Convert Sony A5000/A6000 MTS to AIC .mov for iMovie on Mac

Summary: Follow this guide to learn how to import Sony A5000/A6000 MTS clips to iMovie(11) without rendering on Mac OS X (Mavericks included).



One thing that really makes the Sony Alpha a5000/a6000 stand out among competitors is the ability to capture Full HD videos in AVCHD or PC-friendly MP4 codec. While enjoying the stunning HD image quality, many folks are having problems when importing Sony A5000/A6000 MTS videos to iMovie. If you’re in such a situation, you can read on the article to learn more, which mainly shows you how to get Sony A5000/A6000 AVCHD footage and iMovie to work beautifully.

As I mentioned above, the Sony A5000/A6000 can record videos saved in the MTS extensions of the AVCHD format. The MTS footage is highly-compressed content which is not so friendly for editing software, especially on Mac. Currently iMovie can’t support MTS footage from Sony A5000 or A6000 well, that's why you have problems when you import Sony a5000/a6000 video footage to iMovie.

The common practice for Sony A5000/A600 MTS workflow with iMovie is, get a Mac AVCHD Converter- Brorsoft MTS/M2TS Converter for Mac and transcode Sony A5000/A600 MTS footage to AIC (Apple Intermediate Codec), the well-acknowledged optimal editing format for iMovie(11). By converting .MTS files to Apple Intermediate Codec(AIC)(*.mov) you save both time and trouble, as AIC video will be processed by iMovie naturally without rendering, and all you need is drag and drop the result video for prompt editing.

Below I will take this MTS to iMovie Converter app to show you how to convert Sony A5000/A600 MTS to AIC MOV in details. Overall, the program is an easy-to-use yet professional app which can be used a Mac AVCHD MTS Converter under OS X Leopard (10.5), Snow Leopard (10.6), Lion (10.7), Mountain Lion (10.8) and Mavericks(10.9). It is free, clean and safe to install and use.

The Steps: Converting Sony A5000/A600 MTS to iMovie 11

1. Launch the top Sony MTS Converter for Mac, load .mts files from your Mac hard drive backed up from your Sony A5000 or A6000 and then click "Format" to choose "iMovie and Final Cut Express > Apple Intermediate Codec(AIC) (*.mov)" as output format which is the best compatible video format you need for iMovie.



2. Click the "Settings" icon to make the best settings for editing Sony A5000/A6000 MTS in iMovie on Mac. You can set the video frame rate as 30fps, video size as 1920*1080 to keep the best output quality.



3. Start the MTS to AIC MOV conversion by pressing the big "Convert" button.

After the conversion, you will be able to get the output files compatible with iMovie effortlessly. So there you have it. Pretty Simple! Now you can effortlessly import Sony Alpha a5000/a6000 mts footage in iMovie 09/'11 without problems.

Additional Tips:
If you want to edit Sony a5000/a6000 MTS clips in Final Cut Pro X or FCP 7/6, you just need to choose the "Final Cut Pro > Apple ProRes 422 (*.mov)" as output format in the second step; For Avid Media Composer, choose "Avid Media Composer > Avid DNxHD(*.mov)" as output; For Adobe Premiere Pro or Vegas Pro, choose Adobe Premiere/Sony Vegas> MPEG-2(*.mpg) as output.

See also:

How to import single .mts/.m2ts files to Final Cut Pro
Import 1080 60p/50p AVCHD MTS files to iMovie 9/10/11
Transcode Sony AVCHD clips to DNxHD MOV for Avid Media Composer