Understanding and Fixing the Issue: Why iMovie Crops Videos on iPhone

Introduction

Many iPhone users enjoy using iMovie, a popular video editing app developed by Apple. However, some users have reported an issue where iMovie crops their videos when importing or editing them. This can be frustrating, especially if you want to preserve the original aspect ratio of your videos. In this article, we will explore the reasons behind this issue and provide some solutions to fix it.

Why Does iMovie Crop Videos?

When you import a video into iMovie, it automatically adjusts the video to fit the project’s aspect ratio. This means that if your project has a different aspect ratio than the imported video, iMovie will crop or zoom in on the video to make it fit. The reason behind this is to ensure that the video fills the entire screen without any black bars or empty spaces.

While this behavior can be useful in some cases, it can also be problematic if you want to maintain the original aspect ratio of your videos. For example, if you have recorded a video in landscape mode and import it into iMovie, it may be cropped to fit the default portrait aspect ratio of the project.

How to Prevent iMovie from Cropping Videos

If you want to prevent iMovie from cropping your videos, there are a few steps you can take:

1. Change the project’s aspect ratio: Before importing your videos, you can change the aspect ratio of your iMovie project to match the aspect ratio of your videos. This way, iMovie won’t need to crop or zoom in on the videos to make them fit. To change the project’s aspect ratio, go to the “Project Settings” menu and select the desired aspect ratio.
2. Use the “Fit” option: When importing a video into iMovie, you can choose the “Fit” option instead of the default “Crop to Fill” option. This will ensure that the video is scaled down to fit the project’s aspect ratio without cropping or zooming in on it. To select the “Fit” option, go to the import settings and choose it from the “Import to” dropdown menu.
3. Manually adjust the cropping: If you have already imported a video into iMovie and it has been cropped, you can manually adjust the cropping to restore the original aspect ratio. To do this, select the video clip in the timeline, click on the “Crop to Fill” button, and then drag the edges of the cropping frame to adjust it.

Understanding Aspect Ratios

Aspect ratio refers to the proportional relationship between the width and height of a video or image. It is usually expressed as a ratio, such as 16:9 or 4:3. Different devices and platforms have different default aspect ratios, and it’s important to consider the aspect ratio when importing or editing videos.

For example, most modern smartphones, including iPhones, have a default aspect ratio of 16:9, which is ideal for landscape videos. On the other hand, some social media platforms, like Instagram, prefer a square aspect ratio of 1:1. If you import a landscape video into iMovie with a square aspect ratio project, it will be cropped to fit the square frame.

Conclusion

iMovie is a powerful video editing app that offers a range of features for iPhone users. However, it can sometimes crop videos when importing or editing them, which may not be desirable for users who want to preserve the original aspect ratio. By understanding the reasons behind this issue and following the provided solutions, you can prevent iMovie from cropping your videos and ensure that they are displayed as intended.

Table: Pros and Cons of iMovie

Sources

• Apple Support: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204445
• iPhone Photography School: https://iphonephotographyschool.com/aspect-ratio/