|
Introduction
Microsoft's Photo Story 3 is a
program that allows you to create videos from your still photographs. Its wizard
format guides you through all your choices: add titles, add music, add
narration. It's easy.
You can
download Picture Story from the Microsoft website for free. Note that it
requires the Windows XP operating system.
Import Pictures
- Click the icon to
access the program or go to Start and choose PictureStory.
- On the first screen "Begin a new Story" is
already selected. Click Next.
- Click the Import Pictures button to import
your pictures to the program. You can select more than one picture at a time
by holding down the left mouse button and dragging the cursor downward.
- When the picture file
names appear in the File Name box, click OK.
- The pictures are arranged along the screen
in the order you imported them.
- You can drag them
forward or backward if you want to change the order. Click
Next.
Add Titles
- On this screen you add
text to a slide. You may want to put a title at the beginning, for example,
"Our Ski Trip".
- To add text, click the
picture to which you would like to add the text. Then start typing.
- Change the color, size
or orientation of the text using the icons above the text box. Click
Next.
Add Narration
- If you have a
microphone attached to your computer you can audio narration to any picture.
- Highlight the picture
to which you want to add audio. Click the button with the red dot to start
recording. Click the button with the black square to end it.
- You can add up to 5
minutes of narration to each picture. The picture will remain on the screen
for the length of time of the audio.
- When you've completed
any narration, Click
Next.
Add Music
- On this screen you
import any music you would like to have as a background to the video.
- Click Select Music and
browse for the mp3, wma or wav file of your song.
- Click Preview to hear
and see the video thus far.
- Note:
You can not use itunes or other such proprietary file types here. You must
convert them to one of the approved file types: mp3, wma or wav. This
can be done using a media player like Microsoft Media Player or RealPlayer.
When you've imported your music you can preview the effect by clicking
Preview. When done, click
Next.
Save Your Video and Project
- On this screen you can
save your video file in a number of formats. For most purposes, click the
first option, Save your Story on Your Computer.
- Click the Browse
button to specify where to save the file. You can also give the file a
different name from the one assigned to it, "PhotoStory1".
- When you are ready to
create the file, click
Next.
- A dialog box labeled
"Building Your Story" displays and keeps you informed of the processes it is
performing.
- When the file has been
successfully created a new screen appears. Click View Your Story to see the
finished product.
- Click "Save Project"
to save the project. You can open the project later and make edits to the
video. You can not edit the video itself.
Put Your Video on DVD
- The file you created
can be played on any computer that has Windows Media Player or another
player than that can play wmv type files.
- For playback on a DVD
player you can put the file on a DVD by using such DVD creation
programs as Nero or Sonic My DVD.
|
