Images have a huge impact on the storytelling element of any presentation. Pictures can move an audience to become motivated, inspired, calm, fearful, and many other emotions. They do have a downside in the digital landscape, however, in the amount of memory they require. Adding images to your PowerPoint can increase your file size exponentially. Thankfully, we’ve found a quick and efficient way to handle this. Once you learn how to routinely compress pictures in PowerPoint, you’ll save yourself lots of loading time.
Compress Pictures to Reduce Powerpoint File Size
Our Art Director, Kyle is here to take you through the finer points of this time-saving technique. He’ll show you exactly how to do this in the desktop version of PowerPoint.
Step-by-Step Tutorial
Here are the steps Kyle speaks to above written out for your viewing pleasure.
1. Open your PowerPoint file.
2. Select a slide that contains an image or picture.
3. Select the image or picture.
4. Click the Picture Format ribbon at the top of the screen.
5. Click Compress Pictures (to the right of the Transparency icon).
6. Click the Picture Quality drop-down and choose On-Screen (150 ppi).
7. Select the checkbox to Delete Cropped Areas of Pictures to reduce the overall size of the image or picture in the presentation.
8. Apply to all pictures in this file is default and recommended for a smaller file. If you only want to edit the currently selected picture, uncheck that.
9. Click OK.
Items to Note
As Kyle mentioned in the video, it’s important to keep in mind how you’ll be utilizing this specific slide deck when deciding which picture quality option you choose. For decks that will be routinely printed, we’d suggest choosing Print (220ppi) instead of the On-Screen (150ppi). Additionally, if this file needs to be very small or will only be circulated in emails and never presented on a big screen, you could choose email (96ppi), however we rarely recommend that option. Remember, you can choose different settings for each image, or you can choose all pictures in this file to apply your settings to every image. Finally, if you don’t have your images saved elsewhere, it might be a good idea to un-check delete cropped areas of pictures, as you’ll lose the cropped section forever. However, checking that box does allow for a smaller file size overall.
Think outside of the box when experiencing hurdles in your presentation creation. Something as simple as utilizing the compress pictures tool can make a big difference in your day-to-day operations. No more headaches transferring, and no more waiting to load. We like to think that if you’re experiencing an issue with your presentation, we’ve likely found a solution somewhere along the way. We work with presenters every day just like you and have a full suite of presentation services to offer. Reach out today with any questions, and we’ll find the best solution we offer for your specific situation. Happy presenting!
