- IMovie allows users to add video effects to video clips within their iMovie projects. By opening the 'Effects' menu, you can utilize numerous options from the effects list and customize how long the effects last on the clip.
- While iMovie is similar to iPhone on iPad, adding music and sound effects is slightly different. Open your iMovie Project and then follow these steps for iPad. 1) Tap the plus sign button on the top right of the screen. 2) Select Audio.
You can add sounds to your iMovie project—in addition to or in place of the sound recorded with your video clips—to create a fun and professional finished video.
Add a sound effect in iMovie on iPad, iPhone, or iPod Touch Step 1: When you move a video, the sound effect under it shifts with the video, unlike songs, which are independent of videos. Step 2: In your project, scroll the timeline so that the white vertical line (also known as playhead) comes into view where you need to include the sound effect.
Add sound to an iMovie project on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
You can add a variety of audio files to your iMovie project:
- Built-in soundtrack music and sound effects included with iMovie.
- Songs you've downloaded to your device in the Music app.
- Your own custom songs created in an app like GarageBand or custom sound effects stored in iCloud Drive, on your device, or in another location.
And if you want to add voiceover narration, record it right into the timeline of your iMovie project.
Add songs to iMovie on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
- With your project open in the timeline, tap the Add Media button .
- Tap Audio, then tap an option:
- To browse the built-in soundtracks, tap Soundtracks.
- To browse songs you've downloaded to your device in the Music app, tap My Music.*
- To browse songs stored in iCloud Drive or another location, tap My Music, then tap Files.
- Tap a song to preview it. You might be prompted to download the song to your device before you can preview it.
- To add the song to your project, tap the plus button next to a song. The song is added at the bottom of the project timeline, starting at the beginning of your project.
When you add a song, it automatically adjusts to fit the length of the project. You can change the length the song like you would any other clip. You can also use multiple songs in a project. For example, if you want to change the mood of the music over the course of your project, you can shorten the first song in the timeline, then place a different song after the first song.
If you add a song or other audio file that’s less than 1 minute long, it behaves the same as a sound effect in the project.
Add a sound effect in iMovie on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
With a sound effect, when you move a video clip the sound effect below it moves with the video clip, unlike songs, which are independent of video clips.
- With your project open, scroll the timeline so that the playhead (the white vertical line) appears where you want to add the sound effect.
- Tap the Add Media button , then tap Audio, then tap an option:
- Tap Sound Effect to browse the built-in sound effects.
- Tap My Music to access sound effects in your music library
- Tap Files to access songs stored in iCloud Drive or other locations.
- Tap a sound effect to preview it.
- To add a sound effect to your project, tap an effect’s plus button .
Record voiceover in iMovie on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
- With your project open, scroll the timeline so that the playhead (the white vertical line) appears over the location where you want to add your voiceover.
- Tap the Voiceover button , then tap Record. Recording begins after a three-second countdown.
- When you’re finished, tap Stop, then tap one of these options:
- To listen to the recording, tap Review.
- To keep the recording and add it to your project, tap Accept.
- To redo the recording, tap Retake.
- To delete the recording and close the recording controls, tap Cancel.
How To Import Music Into Imovie
If you want to reuse a voiceover recording or browse other recordings you’ve made within iMovie, tap the Add Media button , tap Audio, tap My Music, then tap Recordings.
Adjust the volume of a clip in iMovie on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch
After you add sound to your iMovie project, you can adjust the volume of audio clips to get the sound mix just right. You can also adjust the volume of video clips that were recorded with sound.
To adjust the volume of an audio or video clip, tap the clip in the timeline, tap the Volume button at the bottom of the window, then adjust the slider to increase or decrease the volume. When you turn the volume of a clip all the way down, a Mute icon appears on the clip in the timeline.
You can also make other adjustments, such as fading the volume of the clip or changing its speed. Learn how on iPhone and iPod touch, or learn how on iPad.
Add sound to an iMovie for Mac project
In iMovie for Mac, you can drag audio files right into your timeline from the Finder. You can also use songs or other audio files from your music library and other locations using the media browser within iMovie. And if you want to add voiceover narration, record it right into the timeline of your iMovie project.
Drag audio files into the iMovie project timeline on Mac
You can drag audio files like .mp4, .mp3, .wav, and .aif files from the Finder and the Desktop right into the timeline of your iMovie project. Audio files dragged into the timeline behave differently depending on where you drag them:
- If you want an audio file to stay with a particular video clip even if you move the video clip, drag the audio file just below the video clip so a bar connecting the clips appears. Use this to add sound effects or voiceover audio that you want to connect to a specific video clip in your project, no matter where the clip is in the timeline.
- If you drag an audio file to the music well, indicated by the musical note icon in the timeline, the audio clip won’t move if you move any video clips in the timeline. Use this to add background or theme music that plays throughout the entire project.
Add music and sound effects using the iMovie browser on Mac
You can browse and add content from your music library and built-in sound effects from within iMovie.
- With your project open, click Audio at the top of the window, then choose an option:
- To access your music library, click Music (or iTunes if you’re using macOS Mojave or earlier) in the Libraries list, then browse selections.*
- To access built-in sound effects like footsteps or rain, click Sound Effects in the Libraries list.
- To preview a song or sound effect before you add it to the timeline, click the play button next to each song or sound effect. You can also select a song or sound effect, click in the waveform at the top of the media browser, then press the Spacebar to preview.
- When you’ve found the song or sound effect you like, drag it from the media browser to the timeline:
- For background or theme music for your movie, drag songs to the music well.
- To attach music or sound effects to a specific video clip, drag it under the video clip so a bar connecting the clips appears.
If you want to use a song you’ve created in GarageBand and access it from the iMovie browser, share your GarageBand project to the media browser in GarageBand.
Record voiceover in iMovie on Mac
You can record your own narration for your iMovie project without leaving the iMovie app.
Adjust the volume of a clip in iMovie on Mac
After you add video and audio to your movie, you can adjust the volume of clips and fade the audio of clips in and out.
Learn more
* If you've imported a song purchased from the iTunes Store into a project and there is no sound, or you can't import a particular song, the song is likely an iTunes Digital Rights Management- (DRM) protected music file and cannot be used in your project.
I want to create a personalize video that has a background music which I prefer using iMovie. However, the problem is I don’t have an idea on how to add audio to iMovie in a certain clip only. Can you help me this concern? I really need to finish this project ASAP. Please help, thank you.
Adding audio to iMovie
There are various reasons why individuals like to add music to iMovie project. The most common one is to add a personal touch to a video project that is being created and at the same time makes it look unique and professional. Just like in homemade videos where in the background audio maybe too dull, and one way of putting life into it is by adding a music track that will serve as its background. I bet there are some of you that know how to put background music using iMovie, but there are still many that do not. What seems to be confusing is the way on how to add a song in a specific part of the video. So to avoid confusion a detailed elaboration of the steps is shown below.
1
Select audio you want to add
To begin with the steps, you must first prepare or arrange your project. Then, you can start with the process of adding audio to iMovie by opening your iMovie project and click the Music and Sound Effects button which is located at the iMovie toolbar and a browser will pop out.
Now select all of the songs that you will need in your project. The next step is to drag and drop the mp3 track into your project, drag it just a little bit below the video timeline and wait for the green Add(+) symbol to appear before releasing it. Once added the music background will be showed in green color and it automatically fits in with the video clip.
2
Select specific area you want to add
However, to add music background in a specific part of the project, simply click or select the audio file that is located on the music timeline and its border will then turn yellows. This is when you can move along the music background to the certain portion of the video clip by dragging the slider until it fits in the certain portion of the clip that you wish. Just be sure to save your project to finalize your project.
Tips: For those that want to delete music background on iMovie, simply go to the music timeline select the audio background until its border turn yellow and press the Delete tab on the keyboard or you can go to Edit > Delete Selection.
Adding background music using iMovie alternative
Another way on how to add background music in a certain video clip is by using the best iMovie alternative that we can get. They are considered to be alternative but at the same time they do perform well with the task such as this. Here are two reliable iMovie alternatives that we can use.
iMovie alternative for windows
If you are using a Windows OS, then the best thing for you to do is to utilize the built in video editor that you have which is the Windows Live Movie Maker. Many people are using this program since it is easy to use and it can also handle video and audio editing. Adding music background is very easy and fun to do just like adding audio to iMovie. Their steps are barely similar but their platform is different from each other.
iMotion HD
How To Add More Sound Effects To Imovie Ipad
This is another great iMovie alternative for Mac users. However, it runs on Mac portable devices such as iPad, iPod touch, and iPhone. It almost has the basic editing features that you can find on iMovie. The only concern about this program is that fact that the interface is different and it may be different for others to use especially those that have big fingertips.