONY management read these blurbs?? This design blooper was never mentioned at Best Buy, in the manual, nor by the Sony engineers who spent two hours trying to suss it out; leading me back to Apple where the genius quickly assessed, rightly so, that imovie needed m4v to work. I appreciate everyone' attempt to explain this phenomanon but It appears that these two devices have separate dedicated platforms that are not design to be compatible. Cheers, Marc.