Microsoft released Zoom with a lot of great formatting options and features for linked thumbnails. Here is a list of several tips & tricks we learned working with the Zoom thumbnails.

When creating a Slide Zoom (link to a specific slide, not a section), you can drag and drop a slide from the left navigation pane onto any slide!

Thumbnails have dynamic live content. For example:

1. Create a Summary Zoom
2. Update one of the link slides (in this case, add a giant pink circle)
3. Navigation slide thumbnail is instantly updated with the new slide content (amazing!)

Any Zoom thumbnail can use a different image. Much like a video Poster Frame image, a Zoom thumbnail can be set to any external image.

1. Select a thumbnail
2. Either right-click thumbnail and select CHANGE IMAGE > CHANGE IMAGE or go to FORMAT > ZOOM OPTIONS > CHANGE IMAGE > CHANGE IMAGE
3. In the pop up dialog, select any external image and OK to change thumbnail image

If the custom image is not wanted, it is easy to return the thumbnail to using the slide image. Just right click Zoom thumbnail and select CHANGE IMAGE > RESET IMAGE or go to FORMAT > ZOOM OPTIONS > CHANGE IMAGE > RESET IMAGE.

Also, any image styling options, such as drop shadows, outline, bevel, rotate, 3D perspective, etc., can be applied to a thumbnail. Note: 3D perspective is an example of a formatting option that can be applied, but does not always provide a nice transition effect.

Remove Background of thumbnails. This is a great design feature! Using the FORMAT > ZOOM OPTIONS section > ZOOM BACKGROUND and only the content on the slide will remain a part of the thumbnail. All slide master content (background image, logos, etc.) are removed from the thumbnail.

As example, here I have added a .png image of flower pots on the slide (and the flower background is set as the background image).

Next I added a SUMMARY ZOOM, which adds a new navigation slide with thumbnail navigation images of each slide selected.

Selecting the right thumbnail and going to FORMAT > ZOOM OPTIONS section > ZOOM BACKGROUND to do an image ‘remove background’ effect.

All content that is on the master layout and/or set background image are removed from the thumbnail and what is left on the navigation slide is a .png with transparent background that has only the content actually on the slide (this is great!!).

 There are a lot of styling options and “hidden” features. Enjoy finding creative ways to develop non-linear presentations using Zoom!

-Troy @ TLC

The PowerPoint Morph transition is PowerPoint’s best new animation feature!

We have been leveraging the fantastic new transition in lots of presentation projects since its release, including using Morph for animations. Here is another example where we used Morph as the animation effect. Our client wanted to show the above three statements. The real request was to emphasize each as they were addressed. Our first step was to convert the provided bullet list into a dynamic visual; the end result was the above slide.

For the “emphasize each” request, using the Morph transition as our animation, we created a dynamic “flip” animation effect. It also was something that did not look like “PowerPoint.” Below is a video of the final animation effect:

• After the slide layout was approved, we duplicated the slide 3X.
• On the first slide, we added the animated entrance effect for the 3 circles and text.
• On the second, third and fourth slides, we simply horizontally flipped each circle. No animation on these slides. The Morph transition created the nice twirl, or flip, animation.
• Done!

– Troy @ TLC

This is a slide makeover from a recent presentation design project. For the project, we discussed the styling, end use, presenter style and content with our client. After developing a custom PowerPoint template, visual styling rules, and then a speaker support presentation based on the provided presenter script.

Not only did we learn a lot about Probiotics, but we developed slides like this that simplified 4 paragraphs of text into a clear visual message.

-Troy @ TLC

Finally, Leap Year explained (thanks to Sara and some more great Morph animation use!).
Happy Leap Year, February 29th!

-Sara @ TLC

We let the TLC Creative Presentation Design Team loose to experiment with PowerPoint 2016’s new Morph transition/animation – the results are fun, great and inspirational!

Here is our design team’s Morph ideas compiled and output as a video.

– The Design Team @ TLC

Adobe InDesign is our preferred layout application for print design projects. But it is not a widely used application in Office environments. Microsoft Word can be difficult to work with in documents that need to be flexible with content layouts. Design project requests for a “PowerPoint Document,” a PowerPoint file designed specifically for PDF or laser print output (not slide shows), continue to grow. And applying our formal print design background helps these documents stand out from “standard” Word and PowerPoint styling and be a visually “professional” print design piece.

This single sided print piece (client content removed) is an example of a PowerPoint Document design project.

• Letter size page (8.5×11″)
• Portrait orientation
• Clean, easy to read and professional print layout (content flow, smaller font sizes, alignment, etc.)
• Off-slide indicators of editable text areas end user can modify
• Customize PowerPoint template attributes to help maintain corporate branding guides (customized color scheme, default fonts, default shape attributes, etc.)

-Troy @ TLC

PowerPoint does not have anything to do with the physical curve of the presentation. Instead, the curve is done by all the great AV crews that we have the opportunity to work with. The 16×9 presentations are nicely designed, but have no special setup.

The Ultrawide background is a custom PowerPoint template setup to match the projection pixel count with images and content strategically designed so as not to interfere with standard 16×9 slides and IMAG areas. TLC Creative Services plans with production companies in advance to ensure all layers are coordinated. These are the presentation design projects that our team really enjoys!

– Troy @ TLC

As a design project for an awards show, TLC Creative was asked to develop a video loop to play on a custom podium that has a 16×9 monitor in portrait – very cool! We story-boarded the visual concept and motion effects (using PowerPoint as the storyboard canvas), then after client approval we moved into Photoshop, Illustrator and video editing (Premiere and After Effects), using elements from two provided event collateral pieces and a lot of creativity. The final piece was designed to coordinate with the event theme, have subtle motion that would not be distracting, work with the staging and seamlessly loop for the duration of the event. The full loop was several minutes, here is a 30 second clip of the animation.

– Troy @ TLC

Here’s another great client and example of a provided slide vs. the presentation makeover slides that were used in the final presentation. In this instance, after reading the script, we opted to divide the single slide into two more visually dynamic slides and take a long section of talking and break it into two visuals.

– Troy @ TLC

This is a print design project that spanned much of last year where we developed a collector series of large (24″x36″) posters featuring classic WWE superstars. Definitely makes things fun at TLC Creative when you walk around and have one designer working on a presentation about life saving medical treatments and the next designer developing a larger than life Hulk Hogan! Hope you were able to get to the 4 special WWE live events and collect all 4!!

– Troy @ TLC