iMovie '09 and iDVD: The Missing Manual

Chapter 10. Photos

You may think that iMovie’s primary purpose is working with video. But the truth is, it’s quite handy with still photos, too. You can bring in still images from iPhoto or from your hard drive, for use as slideshows. You can also turn individual frames of your movie into still images, for use as freeze-frames. And, if you know the secret, you can even export individual frames as graphics files to your hard drive, suitable for emailing or Web posting.

This chapter tells all there is to tell.

Importing Still Images

You may want to import a graphics file into iMovie for any number of reasons. For example:

• You can use a graphic, digital photo, or other still image as a backdrop for iMovie’s titling feature (Chapter 8). A still image behind your text is less distracting than moving footage.

• You can use a graphics file instead of using the iMovie titling feature. As noted in Chapter 8, iMovie’s titling feature offers a number of powerful features, but it also has a number of serious limitations. For example, you have only rudimentary control over the title’s placement in the frame. (See Figure 10-1.)

  Preparing your own title “slides” in, say, Photoshop Elements or Photoshop gives you a lot of flexibility that the iMovie titling feature lacks. You get complete control over the type size, color, and placement, and you can also add graphic touches to your text or to the “slide” on which it appears.

• One of the most compelling uses of video is the video photo album: a smoothly integrated ...