Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video and iMovie workflow


If you’re looking for a smooth workflow between Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video and iMovie, you’ve come to the right place. This post displays a workaround to transcode Nikon D5/D500 4k movies to iMovie preferred AIC codec for editing with optimum performance.
Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video and iMovie
The Nikon D500 and full-frame D5 are the first Nikons to offer support 4K UHD capture at 3840 x 2160 at 30p/25p/24p. Apple has added support for 4K video to iMovie version 10.1 which creates and shares movies at stunning 4K resolution (3840 x 2160) on compatible Mac computers.

If for whatever reason you are having issues working with Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video in iMovie, we would recommend converting D5/D500 4k video to Apple InterMediate Codec before editing. This requires third party converter software like HD Video Converter. In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of encoding Nikon D5/D500 4k recordings to AIC .mov for iMovie editing.

Here’s what you need
HD Video Converter for Mac
transcode Nikon D5/D500 4k movies to iMovie AIC

[Guide] How to encode Nikon D5/D500 4k video to AIC for iMovie?

Step 1: Open up HD Video Converter for Mac as a Nikon 4k Converter for Mac. When its main interface comes up, click ‘Add File’ to load your source media.
work with Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video in iMovie

Step 2: Select output format for your editing program
To convert Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video for iMovie, from ‘Profile’ list, choose ‘Apple InterMediate Codec (AIC)(*.mov)’ as output format under ‘iMovie and Final Cut Express’ column.
working with Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video in iMovie
Important: If you’ve loaded a number of video clips to do batch conversion, please do remember ticking off ‘Apply to All’ option before you start.

Step 3: Custom video and audio settings (optional)
If necessary, you can click ‘Settings’ button and go to ‘Profiles Settings’ panel to modify video and audio settings like video encoder, resolution, video bit rate, frame rate, aspect ratio, audio encoder, sample rate, audio bit rate, and audio channels. 3D settings are also available.

Step 4: Begin Nikon D5/D500 4k UHD video files to AIC MOV Conversion on Mac
When ready, click ‘Convert’ to start format conversion. Once the conversion process is complete, you can click ‘Open Folder’ button to get the generated AIC MOV files for editing in iMovie with optimum performance.
Tips:If you don’t want to wait for the entire conversion process, you can tick off ‘shut down computer when conversion completed’ and go away to do other things.

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