Understanding Multimedia in PowerPoint
7 minutes read
What is a multimedia presentation? Learn how to mix and match images, audio, video, and text in your PowerPoint presentation to capture attention better.
What Is Multimedia?
You’ve probably heard the term multimedia, but what does it actually mean in PowerPoint? In short, it’s combining various types of media in your presentation. You can use combinations of images, audio, and video to enhance your message.
Every PowerPoint slide is a blank canvas, eagerly awaiting your content to reinforce your speaking points and guide the presentation. Multimedia introduces variety to your slides and assists visual learners in grasping your content more effectively.
You likely already know how to work with text. Now, let’s explore how to combine multiple types of media into a cohesive PowerPoint presentation. You’ll learn how to insert and edit multimedia elements within PowerPoint. When executed well, multimedia presentations engage your audience and hold their interest.
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Why Use Multimedia in Your Presentation?
Using only text and shapes would make it significantly more challenging to maintain an audience’s attention. A multimedia presentation, which utilizes more than one type of media, can effectively reach your audience.
Multimedia exists to help reinforce your key speaking points. Here are a few ideas for incorporating images, audio, and video to enhance your presentation:
- Images: Use stock photos, logos, and icons to add visual variety and showcase your brand.
- Audio: Add narrations if you can’t present directly or incorporate music and sound effects for added engagement.
- Video: Include video clips from your computer or sources like YouTube, such as instructional walkthroughs, TED talks, or your own recorded screencasts.
Before we dive in, always remember: less is more. While incorporating multimedia in PowerPoint is advantageous, avoid cluttering slides with excessive distractions.
How to Use Multimedia in PowerPoint Presentations
Let’s walk through multimedia together. In this quick screencast, I’ll teach you how to insert each type of multimedia and make basic edits to them.
PowerPoint has built-in tools for basic edits such as cropping images, trimming video clips, and adjusting audio levels. I’ll guide you through using these tools so that you can manage multimedia efficiently without relying on external applications.
How to Use Multimedia in PowerPoint PPT Presentations
Multimedia is essential in presentations to maintain your audience’s attention. Here’s how to incorporate multimedia into your presentation:
For this tutorial, I’ll be using PowerPoint version 16.63.1 on macOS. If you have a different operating system or version, your results may vary. The template featured is the Snow PowerPoint template.
Let’s start with an example of a multimedia presentation:
1. Images in PowerPoint: Stills & Animated
The first step is to add images to the PowerPoint template. This section will explain how to insert both still and animated images.
How to Insert Images into PowerPoint
The simplest way to add an image is to copy and paste. You can copy an image in any application, such as a web browser or image editor, and then right-click to paste it into PowerPoint.
A more effective method is to save images to your computer and insert them via the Insert menu. Navigate to Insert > Pictures to browse and select an image.
Using the Insert menu allows you to add multiple images simultaneously. Hold the Control key while selecting multiple images before clicking Insert to add them to a slide.
Resize and Reposition Images
Once you’ve added an image to the slide, you can click and drag it to reposition it. To resize, click and drag from the corners.
PowerPoint Picture Tools
PowerPoint includes a set of editing tools for images, so you don’t always have to use external editors. When you select an image, you’ll see new options on the PowerPoint ribbon. Click on Picture Tools > Format to access image editing tools.
Key Picture Tools to explore include:
- Cropping: Trim the image to keep only the desired sections.
- Remove Background: This tool helps isolate logos or images with unwanted backgrounds.
For a detailed guide on working with images in PowerPoint, check out the tutorial linked below:
2. Audio in PowerPoint
Now that you’ve added images, it’s time to incorporate sound. This section covers how to use audio files in your multimedia presentation.
Add an Audio File to PowerPoint
If you have an audio track, such as an MP3 or WAV, you can easily add it to your presentation by choosing Insert > Audio > Audio on My PC to browse for your file.
After selecting the audio file, a small speaker icon will appear on your slide. You can hover over it and press play during your presentation.
Record Audio Inside PowerPoint
You can also record audio directly within PowerPoint. To do this, go to Insert > Audio > Record Audio.
A Record Sound dialog will pop up. Press the red Record button to start capturing audio, and press the Stop button to finalize it.
Working With PowerPoint’s Audio Tools
Select the audio file to access editing options available on the Audio Tools > Playback menu.
Useful options include:
- Trim Audio: Reduce your audio file to only play a selected portion.
- Start: Change from On Click to Automatically to play audio without clicking the icon.
3. Video in PowerPoint
Video serves as a powerful multimedia element. PowerPoint allows you to include videos from your computer or online sources.
Add a Clip From Your Computer
To add a video clip, use the Insert > Video > This Device option to browse your files.
Once inserted, you can resize the video by dragging the corners.
PowerPoint supports most major video file types, including MP4, QuickTime, and Windows Media files.
For more information on adding video to PowerPoint, check out the tutorial linked below:
Add a Video Clip from Online
You can enhance your presentation with videos from YouTube or other online sources. To do this, go to Insert > Video > Online Video.
PowerPoint will open a new window for searching or adding an online video. You can enter a YouTube URL or search for a relevant clip directly.
Before inserting an online video, ensure that you check copyright restrictions.
Adding a YouTube video is a great way to include multimedia without bloating your PowerPoint file size, as the link plays directly from YouTube within your presentation. For more details, read the tutorial linked below:
PowerPoint Video Playback Options
PowerPoint offers tools to adjust video playback. With the video selected, navigate to the Video Format tab.
Key options to modify video playback include:
- Start: Change from On Click to Automatically to start the video when the slide appears.
- Play Full Screen: This setting will play the video in full screen, hiding the rest of the slide.
- Trim Video: Select which parts of the video to include.
Recap and Keep Learning More About PowerPoint
In this tutorial, you learned how to effectively incorporate multimedia types to create an engaging presentation. PowerPoint simplifies the process of adding and editing images, video, and audio.
We’ve merely scratched the surface of what’s possible with PowerPoint presentations. Here are a few more tutorials to help you build impressive slides:
Five Top Multimedia Presentation Templates from Envato Elements for 2022
If you’re looking for a template, consider these top premium multimedia PowerPoint presentation templates:
1. PLAST
A modern multimedia presentation template featuring 30 unique slides, icons, infographics, mobile mockups, charts, and graphs. PLAST’s colorful and fun design suits any topic.
2. Terrenifa Multipurpose PowerPoint
With 100 unique and editable slides and two theme variations, Terrenifa includes infographics, charts, graphs, and maps, making it ideal for multimedia presentations.
3. Roara PowerPoint Template
This minimal and modern design comes with picture placeholders, allowing you to easily add images to your slides.
4. Maximus
Maximus is perfect for multimedia presentations, featuring numerous infographics, charts, and graphs, along with ten color scheme options and animated slides.
5. Danastri - Multipurpose PowerPoint Template
Danastri offers 40 editable slides with vibrant colors, graphs, icons, and mockup devices, making it easy to add images through drag-and-drop.
Download a Template and Start Your Multimedia Presentation Today
You’ve learned what a multimedia presentation is and seen examples to inspire your own work. Don’t wait any longer; download your favorite multimedia PowerPoint template from Envato Elements and begin crafting your presentation today.
Editorial Note: This tutorial was originally published in September of 2017. It has been updated to include contemporary information and maintain relevance, with special contributions from Sarah Joy.