Slideshows

There are several different ways to create a slideshow for the web, each with its own shortcomings. You’ll have to decide which way is best for you.

Slideshow tips

  1. Your slideshow shouldn’t be more than two minutes long (or 2-3 MB).
  2. Use some editorial judgement when choosing images. Don’t put together a slideshow of inanimate objects like buildings, signs or products on a shelf. Use pictures of people.
  3. Take your own photographs. Don’t borrow images from other web sites. If you get an image from one of your sources, you must get the photographer’s permission to use it. You should must have proof of this permission for your professor. Unauthorized use of other people’s work (even charts and graphs) is called plagiarism and has very serious consequences.
  4. If you add music to your slideshow, it also cannot be copyrighted. Search for music that can be used freely at Creative Commons.
  5. Don’t use PowerPoint to create slideshows. PowerPoint’s slideshows are far too large to use on the web.
  6. Slideshows created in Final Cut must be exported to QuickTime. You can make them a little bigger than your other videos by using the custom size 480 x 360.
  7. Don’t embed slideshows if they are more than 2 MB. You can link to the slide show (covered in posting slideshows) and have it open in a blank window. To check the file size on a Mac, click once on the .mov file and press Apple+I.

Examples of good slideshows

  1. The New York Times: Re-enacting History: The Oneida Nation (slide show)
  2. The New York Times: Catering to a Generational Divide (audio slide show)
  3. MSN: Picture Stories - Lending science a paw (slide show with optional audio)
  4. Digital Journalist: Wail of the Wayang

Read more about multimedia from the Web Style Guide.