footage captured in mpeg2, convert to mp4 to import to imovie, back to mpeg2 for dvd

I don't have one for Mac but I used Roxio (vhs to dvd) 2009 for Windows. It converted all my tapes to avi files which was easy to deal with, using nearly any video editing software.

billy3785 said:

I just purchased a VHS capture software to archive my old home movies. The software (roxio easy vhs to dvd) captures the video in mpeg2 for burning to DVD. it has the option to import to iMovie, which in essence just converts the file to MP4. Am I correct in assuming that in order to burn to DVD (in any program) that my new file will have to be converted back to mpeg2 to create the VOBs? I plan on converting the videos myself to mp4 via Handbrake before importing to iMovie. Am I better off just not importing to imovie at all and just burning the mpeg2s directly to DVD?
Any advice on how to go about this process?

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The more you convert/compress, the more hits your video quality takes. Try this first (from this thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1144492/

Create file structure:

CamCorderMovies/MP_ROOT/101PNV01

Copy all your files into the 101PNV01 directory

Open up iMovie11 and then select File->Import->Camera Archive

Select the top folder CamCorderMovies and select Import

iMovie will think the CamCorderMovies directory is a camera, and import directly. You won't need to degrade your video quality more then necessary, not to mention the hassle of compressing...

If this does not work out, search this forum for "importing video/camera files/folders iMovie" - there are a number of threads with workarounds for this issue.
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Edit: I see I might have missed your whole point. Is your only goal output to DVD? If so, then burn mpeg2's right to DVD using whatever fitting software. No reason to involve either iMovie nor Handbrake.

I think you can give Audials One a try, it works both on Windows and MacOS X (with Parallels and Windows 7 installed). This is what I use anyway and so far it's been working fine. You can convert your video files to pretty much every popular format out there and the output quality will be satisfying. You can also take a look at these step by step intrustructions on how you can convert your video files, maybe it helps. And they have a pretty decent demo version you can give a try too.