Bursting with new features, Apple's iMovie '09 is vastly more usable and complete than iMovie '08 -- amazing right out of the box. But the box doesn't include a good user's guide, so learning these applications is another matter. iMovie '09 and iDVD: The Missing Manual gets you up to speed on everything you need to turn raw digital footage into highly creative video projects. You get crystal-clear, jargon-free explanations of iMovie's new video effects, slow & fast motion, advanced drag & drop, video stabilization, and more. Author and New York Times tech columnist David Pogue uses an objective lens to scrutinize every step of process, including how to:

• Organize your videos just like your photos, and precisely edit with ease

• Work on multiple iMovie projects at once and drag & drop clips among them

• Integrate with other iLife programs to use songs, photos, and an original sound track

• Output your creation to a blog, its own web page, or as a video podcast with iWeb

• Understand basic film techniques to improve the quality of the video you bring to iMovie

From choosing and using a digital camcorder to burning the finished work onto DVDs, posting it online, or creating versions for iPod and iPhone, iMovie '09 & iDVD: The Missing Manual helps you zoom right in on the details.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 21 Ratings

helpful - 2009-11-16
Reviewer Rating:
I can generally figure out the ins and outs of software without manuals. But this book helped me pick up finer points I would have missed.

Grateful - 2010-01-22
Reviewer Rating:
"Grateful" is the only word I can think of when I read books like this. I can appreciate one reviewer's comment when they said they were "late for the Video party." I'm so late for the party, I thought everyone would have gone home, the food put away and the lights out. I'm 80 years old and setting forth on an exhileratingly new adventure. Although I've danced (and taught dancing) for over 60 years, it has become obvious that it's almost impossible to pursue my passion without a certain amount of digital and electronic knowledge. I had absolutely none. Not only is this gorgeous Macbook becoming my best friend, this wonderful "iMovie 09" book has transported our dance classes into magical musical productions.

I am so grateful to David Pogue that it brings tears to my eyes. I've spent the last 4 months studying this book. That may sound like an extremely long time to many of you but I'd challenge you to learn dancing in 4 months. :) I started without a clue of how to make a movie, let alone even run a digital camera. My first DVD was absolutely terrific. We started with our Rumba class and then went on to Colombianas. My students are so thrilled, we have started our own little fun video production company.

I'm not Pollyanna saying everything always went "zippity do dah" well. When I made boo boo's it was not the book's fault. Not at all. It was always my lack of basic knowledge. I would like to interject here, that I began my computer knowledge (I use that word lightly) with Pogue's Mac OS X Leopard. But that would be another review.

So all you people who are able to buzz through this book because you already have a background of basic computer and digital, I applaud you and want to remind you how lucky you are to have found this path so much earlier than I have. But Whoopee, I did find it and I found this book as my daily guide. My next challenge is learning to send to YouTube and and Mobileme. Thank you David Pogue. Manzanita

All The Basics You Need - 2010-01-06
Reviewer Rating:
I admit it: I am late to the video party. I really never spent much time considering, playing, editing, even understanding what video was about. My experience was simply going to the movies.

But I've surely noticed there has been a revolution in video. Everyone except me was doing video. Sending their created videos to YouTube, iPhones and everywhere else on the Internet for showing.

Apple is famous for making software that is simple to use and made for the masses. But I needed an excellent book on the basic of iMovie '09 and then how to make a DVD with my video on it: enter iDVD.

iMovie '09 & iDVD is another book in the great series of The Missing Manual. The authors, David Pogue and Aaron Miller assume nothing. They go over the basics of movie making. They start with your video cam or any device which can generate a digital movie file.

Explained simply for newbie cinematographer the book has all the essentials without preaching to you. Just good plain explanations; with plenty of great graphic examples.

I followed along and was anxious to begin my own production. I was amazed how they walked me through all the steps.

There is a wonderful Table of Contents as well as index. Aside from the soft hardback edition, I also read the contents in electronic format available from O'Reilly.

I have nothing but praise for this book. The iDVD portion of the book went through all the steps necessary to create a DVD rendition of my movie which played in a plain vanilla DVD player.

I recommend the book without reservations and it has earned a prominent place in my book library.

Hardily recommended.

Excellent book - 2009-12-24
Reviewer Rating:
This is an excellent readable book. Pogue does his usual great job of combining the necessary everyday material and the offbeat with clarity and humor. Since the chapters are pretty much independent it allowed me to check out the chapters on subjects like Safari and Mail that had many changes and that I use a lot. He almost always comes up with some neat trick I'm not aware of that saves time or allows operations I was not aware of.

Great resource - 2009-10-28
Reviewer Rating:
This is an excellent resource to learn iMovie 09. I have gone through it a couple of times and found so many tricks for making great home movies. I was blown away by what iMovie 09 can do. Perhaps my expectations were too low, but for much less than $100 (for iLife 09) you are able to make some really nice home movies and distribute them in many different ways. This book has a nice flow and introduces various movie and iMovie concepts easily and comfortably. I suggest it.

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