Enhance the look of video or photos with video effects

iMovie has several video effects you can apply to instantly change the look of video or still images in your projects. You can give video clips or photos a grainy or high-contrast appearance, an aged or old-fashioned look, a dreamy look, and more.

To apply a video effect to video or photos:

  1. In the Project browser, double-click a video clip or a photo.

  2. In the Clip inspector that opens, click the Video Effect button.

    Unless the clip already has an effect applied to it, the button is labeled None.

  3. In the window that opens, move your pointer over any effect to preview it in the viewer.

    You can also press the Space bar to play the preview in a loop. As the preview loops, you can move the pointer over other effects to preview them.

    Press the Space bar again to stop the preview.

  4. Click an effect to apply it to the clip, and then click Done.

    Note:  Applying an effect doesn’t change the appearance of the video clip in the Project browser; the effect is apparent only when you see the video in the viewer.

To remove a video effect from a clip or photo:

  1. In the Project browser, double-click a video clip or photo.

  2. In the Clip inspector, click the Video Effect button.

  3. Click None, and then click Done.