iPhoto Slideshows

We are getting closer and closer to the end of the school year -- a time for field days, awards assemblies, year books, and, of course, the end of year slideshow! My favorite tool for creating a quick and easy slideshow is iPhoto. I like it because it does most of the work for me. We all know how hectic the end of the year gets, so anything that is time-saving is very helpful.

So, how do you get started with your iPhoto slideshow? First, gather all the photos you want to have in your slideshow. This is the hardest part, especially if you are trying to gather photos from other people. ;) Add all of the photos you want in your slideshow to iPhoto by simply clicking and dragging them onto the iPhoto icon on your dock. Save time by selecting all of the photos and dragging them to the iPhoto icon all at once. iPhoto will open and take a few moments to load all the photos you just added. They will then show up in iPhoto as your last import.

Next you will need to select all of the photos you just imported. (The shortcut for selecting all is Command A.) iPhoto will highlight these photos in yellow.

With the photos selected, click on the + sign at the bottom of your screen and select Album, then New Album. Type the name you want to give the album, and type the return key.

The photos you have gathered for your slideshow are now stored as a group in iPhoto, making them easy to access later using the navigation on the left side bar. If you have other photos, either already in iPhoto or anywhere on your computer, that you want to add to your slideshow, simply click and drag them onto the name of your new album.

Now that all of your photos are gathered and in one place, it's time to make your slideshow! Go to your album by clicking on its name in the left side bar. Once again, select all of the photos in your album (Command A). When they are all yellow again, click on the plus sign at the bottom of your screen, and this time select Slideshow, then New Slideshow.

iPhoto will automatically create a new slideshow project for you in your left side bar. You will notice that all of the photos are shown across the top of your show. You can click and drag these photos to rearrange their order if you want to.

Using the tool bar across the bottom of your screen, you can instantly play your slideshow! As you watch, if you decide there are things you would like to change about the show, simply move your mouse and a tool bar will show up. Click on the settings icon, and you have access to all kinds of music, style, transition, and caption options.

Your slideshow is all set and ready to play. If you want to keep the slideshow to play later, you can click the Export button and send your show to your iTunes library where you can enjoy it again and again!