Background the same on all images

[Tappaholic]

I am just getting started, after scanning over 3000 slides from the last 50+ years, and want to put about 500 vacation photos in one slideshow. Since I am going to put it on a DVD for watching on the TV, they are high quality JPEGs. I would like to use a background for all, but hopefully, it can be saved independently from slides, especially since I will want to zoom and pan the images and want the bg to stay in place. Is this possible? In my previous effort, I didn't use a bg or do any special effects. I used 300 slides with several music selections, and I had no problem. I have read a lot of the tutorials, but haven't found any info on this. The pics are as large as 3100 x 2100 pixels (and the reverse for portrait) The have been edited and corrected in Photoshop, so I do have that resource available if I need it. I used a script - image processor to change from the PSD format to JPEGs, so I can do a script or action if needed to add a background, but it might be a bit hard to do that as all the pics are of differing sizes.

Thanks for any help on how to accomplish this adding of bg. Sue

[Lin Evans]

Hi Sue,

What you want to do is very easy. If you click on "Project Options" then on the "Screen" tab you will find you have three choices. You can have a solid color, a gradient with either top/bottom or left/right of any two colors, or you can have an "Image" of your choice.

First decide on what you want for a backgound, click on the appropriate choice then either choose the color or combination or an image from any folder on any attached drive.

If you experiment with the "size" for the background "image," you will find that reducing it below 100% will result in a "tile" effect where you have the image duplicated multiple times. If you need to change the appearance of the background image, you will need to do that before you add it as the background by using an image editor. The background image does not appear in the "Object List" as an object for each slide so you can't adjust the opacity of it as if it were added to each slide individually.

If you only have a few slides, you could add any slide as a background just by placing it a layer below the main slide by adding it as a separate object. In such case you can adjust the size, opacity, position, etc., of the background image individually for each slide.

If you play with the "background" feature with just a few slides before you load the entire show, you will quickly learn how best to use this feature. If you have further questions, just ask here and one of us will help you.

Best regards,

Lin

[davegee]

As well as Lin's sound advice I would suggest that you start making a few tests with DVDs to "perfect" your technique?

You will probably hit a few snags when it comes to making the DVD "fit" with your system.

It's best to iron these out early before you have a deadline to meet and need answers in a hurry.

DG

[Tappaholic]

Thanks so much for your help. I am working on getting the size and opacity correct, and will just try it on a few slides to see how it works. I am trying to also work on the slides in PS to see if I can get the pics to "float" on the background. Since I am using JPEGs and not PNGs I am having to make a narrow layer edge in the back choosing a color from the background that I have selected. If I take the time to convert the original PSD files to PNGs then I can avoid this, but I will have to do a script to do this conversion. My 'old' brain in learning a lot in PS and PicturesToExe in this process. I have been working for several months scanning on my EpsonV700 to get this far with all my old slides. I still have about 4-5000 more to do, but will delay a bit on them. There is a definite advantage to a digital camera! Thanks again, Sue

[Lin Evans]

Hi Sue,

One way you can achieve the "floating look" on a backdrop is to use PTE's "drop shadow" feature (Objects and Animations screen - Common Tab - Check "Drop Shadow" then click on "Customize" to choose opacity, angle, size and position of shadowing) - example below from one of my photos:

Best regards,

Lin

[Tappaholic]

Hi Lin, you have been so much help to me. I did convert the 650 slides from PSD to PNG, after writing a little script ( the script took no time, but the conversion certainly was lengthy). Now, I wonder if I should use JPEGs or PNG in doing the slideshow? Since I now know I can do the 'floating' in Pics2Exe, I can use the JPEGs. But, is there a reason that I should use the PNG files? I hope that I am getting closer to actually getting the show in process. Since most of the pictures are of Italy, and family there, I plan to use some Italian accordion music. I think that will be the easy part! I have looked at the tutorials on doing panning and zooming, so may try that on some of the slides.

I guess the last question is if I decide to do the show again with smaller files that can be done online for the Italian family to watch, how easy is it to change the file sizes? I guess that I could resize in PS with a script, but would have to redo the effects that I might add, or is there a way to do this in Pics2Exe. I think that I need to get the manual out and study it a bit so I don't have to keep asking questions.

I did 'bite off more than I could chew' on this project, but it is such a great program, and I am anxious to learn it as quickly as possible. Thanks again for all your help. Sue

[Tappaholic]

Dear DG, thanks for your advice, and it worth my listening to. I hope that I never have any deadlines again in my life, as I am in my mid-seventies and ready to just live without that stress!!! But, as I am just learning this program, any advice is really appreciated. Thanks, Sue

[Lin Evans]

Hi Sue,

By all means use jpg's rather than PNG files. Really the "only" time you should "ever" need to use a PNG file is if you have created an object where you want transparency so that the background shows through areas of your image. Otherwise, using PNG simply adds a great deal to the size of your exe file because it is uncompressed. Compressing in Photoshop at level 7 should give you excellent images. Also, there is no need to use images any larger than the display resolution "unless" you are doing deep zooms. For example, let's say you have scanned your images and you end up with a dimension of something like 3000 pixels wide by 2000 pixels tall. Almost no displays in "common" use are higher than 1080p which is 1920x1080. So to display these without a deep zoom in, 2000x1333 would be the optimal size. If you go into Photoshop and "resample" your 3000x2000 image down to 2000 pixels on the horizontal side (close enough to 1920 pixels) then the vertical will be 1333 pixels and Photoshop will automatically do this for you.

If you intend to zoom in for a close look at a face, for example, then you could leave just that slide at the original 3000x2000 pixels. You would "not" need to redo effects in PTE because by default, PTE will automatically resize everything to fit the display being used by your viewing audience. That is you "visually" fit the image to the vertical aspect of your own display for each slide, and PTE will make it fit the vertical aspect of any display the show is shown on.

You can use Photoshop to resize all your images, but it's "MUCH" easier to do if you download and install the freeware IrfanView or Fastone and use one of them (be sure and do a "copy" and resize and don't overwrite the originals). They have a "very" easy batch resize feature and it's much more "complex" to do batch resize with Photoshop. I suggest you make a folder and save "all" your original scans and never work with them. Copy them and work with the copy.

If you get in trouble, just leave a message here and someone will give you a hand.

Best regards,

Lin

[Tappaholic]

Hi Lin or another kind responder, Just one more question ( I hope) as I am making progress. When I want to have one portrait slide on the left side of the screen and have it held there while adding a 2nd portrait on the right, and then either fade both to a landscape, or change one or the other, while keeping one, is this done by 'masking' or is there another process? I have arranged individual slides for this to the proper locations, but just couldn't see how to hold one while advancing to the next one. I did try reading some of the manual, but didn't find what I was looking for. Maybe it is just time for me to call it a day and go to bed! Thanks for helping me. Sue

[xahu34]

In case you have two portraits side by side, how to replace just one of them? Go to the slide list and copy and paste this slide (which now will appear twice, one following the other one). Open the O&A window for the second one, and replace one of the two images in the properties tab (not in the object list). Choose a normal crossfade transition. This will work fine if the old and the new image have the same aspect ratio. If not, I would recommend the use of masks.

Regards,

Xaver

[xahu34]

If you have two portraits on top of a background, it will impossible just to fade to a landscape without having an unwanted effect at the boundaries. You may choose an animation during the crossfade time, e.g.: Let the portrait images move to their sides until they vanish (to be programmed in the old slide) while the new landscape image zooms in the center of the slide (to be programmed in the new slide).

Regards,

Xaver

[Lin Evans]

Hi Sue,

There are several ways to do this. One way is as Xaver suggests. Another way this could be done is to first set sufficient time on the slide for all this to happen and then place the images (portraits) both in the same slide but on separate layers. That is, have one above the other on the Objects List. Then control the "appearance" of either by using the "Opacity" control. There is no need to use "masking" even though it "could" be used to do such a thing.

Also you could add the landscape as an additional object on the slide in yet another layer and control its appearance by opacity and keyframes. It's quite feasible to do exactly what you wish by simply keyframing the opacity of the three "Objects." PTE uses the term "Object" to describe any image appearing on a "Slide." The "slide" is the "main Object" and any additional objects appear in that slide's "Layers" which simply means the "position" of the images in the Objects list beneath the main object.

I have created a simple demo for you showing how this can be done. If you download then extract the following into a folder and then open the PTE file, you can study the slide and see how the keyframes control the "opacity" of each object over time.

In the example (which is actually considerably larger in file size than necessary - I just grabbed some images) the portrait of the baby is set to 100% opacity and faded in on the left and the second keyframe (check objects and animations) is set to "hold" that opacity until it is faded to zero with the third keyframe. The second portrait of this child when she is about 12 years old begins with zero opacity on the first keyframe, held at zero percent opacity with the second keyframe until such time as it is to be faded in. Then it is faded in to 100% opacity by the third keyframe. Then both portraits are faded to zero percent opacity at the same time by their last keyframes. Simultaneously, the landscape is held at zero opacity by its first and second keyframes and then faded in to 100 percent opacity by its third keyframe.

Once you have a single slide prepared in such a way and assuming that you have other slides you may wish to use in the identical fashion, you can simply copy and paste the completed slide and then use the PTE "change image" feature to replace the objects and background for subsequent slides. The original animation then serves as the "template" for subsequent slides. The only real "caveat" is that the original images need to be identical in dimensions or you will have to play with the zoom and pan settings or visually align each one after replacing the "template" files.

My link to example

Best regards,

Lin

[PGA]

Hi Lin or another kind responder, Just one more question ( I hope) as I am making progress. When I want to have one portrait slide on the left side of the screen and have it held there while adding a 2nd portrait on the right, and then either fade both to a landscape, or change one or the other, while keeping one, is this done by 'masking' or is there another process? I have arranged individual slides for this to the proper locations, but just couldn't see how to hold one while advancing to the next one. I did try reading some of the manual, but didn't find what I was looking for. Maybe it is just time for me to call it a day and go to bed! Thanks for helping me. Sue

Hi Sue,

Slide 1 = base image

Slide 2 = base image plus portrait#1

Slide 3 = base image plus portrait#1 and portrait#2

Slide 4 = new base image

Use a simple dissolve between the slides. Consider a different transition effect between Slide 3 and Slide 4 to help overcome the "messiness" of moving from a complex multi-image to a simple image (perhaps a Page wipe from top to bottom or left to right)

regards,

Peter

[Lin Evans]

Hi Sue,

As you can see from the responses, there are numerous ways to proceed with essentially identical results. Here are the advantages and disadvantages. The advantage of doing it as suggested by Xaver and Peter, with multiple slides and a simple crossfade transition (dissolve), is simplicity. You create four slides and simply dissolve between them. This can be done by creating the first and then copying and pasting it to create the second by adding the other portrait and then simply a third with the landscape desired. The down side is that if you want to do this on a number of different slides, you must duplicate your efforts and in the end will have a larger number of "slides" to deal with.

In doing it as in my example, the advantage is template in that you have created a single but more complex slide which can be used over and again by simply "replacing" the elements with different images using PTE's replace feature in the Objects and Animations screen. Of course the down side is that you must spend the necessary time to properly keyframe the objects and the replacement slides must necessarily have the same aspect ratios and pixel dimensions as those in the template or it probably would not be worth putting in the time creating the template in the first place.

There are indeed other ways of approaching this using masks, etc., but since you are really pressed for time right now, the "best" way to proceed is the way which makes more intuitive sense to you.

Best regards,

Lin

[Tappaholic]

Hi Lin and all, Wow, what great responses to my continuing issues of mine. Thanks so much, Lin, for taking the time to do the sample show for me. This is exactly what I want to do. This is very helpful. I just need to understand the 'layers' to the image. I think for now, I am just going to make duplicates of the slides and add or subtract the individual pics and allow them to fade in and out. Since I am just learning this program, and it's many features, it will take a little, no a lot, more time to know how to get around in it. Lin, I did link to the site at the bottom of your note, (http://www.learntomakeslideshows.net) and see that I have lots to enjoy as soon as I have just a bit more time! Thanks again to all for helping me --- I really do appreciate it. Sue

[xahu34]

The method described by Peter and in my first post really is a simple one. In my PTE workshops I sometimes call it the idiot's method. But it is by no means idiotic! OK, you have to create more slides, but on the other hand, you save time as you do not have to program key points. If you build up a more complex scene, start with the final view and go backwards. One of the major advantages of the "idiot's method" is the ease of synchronization. Not too many people who publish their work in this forum actually take care of this aspect. But the overall attraction of a show rises if you place the transitions (changes of images) according to the rhythm of the music. Doing this job by placing key points inside the O&A window isn't that funny. It's much easier to drag transition points in the timeline

Regards,

Xaver

[Tappaholic]

Hi Xaver, Thanks for your response. When I'm trying to synchronize the music to the slide, where should the high point or beat of music go in the slide if the transition is fading in? Should it be when the new image is totally visible? I would like to start off with doing this properly, so as to not have to unlearn later. There is so much to remember, but I would like to do the best that I can from the beginning. Thanks, Sue

[Guest Yachtsman1]

Hi Xaver, Thanks for your response. When I'm trying to synchronize the music to the slide, where should the high point or beat of music go in the slide if the transition is fading in? Should it be when the new image is totally visible? I would like to start off with doing this properly, so as to not have to unlearn later. There is so much to remember, but I would like to do the best that I can from the beginning. Thanks, Sue

It depends on your music & type of show, if you are fading your images, it isn't that important, however if you have a fast pace, you need to set your transition to none, quick, then in the timeline view, drag the image flags to coincide with the high spikes of the waveform. It's easier to do than explain. I use version 7.07 so if you have a later version it may differ but the principle is the same. If you search my posts there is a tutorial on how I do it in 7.07. B)/>

Yachtsman1.

[xahu34]

Hi Sue,

Typically I concentrate on beat no 1 in the bar (measure). In many cases (but not always) you can see it in the waveform. To some extend, it is a matter of taste if you place the start or the end of a transition to this point. I tend to place the start of a transition to beat 1, in particular in cases of crossfades. In most cases, my transitions do not last longer than 2 seconds. So you notice the point when they start.

If you like very long transition times, the position of the transition may be not that important.

In cases of animated transitions (e.g. the new image zooms from zero to its final size) I like it if the end of the animation coincides with the beat.

There isn't a general rule rule that works for all situations. Transition times should be chosen according to the character of the music. Listen carefully to the music while watching your transitions.

Regards and good luck for your synchronization

Xaver

[Tappaholic]

To all the experts who have helped me, I am so thankful. I am working on my project, keeping in mind all that I have learned from you. I think that I took on a lot, with so many slides (over 650) for this project, which I am paring down a bit. I have done over 100, and did a preview to see how it looks on the TV, which has been very helpful. As the project is of a vacation over 40 years ago, it was exciting for me and my husband to 'relive the experience'. It was a challenging effort, as I had to scan the slides and negatives, then clean and edit them in PS, before I could even begin to put together the slideshow. I love what PTE can do, and hope to continue with other shows with the rest of the slides (over 3000) of vacations & family events that I have already scanned. I think this will be a 1 year project. I have many digital pictures that will be so much easier to work with, so may play with them first.

Maybe someday I can share something at http://www.beechbrook.com/pte/ when I have the confidence to do so. I hope so! There are so many experts who have posted there, and it has been an enjoyment of mine over many years to enjoy watching them.

Thanks again, Sue

[shirleyhogan]

Hi Sue,

One way you can achieve the "floating look" on a backdrop is to use PTE's "drop shadow" feature (Objects and Animations screen - Common Tab - Check "Drop Shadow" then click on "Customize" to choose opacity, angle, size and position of shadowing) - example below from one of my photos:

Best regards,

Lin

Thank you so much, Lin, for this explanation (and thank you, Sue, for your question). I love how that looks and have been trying for years to figure out how to do it. Now, is there anyway to save a "floating look" slide as a JPEG?

[Lin Evans]

Hi Shirley,

Right now, the only way to save a slide to a jpeg is by using a screen capture tool. This, of course, will only save the slide at the screen resolution.

There have been discussions about this in the past and I believe the reason that such a feature has not been implemented was to protect the images from theft. However, I myself believe that being able to save a screen to a jpg could be a very nice "optional" feature which users might want to add to the Navigation Bar. One of the present optional features of the Navigation Bar (in the Air or Sky style) is to be able to "print." Adding a feature to allow a "save as jpg" should not be terribly difficult.

If you wish, why not suggest this on the forum in the "Ideas and Suggestions for Next Version" and I will endorse your suggestion. Be sure and suggest that the entire screen including shadows, backdrop and such be saved. It would necessarily have to be still done at screen resolution I think, but still would be a very nice feature. There is a Windows Screen Capture feature in some versions of Windows, I think. I have never used it and prefer to use software such as HyperSnap or Snagit where you have the ability to carefully crop before saving.

Best regards,

Lin

[shirleyhogan]

Hi Shirley,

Right now, the only way to save a slide to a jpeg is by using a screen capture tool. This, of course, will only save the slide at the screen resolution.

There have been discussions about this in the past and I believe the reason that such a feature has not been implemented was to protect the images from theft. However, I myself believe that being able to save a screen to a jpg could be a very nice "optional" feature which users might want to add to the Navigation Bar. One of the present optional features of the Navigation Bar (in the Air or Sky style) is to be able to "print." Adding a feature to allow a "save as jpg" should not be terribly difficult.

If you wish, why not suggest this on the forum in the "Ideas and Suggestions for Next Version" and I will endorse your suggestion. Be sure and suggest that the entire screen including shadows, backdrop and such be saved. It would necessarily have to be still done at screen resolution I think, but still would be a very nice feature. There is a Windows Screen Capture feature in some versions of Windows, I think. I have never used it and prefer to use software such as HyperSnap or Snagit where you have the ability to carefully crop before saving.

Best regards,

Lin

Thanks Lin,

I will make that suggestion. I really appreciate all the help you give the newbies on the forum (although I'm not new in the length of time I've been using, and loving, PTE, I'm still new in my abilities and knowledge.) You have been a great help to me.