Photography continues to change at a rapid pace. While once a luxury reserved for the upper class, it is increasingly more accessible by the day. Now, out of the estimated 1.4 trillion pictures taken in 2020, 75% of those photos are taken with cell phones. With the addition of social media, the amount of images we see per day compared to just 10 years ago has grown exponentially. Naturally, the photos we choose to use in the presentation space must also adapt accordingly to remain effective. Presentation photography can be challenging to navigate, so we’ll be highlighting three key considerations on which to focus for guidance.
Breathability
“Breathing room” as it relates to composition is the space between the subject and the top and bottom edges of your square/rectangle, as well as the left and right-hand sides. In most cases, you will want to leave enough room so that your subject doesn’t feel restrained by placing it too close to an edge. When designing your presentation and choosing a photo for a specific page, you must also designate the amount of information that needs to be communicated.
When your content remains minimal, that opens the door for your photography to take center stage. In those situations, photography can be busier and tell a more compelling story. With heavy text content, the image chosen must allow for much more significant breathability. Communication can easily be overwhelming–presentation photography should complement the narrative, not detract from it. Since we know a picture says 1000 words, try keeping your verbiage minimal where possible, allowing the presenter to fill in the blanks.
Resolution
With the sheer volume of high quality images people view in a day, low quality images stick out like a sore thumb and really affect the overall quality level of a presentation. Clear, high resolution images should be the foremost guiding criterion for presentation photography. Quite simply, poor quality or blurry photography impacts the appearance of professionalism in your presentation. It’s important to note that this serves as a reflection of the speaker, and furthermore the company represented.
When speaking to Microsoft PowerPoint specifically, no image should be under 100ppi or pixels per inch for a live setting. Remember, your presentations will be displayed on a large screen and anything that is under 100 pixels per inch will look pixelated. If you’re using PowerPoint 2016 or newer, the default image resolution is already set to high fidelity. If your image is showing up blurry, do a quick search on settings to change, as there are many workarounds to try.
Emotion
Photography has the power to change a person’s state of mind. Whether the mood of an image is happy, sad can be affected by whether it is dark or light. Think to yourself, “am I provoked to do or change something after seeing what I just saw?” The ultimate goal of presentation photography is to pave the way for a change of view.
Pay close attention to facial expressions, shirt colors and even the weather in each photograph. All of these things communicate something. If you know what spurs your specific audience toward action, lean into that when choosing images.
While each photo tells a story, it’s important to use that narrative to your advantage. Sometimes something as simple as a new image will transform a slide and communicate more clearly. Take some time to really figure out what each image is saying in your presentation, and don’t be afraid to swap out a couple if they aren’t effective. As communication experts, Ethos3 is always here to help you understand what your presentation is saying. Reach out for a free quote today!
