How to edit camcorder HD video in Windows Movie Maker and burn to DVD

amberain · 30/07/2009

Many people who has home-made HD video shot with camcorder always ask such question: How can I edit camsorder video with Windows Movie Mkaer (or Mac iMovie), then burn to DVD?

There is my personal answer just FYI:

First To Know:

1. Windows Movie Maker supports editing WMV, AVI and MPG video files.

2. Mac - iMovie imports MOV and MPEG4 video files.

3. Camcorder shot HD video is mostly in formats of (.m2ts; .tp; .trp; .ts; .mp4; .wmv; .asf; .mpg; .vob; .mov; avi), which dependes on the camcorder brand.

To edit camcorder HD video in Windows Movie Maker

First you have to convert the video into Windows Movie Maker compatible WMV, AVI or MPG, (generally .WMV is preferred), this Video Converter Pro is an ideal choice as it can rip DVD, convert all kinds of audio & video files.

The conversion process is as easy as:

1. Free download > install > run > add source files (both video and DVD supported)

2. Preset output profile including: output format, video quality, picture effect, you can also trim, cut, merge and batch convert multiple files.

3. When presettings finished, hit "start" to convert, then done.
It is a auto-finished process, what you need to do is only a few mouse clicks.

Then run Windows Movie Maker, in the “Movie Task” section, click “Add Video” to browse your computer and load the converted files, and then start to make your own movie.

NOTE: Many folks ask how to convert Windows Movie Maker file (*.MSWMM) to other video format, while actually .MSWMM file is not a video format. It is a temporary project file of Movie Maker (more like a record file). Just open this file in Windows Movie Maker and save it to your computer --- Go to Movie Tasks bar > Finish Movie > Save to my computer. Then you will have a WMV file which can be converted to another video format or burned to DVD.

If you're Mac-based user, this iMedia Converter for Mac dose the conversion job perfect, the conversion process is same as for Windows, here I just saved it.

Burn the converted camcorder video to DVD

Download this DVD Creator which can trnasfer the video clips into DVD .vob and ISO file with 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio and other added function, then what you need to do is load a blank DVD disk, hit the 'Burn' button.

Just that easy, have fun!

admiralcross · 05/08/2009

Hi Amberain,
Very good of you to write that out. It's become the main thing I'm wondering about in potentially buying an HD camcorder.
I don't see mention in your article about down-compression and how to do it. Does that mean that the dvds you'd be burning at the end of those instructions are still making files that are actually in HD format (AVCHD) and therefore can't be given to family/friends to watch on their normal dvd players? I understood that this was an issue from what I've read. Or does your converting stage into avi etc also do the down-compression?
Ideally I'd like to get an HD camcorder but I need to feel that it's easy enough to make normal dvds that play on normal dvd players - as I'll want to send copies to friends who don't have blu-ray players.
I've seen mention of special stand-alone burners that can be bought for about £150 which seem good at making dvds from the camcorder without using computers at all but I can't tell whether they can make normal dvds or just HD-format dvds.
It's all rather a maze trying to work all this out! Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
A

amberain · 11/08/2009

To admiralcross

The video converter pro I mentioned can convert HD camcorder video into DVD ISO or .vob files for DVD burning, quality will be lightly lost depends on the resolution of the camcorder HD video.

The burned DVD disk (you can chose DVD region, like D-5, or D-9) will be in the same form as the normal DVD bought from marketplace, and can play on DVD players well.

amberain · 11/08/2009

By the way, Mac-based users can use this iMedia Converter for Mac to convert camcorder HD video to DVD ISO or .vob file.

and use this DVD Creator for Mac to burn the converterted video to DVD disk.

admiralcross · 24/09/2009

Thanks very much Amberain

neohuabai · 25/09/2009

I have been using Pavtube HD Video Converter, works well, you can have a try, have a good day!

30/07/2009	#1
amberain Banned Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 22	How to edit camcorder HD video in Windows Movie Maker and burn to DVD Many people who has home-made HD video shot with camcorder always ask such question: How can I edit camsorder video with Windows Movie Mkaer (or Mac iMovie), then burn to DVD? There is my personal answer just FYI: First To Know: 1. Windows Movie Maker supports editing WMV, AVI and MPG video files. 2. Mac - iMovie imports MOV and MPEG4 video files. 3. Camcorder shot HD video is mostly in formats of (.m2ts; .tp; .trp; .ts; .mp4; .wmv; .asf; .mpg; .vob; .mov; avi), which dependes on the camcorder brand. To edit camcorder HD video in Windows Movie Maker First you have to convert the video into Windows Movie Maker compatible WMV, AVI or MPG, (generally .WMV is preferred), this Video Converter Pro is an ideal choice as it can rip DVD, convert all kinds of audio & video files. The conversion process is as easy as: 1. Free download > install > run > add source files (both video and DVD supported) 2. Preset output profile including: output format, video quality, picture effect, you can also trim, cut, merge and batch convert multiple files. 3. When presettings finished, hit "start" to convert, then done. It is a auto-finished process, what you need to do is only a few mouse clicks. Then run Windows Movie Maker, in the “Movie Task” section, click “Add Video” to browse your computer and load the converted files, and then start to make your own movie. NOTE: Many folks ask how to convert Windows Movie Maker file (.MSWMM) to other video format, while actually .MSWMM file is not a video format. It is a temporary project file of Movie Maker (more like a record file). Just open this file in Windows Movie Maker and save it to your computer --- Go to Movie Tasks bar > Finish Movie > Save to my computer. Then you will have a WMV file which can be converted to another video format or burned to DVD. If you're Mac-based user, this iMedia Converter for Mac dose the conversion job perfect, the conversion process is same as for Windows, here I just saved it. Burn the converted camcorder video to DVD* Download this DVD Creator which can trnasfer the video clips into DVD .vob and ISO file with 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio and other added function, then what you need to do is load a blank DVD disk, hit the 'Burn' button. Just that easy, have fun!

05/08/2009	#2
admiralcross Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 2	Downcrompression for playing on normal dvd players? Hi Amberain, Very good of you to write that out. It's become the main thing I'm wondering about in potentially buying an HD camcorder. I don't see mention in your article about down-compression and how to do it. Does that mean that the dvds you'd be burning at the end of those instructions are still making files that are actually in HD format (AVCHD) and therefore can't be given to family/friends to watch on their normal dvd players? I understood that this was an issue from what I've read. Or does your converting stage into avi etc also do the down-compression? Ideally I'd like to get an HD camcorder but I need to feel that it's easy enough to make normal dvds that play on normal dvd players - as I'll want to send copies to friends who don't have blu-ray players. I've seen mention of special stand-alone burners that can be bought for about £150 which seem good at making dvds from the camcorder without using computers at all but I can't tell whether they can make normal dvds or just HD-format dvds. It's all rather a maze trying to work all this out! Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks A

24/09/2009	#5
admiralcross Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 2	Thank you Thanks very much Amberain

11/08/2009	#3
amberain Banned Join Date: Jul 2009 Posts: 22	To admiralcross The video converter pro I mentioned can convert HD camcorder video into DVD ISO or .vob files for DVD burning, quality will be lightly lost depends on the resolution of the camcorder HD video. The burned DVD disk (you can chose DVD region, like D-5, or D-9) will be in the same form as the normal DVD bought from marketplace, and can play on DVD players well.

25/09/2009	#6
neohuabai Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 4	I have been using Pavtube HD Video Converter, works well, you can have a try, have a good day!