Create a slideshow with background audio comments

[Maq.H]

You want to expose your friends your photos in a unique and fun? It is entirely possible by creating a slideshow as a video. You can then scroll through your best photos, interspersed with professional transitions, add their titles, without the music in the background and insert audio comments. The free Microsoft Photo Story allows you to achieve just that and thus give life to your photo slideshows.

Once your slideshow is complete, you can prepare your video to send to your friends via email, to put it on your blog, to put it on a DVD and thus be able to see your slideshow on TV, etc.. To do so, first download and install Microsoft Photo Story on your system. With the help of this application, just in a single click, you can touch-up, crop, or rotate pictures. Add stunning special effects, soundtracks, and your own voice narration to your photo stories. Then, personalize them with titles and captions. Small file sizes make it easy to send your photo stories in an e-mail. Watch them on your TV, a computer, or a Windows Mobile–based portable device.

Upload your photos:

• Run Photo Story by clicking the Start button, click All Programs, then click Photo Story 3 for Windows.
• Select Start a new account and then click Next.
• Click Import Pictures.
• A dialog box opens. To more easily find the images you want, you can view files as thumbnails, clicking on the button top right (Display list in Vista).
• Then select the photos for the slideshow and then click Open.
• Repeat for all pictures to use. The photos appear next to each other as thumbnails at the bottom of the window. You can click on any of them to enlarge the center of the window.

[Maq.H]

Organizing Photo's Order:

You can easily determine the order of appearance of photos. Here is how to do that:-

• In the framework that contains thumbnails of your photos, move them by drag and drop the order you want them to appear.
• You can also select a thumbnail and click on the Rewind and Forward buttons to move your photo forward or backward.

Retouch photos:

Each image you select can be changed using a palette of retouching tools.

• In the framework that contains thumbnails of your photos, click on a picture.
• Correct colors, remove red eye, rotate your photos in one way or the other ... to perform these edits, simply click on the buttons just below the image.
• To go further and crop the photo, or add an effect, click the Edit button.
• To crop the photo, select the Crop. Using the mouse, adjust the dimensions of the frame following the party to retain.
• To add a visual effect (black and white, sepia, ...), open the Add Effect tab. Scroll Effect and choose the effect to apply to your photo.
• Finally, click the Save button and then click Close.

[Maq.H]

Adding Text to the Slideshow:

• Click the Next button.
• Select an image.
• In the right pane, enter the text to the image. A real-time preview is displayed.
• Use the different buttons to adjust the alignment, size, font and text color.
• Click the Next button.

Insert transitions:

At this stage, the slide is almost complete. Click Preview to see the result. Photo Story improvised transitions between each photo and camera movements on each, making the whole a little more alive. You can customize these movements and transitions with fifty effects. To do so:

• Click on a photo.
• Click Custom Animation.
• Check the box indicating the initial and final positions of the animation.
• You can change the animation by enlarging, reducing and moving the frame on the two photos shown.
• You can also choose the display time of the image and thus the animation in the bottom of the window.
• Then open the Transition tab and choose to use the transition to go from the previous image to the new image.
• Note that you can also choose the display time of transition.
• Finally, click the Save button.
  
• Use the buttons Previous image Next image and to move from one image to another and adjust the other animations and transitions.
• Finally, click the Close button to return to the main interface of Photo Story.

[Maq.H]

Add audio comments:

If you have a microphone, you can add comments to your photos. Below are the steps to do so :

• Click the Save button narration to begin your narration. Click the Stop button to finish.
• Be sure to match your comments with the images by clicking on them in the film at the bottom of the window As the narration.
• Then click the Next button.

Putting Background Music:

You can use music in MP3, WAV or WMA files to add background music to your slideshow. Photo Story allows you indeed to fly several musical pieces in a slideshow. It also allows you to create your own soundtrack. The advantage of this last solution is that the music produced is copyright-free and you can use it for public dissemination.

• Select the image from which you want the music starts.
• Click the Select button to select music music in MP3, WMA or WAV files on your hard drive and then click Open.
• To create a background sound, click Create Music.
• Then choose the settings of your music genre, style, ambiance, ..., and click the Play button to hear the result.
• When you're satisfied, finally click the OK button.

[Maq.H]

Save and export the slideshow:

Your slideshow is now finished. You can see the results by clicking the Preview button. All you then have to save your project (if you want to change it later) and export your slideshow in a format suitable for the use you intend to do: send email, display on TV , etc.. Just follow these threads for doing the same:-

• Click Save Project.
• Choose a location on your hard drive where to put the project of your slideshow. Click the Save button.
• Click the Next button.
• You need to select the export options for your slideshow. Click on Register your business story to be read on your computer then click the Settings button.
• Scroll Profile and choose a profile suitable for use in your slideshow:
  
  • To create a DVD, select the Profile option to create DVDs - PAL (768x576).
  • To send the video via email, choose the profile for messaging - 3 (320x240).
  • To put the video on CD or see on a computer, choose Profile Computer - 3 (800x600).
  • To put your video on the Internet (eg YouTube), choose Profile PC - 1 (320x240).
• Click the OK button.
  
• Click the Browse button. Select where to save the video of your slideshow, change its name and click the Save button.
• Click the Next button.
  
• The video of your slideshow is created, the generated music, transitions applied and adapted to your video settings. Note that this operation may take several tens of minutes.
  
• Once finished, click View your story to open the video from your slideshow.
• Finally, click the Exit button to close Photo Story.

And you are done !!