Create projects with images and videos in PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is an excellent program for creating theses, concept maps, business projects, monthly reports on the activity carried out or slides to show at conferences or in the office.

If we are beginners we can make the slides truly one of a kind adding images to each slide (as a background or as a full image) or, to make everything even more engaging, we can also add videos, which will be played only when we get to the specific slide. If we don’t have the Office suite on our PC, we can remedy this by relying on LibreOffice, which offers a valid program that replaces PowerPoint completely free of charge.

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1) Add images to PowerPoint

To add simple images to a PowerPoint slide we open the program and the work we were doing, click on the menu at the top insert and finally we select the item Images.

The file manager page will open, with which we can select the folder and image to add to the selected slide. The bar will open at the top Formatwhere we will be able to view the various options available for the added image.

With the options that appear on the bar we can remove a part of the image, apply various types of options and effects, apply frames, choose new borders or a new layout, add text inside, crop and move. In this way we will also be able to create collages of images, accompanied by descriptive text (very useful in scientific presentations or degree theses).

To quickly change the proportions of the image with respect to the slide or rotate the image, simply select it and use one of the dots on its edges, so as to change the size on the fly or turn a slightly crooked image.

In addition to images taken from the PC, we will also be able to insert images taken directly from the Web; to add images online let’s go back to the Insert menu and use the item Images online.

A search window will open and various categories of images ready to be added, all we have to do is click on them to add to the slide. Through this menu we can also upload the images that we have previously saved on the Microsoft cloud, namely OneDrive.

Add personal image

If, however, we wanted to apply an image as the background of the slide, we will have to follow a different procedure: we right-click on an empty point on the slide, then open the menu Background format.

A sidebar will open on the right, where you can select the item Image or theme fill. After activating the item we can add any image on the PC by clicking on the button File; if instead we wanted to load an image taken from the Internet, simply click on the item Online.

Once the preferred background has been inserted, we can use the various items in the bar to adjust the intensity and the transparency effect, so as to make the image suitable for the type of text or content that we are going to load on the slide.

2) Add video to PowerPoint

Instead of images we can also add a video to our slide. In this case all we have to do is go to the menu insert and click the button Video.

The program will let us choose whether we want to upload a video taken from the Internet or upload a video saved on our PC.

In the first case we open the entry Video online and we use the integrated YouTube search engine to find the right video to insert into the slide. If the video is not present on YouTube, we can still insert it into the slide by recovering the embed code from the video page and inserting it into the specific field.

At the end of the process the video will be ready and positioned inside the slide, with the freedom to move the preview window where we deem it appropriate (as if it were an image). When we play the slide, it will also start the video at the appropriate time, based on the execution order set.

Add personal video

In the second case (i.e. the video saved on the computer) we click on Video on personal PC, so that we can open the file manager and take us to the path where the video is saved; let’s load it into PowerPoint and place it as already seen for online videos (the behavior is identical). In this case, to send the presentation containing the video to someone, you need to insert the video file and the Powerpoint pptx file in the same folder, then create a compressed .zip file of this folder and send the presentation via the zip file.

3) Create company project with LibreOffice

Microsoft PowerPoint is one of the programs present within the Microsoft Office suite, and as such it is paid. If we are quite busy, we are in a hurry and we cannot purchase a valid license for Office, instead of diving into piracy we can download a free office suite like the one offered by LibreOffice.

After installing this suite on our computer, to add images and videos to the slides we open the program LibreOffice Impress, the free equivalent of PowerPoint. Once the program is open, we create our project with the slides and, when we come to the moment to add an image, we click on the button Insert imagepresent in the top bar.

The file manager will open as usual, where you can select the folder and image to add to the slide. The added image can be managed thanks to the right sidebar, where we can find all the options to modify, enlarge, improve and apply effects.

If we instead want to apply a personal image as the background of the slide, we right-click on a free point of the slide, then select the item Property. In the new window let’s go to the tab Backgroundwe select Bitmap and finally we click on the button Add/Import.

The file manager will open with which to upload your personal image; once chosen, we will be asked to give a name to this background; at the end we will see the image appear in the list on the left, ready to be used as a background.

Add videos

If we instead want to load a video onto the slide, we click on at the top Insert audio or video. In the window that appears, go to the folder that contains the video and select it, so as to insert it into the slide.

If we are afraid that the slide file will become too large, we can also activate the voice Link when adding video: This way only a preview will be shown on the slide and, when playing, the external file will be started.

It goes without saying that with this solution the slide file and the various added videos must be saved in the same folder, so that they can be started correctly.

Conclusions

PowerPoint still remains one of the best tools for creating slides on any type of business project or personal project, ultimately making it simple to create and manage.

To make it truly unique and impress those who see the slides iLet’s learn how to quickly add images and videos into themusing both multimedia content on the web and personal content (images, photos, drawings, vector creations, etc.).

To learn more we can read our guides on how Convert Powerpoint presentations (ppt pps) into videos or movies to watch with DVD player come on how to insert web pages into PowerPoint.