Computing

10 Tips About PowerPoint Graphics

Tips When Using Graphics in PowerPoint 2003

From Wendy Russell, former About.com Guide

Graphics such as drawings, clip art or graphs are frequently used in PowerPoint to get the point across visually. These ten PowerPoint graphics tips will aid you in creating a better PowerPoint presention.

Related Article - 10 Tips About PowerPoint 2007 Graphics

1. Add Clip Art and Pictures in PowerPoint 2003

Add PowerPoint clip art graphics © Wendy Russell

PowerPoint offers you a number of different ways to add clip art or other graphics to a presentation.

2. Add Background Colors and Graphics in PowerPoint

PowerPoint graphics as slide backgrounds © Wendy Russell

Add your own picture or other graphic object as a background to your PowerPoint slides.

3. Align Graphic Objects on PowerPoint Slides

Align PowerPoint graphics © Wendy Russell

The alignment of graphic objects is a matter of a few simple steps in PowerPoint. You can line up graphic objects horizontally or vertically -- to the left, right, top or bottom -- in relation to each other or relative to the slide.

4. Excel Charts in PowerPoint

Excel charts as PowerPoint graphics © Wendy Russell

Charts can add a little extra punch to your PowerPoint presentation instead of listing bullet points of data. Any chart created in Excel can be copied and pasted into your PowerPoint presentation. The added bonus is that you can have the chart update with any changes made to the Excel data.

5. Detailed Family Tree Charts in PowerPoint

Family tree chart using PowerPoint graphics © Wendy Russell

PowerPoint makes it easy to create a family tree chart of your family's roots. You can make it as simple or as complicated as you want. Simply add more pages to extend the family tree to more generations.

See Also -
• Create a Simple Family Tree Chart (great project for younger children)
• PowerPoint Video - Create a Family Tree in PowerPoint

6. Create a Watermark on PowerPoint Slides

Watermarks can be as simple as a company logo placed in a corner of the slide to brand it, or can be a large image that is used as the background for the slide. In the case of a large image, the watermark is often faded so that it does not distract the audience from the content of your slides.

7. Hide Background Graphics When Printing PowerPoint Slides

Using a design template can add an attractive appeal to your presentation. However, for printing purposes, often the background graphics that look so good onscreen, hinder the readability of the slides on the handouts.

8. Select Hidden Objects on PowerPoint Slides

Sometimes objects are hidden behind other graphic objects on a slide because PowerPoint graphics may be stacked on top of each other. How do you select the hidden or smaller object that is on the bottom, without moving the top object?

9. Graphics vs Text - When Should You Use Them on PowerPoint Slides?

A reader asked -
"What makes an effective PowerPoint presentation in terms of graphics and text? How many of them should be used on the pages?"

10. Image Maps and Hotspots on PowerPoint Slides

An image map is a graphic object that has many hotspots or invisible hyperlinks to other objects or websites. For example - in a photograph showing a variety of women's clothing, if you clicked on the dress, you would be sent to another slide or website containing all the info about the dresses; when you clicked on the hat, you would be sent to the slide or website about hats ... and so on.