Loading sets of images into powerpoint slides

Sometimes one may want to generate a PowerPoint slide with a set of images – for example a set of micrograph images to discuss with your colleagues (or a lovely set of your holiday photos to make your friends jealous). You can do this by manually adding each image, one by one, then resizing, repositioning, formatting …. , but there is a much quicker way. Here is a guide to automating the process.

NOTE: this guide was made using Powerpoint 2010; the free, open source LibreOffice Impress allows a similar process under INSERT | IMAGE | PHOTO ALBUM.

In your PowerPoint presentation set up the basic options for your presentation. In particular, select the appropriate page size (DESIGN | PAGE SETUP) before you add your gallery, so that the images are resized to the correct size when they are added to the slides.

Use the menu Insert | Photo Album | New photo album.

A dialogue opens – use the insert picture from FILE/DISK button. In the file browser locate and select the images you want and click INSERT.

The list of images is loaded in the pictures in album – you can select individual pictures and use the move up, move down arrows to change the order if desired (or do this in the PowerPoint slide sorter view later. Select a picture layout using the drop down options; select frame shape options from the drop down. When you have the options set in the dialogue, click the CREATE button to generate the slides.

You should now have a PowerPoint presentation with a title slide (you need to complete the title details) and then the selected images laid out according to the options you selected in the photo album creation dialogue. In this case the images are resized to fit the slide area.

Remember to set up the correct size BEFORE inserting the images. If you change the page size then the images you have inserted will be distorted – for example changing from a 4:3 aspect page to a 16:9 widescreen page all your images will be stretched horizontally by ~33%. There is no easy way to prevent PowerPoint doing this (see HERE for a technical way to partially do this change, but you will still find that all the images will need repositioning – it would be easier to delete the slides, set the new page size, and re-insert the images.)

Have Fun