what is graphics in presentation

Critical PowerPoint Shortcuts – Claim Your FREE Training Module and Get Your Time Back!

PowerPoint Graphics: How to Improve Your Presentations w/ Graphics

• PowerPoint Tutorials
• Pictures, Icons, Videos, Etc.
• Presentation Design
• August 21, 2018

If you’ve ever touched a PowerPoint slide, chances are that you’ve already used PowerPoint graphics already.

But you may have questions: How do you find good graphics? How do you manipulate them correctly? And how do you customize them?

That’s what this article will answer for you.

What is a PowerPoint graphic?

There seems to be a wide range of things that people label as a graphic for PowerPoint.

Here at Nuts & Bolts, we define a graphic in PowerPoint as any image that is not a picture. This includes SmartArt, which is a type of native PowerPoint graphic and has special attributes.

A PowerPoint graphic most typically refers to a grouping of shapes into an image, commonly referred to as vectors.

From PowerPoint’s perspective, vectors are considered to be shapes – and that means that you can customize them as you would any rectangle, circle, or freeform shape… giving you complete freedom to create the visual you need.

Vector graphics can come in the following file types:

• EPS (Encapsulated PostScript – create by Adobe – this is perhaps the most common vector image format)

However, PowerPoint will only accept certain file types. To see which ones, go to the section on how to use vectors in PowerPoint below.

Why use a graphic in PowerPoint

As the representation of an idea, a graphic is the perfect way to help your audience immediately visualize and grasp a concept you are sharing with them.

On top of that, it’s a great way to add some flair to any presentation and a quick way to take it up a notch.

Graphics can be better than pictures in some situations, when you need to be able to edit elements in a visual. For example, maybe you need to remove, add or re-color a certain item.

You cannot do this with pictures – but with the right graphic (and in particular a vector graphic), you could potentially customize it to your heart’s content.

Where to get free graphics for PowerPoint

Getting free graphics for PowerPoint is easy – you just have to know where to look.

Here are our favorite 2 places to find free vector graphics for PowerPoint:

• Freepik – Great database with tons of very high-quality and modern icons, flat icons, vectors, and PSD files to use. Freepik does require you to give them credit if you use their material, but they make it very easy with a simple html code.
• Pixabay – Awesome site for 100% free and Creative Commons CC0 licensed images, illustrations, vectors, and videos.

To learn where to get more free PowerPoint graphics, images, videos, etc. check out this list of  our favorite PowerPoint resources . Another way to get free vector graphics is to create them from scratch. There are two tools that can help you do this:

• Text-to-Outline by YouPresent – Allows you to convert text into vectors/shapes, which you can then format any way you like in PowerPoint.
• Vector Magic – Creates a vector out of any image…truly magic!

Keep in mind that because these are all free methods for finding vector graphics for PowerPoint, you will be limited in what you find or create. If you want a very specific and professional-looking vector, you may have to go to a paid service to purchase well-designed graphics that suit your need better.

Where to buy graphics for PowerPoint

By far the easiest way to get professional & unique graphics onto your slides (especially now that ClipArt is gone) is to use a service like GetMyGraphics .

They are custom-built graphics designed for PowerPoint. All you need to do is download and insert them onto your slide and then tweak them like you would SmartArt.

Although this is a paid service, we’ve found that we’ve reused these graphics again and again, so we see it as a good investment in sharper looking slides.

How to use vector graphics in PowerPoint

Using vectors in PowerPoint depends on what file type you have. If you have an older version of PowerPoint (2013 and earlier), you can insert the following vector files types into PowerPoint:

If you have Office 365, you can no longer insert EPS files. However, you can still use EMF files, and you can also insert SVG files (except for on a Mac).

If you have an EPS file and can’t import it into your version of PowerPoint, check out our article on how to import EPS files into PowerPoint .

Note:  If you’re trying to use a file type that is not supported by your version of PowerPoint, you can try converting your file into the correct file type.

For a really good tutorial on how to convert vectors into usable PowerPoint objects without Adobe software, check out Microsoft MVP  Dave Paradi’s post on finding and using vector images in PowerPoint.

Once you have an SVG file downloaded onto your computer, you’ll want to insert it into your presentation.

There are two ways to insert a vector file onto your PowerPoint slide:

Method #1: Drag the file from wherever it is sitting on your computer and drag it onto your slide.

Method #2: Go to the Insert tab in the Ribbon and select ‘Pictures’ (make sure to select the ‘Pictures’ icon and not the ‘Online Pictures’ icon). Then find your vector file and click on ‘Open.’

Note: If you have PowerPoint 2016 with Office 365, you have a new object class, called Icons. These are also vector files (SVG).

You can insert them by going to the Insert tab in the Ribbon and selecting ‘Icons’ (or using this shortcut: Alt, N, Y1). You can learn more about the icons feature in this Office blog article .

Once you have a vector file inserted on your slide, you can manipulate its various pieces.

To do that, you’ll need to ungroup it twice. To ungroup a vector image, select it and then use one of the following methods:

• Hit the ungroup shortcut: Ctrl + Shift + G
• Right-click the vector and select ‘Group’ and then ‘Ungroup’
• Go to the Drawing Tools > Format tab in the Ribbon, select ‘Group’ and then ‘Ungroup’

A pop-up box will appear, asking you if you want to ungroup it. Click on ‘Yes.’

And now you have a series of shapes (instead of a picture) that you can edit and format however you like, just like for regular PowerPoint shapes.

Note:   Keep in mind that some things might come out strangely as vectors in PowerPoint:

• Gradients and shadows
• Lines (the lines will likely come out as one object and may lose their original weight)
• Complex artwork, such as sketching and other artistic effects

Some things you can do with your vector images now include:

• Change the fill color
• Add an outline with a custom weight
• Move and resize pieces of the vector
• Edit the points of certain pieces to change even the shape of it

And much more!

What’s next?

Related articles, about the author.

Popular Tutorials

• How to Strikethrough Text (l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶) in Word, Excel & PowerPoint
• How to Make Animated Fireworks in PowerPoint (Step-by-Step)
• Strikethrough Shortcut (l̶i̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶) for Word, Excel & PowerPoint
• How to Create a Flash Card Memory Game in PowerPoint (Like Jeopardy)
• Keyboard Shortcuts Not Working: Solved

PowerPoint Tutorial Categories

• Strategies & Opinions
• Shortcuts & Hacks
• New Features
• Miscellaneous
• Charts & Data Viz

We help busy professionals save hours and gain peace of mind, with corporate workshops, self-paced courses and tutorials for PowerPoint and Word.

Work With Us

• Corporate Training
• Presentation & Template Design
• Courses & Downloads
• PowerPoint Articles
• Word Articles
• Productivity Resources

Find a Tutorial

• Free Training
• For Businesses

We help busy office workers save hours and gain peace of mind, with tips, training and tutorials for Microsoft PowerPoint and Word.

Master Critical PowerPoint Shortcuts – Secure Your FREE Training Module and Save Valuable Time!

⌛ Master time-saving expert techniques.

🔥 Create powerful presentations.

🚀 Propel your career to new heights.

We value your privacy – we keep your info safe.

Discover PowerPoint Hacks Loved by Industry Giants - KKR, AmEx, HSBC!

Over 114,880 professionals in finance, marketing and sales have revolutionized their PPT skills with our proven methods. 

Gain FREE access to a full module of our premium PowerPoint training program – Get started today!

We hate spam too and promise to keep your information safe.

You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Facebook . To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.

• Trending Now
• Foundational Courses
• Data Science
• Practice Problem
• Machine Learning
• System Design
• DevOps Tutorial

What are Presentation Graphics?

• Graphical Representation of Data
• What is Raster Graphics?
• What is Web Graphics ?
• How to Edit a Powerpoint Presentation?
• What is Graphics Software?
• Diagrammatic and Graphic Presentation of Data
• What is a Projector?
• Graphics Monitors and Workstations
• Motion Graphics
• Projections in Computer Graphics
• What is a Graphics Tablet? Uses and Working
• What are 3D User Interfaces?
• How to Add Audio to Powerpoint Presentation
• Graphics Tab in Apple Safari Browser
• What is Java AWT Graphics?
• What is an Infographic?
• What is Graphic Design?
• Introduction to Computer Graphics
• Presentation Layer in OSI model

Pre-requisites: Introduction to Computer Graphics

Graphics are defined as any sketch or a drawing or a special network that pictorially represents some meaningful information. Computer Graphics is used where a set of images needs to be manipulated or the creation of the image in the form of pixels and is drawn on the computer. Computer Graphics can be used in digital photography, film, entertainment, electronic gadgets, and all other core technologies which are required. It is a vast subject and area in the field of computer science. Computer Graphics can be used in UI design, rendering, geometric objects, animation, and many more. 

Presentation graphics provides predefined backgrounds and simple page layouts to help in the creation of slides. These slides can be moved automatically within seconds.

Slides: 

Slides mean we have text, graphics, audio clips, video clips, animations, and other effects   Presentation graphics is also known as Presentation Software. The best example of presentation graphics is Microsoft PowerPoint. 

In recent days we have a new presentation tool that is: our Web browser and that is for creating Web pages, like Microsoft’s FrontPage and Adobe’s PageMill. 

Rules to Design Presentation:

• Keep it simple: Make it simple to understand. It only contains information regarding your topic.
• Correct Spelling:   We have to be careful with the spelling that we have written.
• Consistency: There is need to be continuous flow from one slide to another.
• Don’t put too much on a Slide: Don’t write too much. just give a brief description and important points.
• Use Fonts Properly: Only you can use two font styles in the presentation.
• Find Your Equipment: First, you have to be confident with your topic and details about it.

Uses: 

Presentation graphics programs are mainly concerned with the display of graphs and charts but now allow users to attach anything from text to animations. When Compared to other programs like Excel, PowerPoint follows a slideshow format.

Applications:  

In the following areas we can use presentation software:

• Google Slides
• Microsoft Office
• WPS Office 
• Photo Slideshow with Music

Advantages:

• Less Cost: The cost is low to use presentation software
• Logical Ideas: Tables and graphs are used to represent information then a logical order is created to give a clear idea for viewers.
• Acceptability: By using this busy person can easily get an idea about the topic.

Disadvantages:

• Time-taking process. It needs more time to prepare.
• Data can sometimes be lost.
• Errors and Mistakes can occur during design.

Please Login to comment...

Similar reads.

• Computer Graphics Basics
• Computer Graphics

Improve your Coding Skills with Practice

What kind of Experience do you want to share?

.css-1qrtm5m{display:block;margin-bottom:8px;text-transform:uppercase;font-size:14px;line-height:1.5714285714285714;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.35px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.35px;letter-spacing:-0.35px;font-weight:300;color:#606F7B;}@media (min-width:600px){.css-1qrtm5m{font-size:16px;line-height:1.625;-webkit-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-moz-letter-spacing:-0.5px;-ms-letter-spacing:-0.5px;letter-spacing:-0.5px;}} Best Practices The #1 rule for improving your presentation slides

by Tom Rielly • May 12, 2020

When giving presentations, either on a video conference call or in person, your slides, videos and graphics (or lack of them) can be an important element in helping you tell your story or express your idea. This is the first of a series of blog posts that will give you tips and tricks on how to perfect your visual presentations.

Your job as a presenter is to build your idea -- step-by-step -- in the minds of your audience members. One tool to do that is presentation graphics, such as slides and videos.

Why graphics for your presentation?

A common mistake is using slides or videos as a crutch, even if they don’t actually add anything to your presentation. Not all presentations need graphics. Lots of presentations work wonderfully with just one person standing on a stage telling a story, as demonstrated by many TED Talks.

You should only use slides if they serve a purpose: conveying scientific information, art, and things that are hard to explain without pictures. Once you have decided on using slides, you will have a number of decisions to make. We’ll help you with the basics of making a presentation that is, above all, clear and easy to understand. The most important thing to remember here is: less is more.

Less is so much more

You want to aim for the fewest number of slides, the fewest number of photos, the fewest words per slide, the least cluttered slides and the most white space on your slides. This is the most violated slide rule, but it is the secret to success. Take a look at these examples.

As you can see in the above example, you don’t need fancy backgrounds or extra words to convey a simple concept. If you take “Everything you need to know about Turtles”, and delete “everything you need to know about” leaving just “turtles”, the slide has become much easier for your audience to read, and tells the story with economy.

The above example demonstrates that a single image that fills the entire screen is far more powerful than a slide cluttered with images. A slide with too many images may be detrimental to your presentation. The audience will spend more mental energy trying to sort through the clutter than listening to your presentation. If you need multiple images, then put each one on its own slide. Make each image high-resolution and have it fill the entire screen. If the photos are not the same dimensions as the screen, put them on a black background. Don’t use other colors, especially white.

Your slides will be much more effective if you use the fewest words, characters, and pictures needed to tell your story. Long paragraphs make the audience strain to read them, which means they are not paying attention to you. Your audience may even get stressed if you move on to your next slide before they’ve finished reading your paragraph. The best way to make sure the attention stays on you is to limit word count to no more than 10 words per slide. As presentation expert Nancy Duarte says “any slide with more than 10 words is a document.” If you really do need a longer explanation of something, handouts or follow-up emails are the way to go.

Following a “less is more” approach is one of the simplest things you can do to improve your presentation visuals and the impact of your presentation overall. Make sure your visuals add to your presentation rather than distract from it and get your message across.

Ready to learn more about how to make your presentation even better? Get TED Masterclass and develop your ideas into TED-style talks.

© 2024 TED Conferences, LLC. All rights reserved. Please note that the TED Talks Usage policy does not apply to this content and is not subject to our creative commons license.

Understanding Graphics

Design For The Human Mind

Understanding Presentation Graphics

in Brainy Stuff

Although this piece of news could shock anyone involved in visual communication, I’ll say it anyway. It’s time to realize that audiences do not attend a presentation because of the slides. They attend because they want to hear what the speaker has to say.

With this in mind, let’s look at how and why an audience can benefit from presentation graphics. How can a designer or presenter know what to show on a slide? One straightforward approach is to first consider the purpose of the slide and then use a graphic that will meet your goal.

Meeting Your Goal

In their article, Visual-rhetoric Ethics (Manning and Amore), the authors developed a structure for thinking about visual strategies based on the rhetorical goals of philosopher Charles S. Pierce. In this approach, your visual strategy can encompass one or more of the following goals.

• Evoking Feelings : Through choice of color, typeface and other visual attributes, the purpose of your visual is to draw on the emotions. Visual strategies that correspond to this goal are called decoratives .
• Evoke Action: Another goal of presentation graphics can be to move an audience to take action. This is often done through the build of a bulleted list that will influence the audience to commit. These visual strategies are known as indicatives .
• Promote Understanding: A third reason for using visuals is to promote understanding through informative visuals like charts, graphs, diagrams and tables that express a concept. Visual strategies that promote understanding are considered informatives .

By identifying the purpose of the slide you can use this structure to ensure that your visual language is effectively communicating your goal.

Timing is Essential

It’s vital to leverage the synergy of a presentation and its corresponding visuals through perfect timing. Here’s why. Within the mind of your audience members, auditory information (flowing from the speaker) is most likely processed separately from visual information (projected from the slides). If the channels are synchronized, the audience can attend to one single concept.

If the presentation and slide graphics don’t match, the audience won’t know which to follow. If they attend to and process the words of the speaker, they’ll miss the point of the visual. If they focus on the graphic, they’ll fail to process the speaker’s words. If you don’t have a graphic for every point, simply turn the slide to black when discussing something unrelated. This is how you can avoid distracting the audience. See my article on splitting attention for more on this.

Enhance Meaning

Probably in the majority of presentations, the most important aspect of the slide visual is to promote and extend the audience’s grasp of the speaker’s words. This is usually accomplished with functional graphics that can add to and refine the internal knowledge structures or schemata of those in the audience.

For example, if a presenter such as myself, is explaining how we construct schemata as a framework for understanding, listeners might have a vague idea of what I mean. If I say, “Schemata help us generalize about the world, so your schemata for the concept house helps you recognize when a structure is a house,” they may still be slightly confused. If at the same time, I show a visualization of schemata for the concept house , it serves to clarify and refine the audience’s concept of internal knowledge structures.

Visualization of schemata for "house"

Every presentation involves a new audience and a nuanced topic, which means it’s incredibly important to think through the visual design of a talk each time it’s presented. If you determine the goal of each slide, identify a way to use a visual to promote meaning, and ensure the visual is synchronized with the presenter’s words, then you’ll be way ahead of the game.

Reference: Alan Manning and Nicole Amare, Visual-rhetoric Ethics: Beyond Accuracy and Injury. Technical Communication, volume 53, number 2, May 2006.

Related Article: How to Avoid Designs that Split Attention

Book Recommendation: Presentation Zen Design

Tagged as: presentations , slide graphics , slide visuals , slides

{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }

I can’t hear the presenter because I’ve shut down my audio channel while trying to visualize why paneling is connected to fireplace and porch is connected to interior and meals are connected to windows.

Hi Ed, Thanks for contributing. Well, you’ve got a totally different issue! Try meditation or yoga to get yourself singly focused =)

lol. In my haste maybe I sounded grouchy because I left out the smiley. I would definitely choose to hear you speak because I enjoy your blog . The reason I read it? I’m in instructional design and consider it essential to understand the concepts of data presentation so that I may make the best choices when designing instructional messages.

I definitely get the point of your post but in this particular case my attention has been split by trying to resolve why Spanish and Federalist are connected to Architecture but Victorian is not. 😉

Not grouchy at all. I thought it was funny. Um … that theoretical visualization of what a schemata might look like is really just theoretical. I was just foolin’ around with ideas. Next time I get into Illustrator, I’ll connect Victorian to Architecture so you can sleep at night =)

And yes, data presentation for instructional designers is super important. That’s how I often come at it too. I’m going to be speaking at a few eLearning events coming up – eLearning Guild and ASTD in 2011 so maybe we can chat about visual communication and cognitive science if you’re attending. Also, you might be interested in the Society of News Design because of the infographics. Best, Connie

Leave a Comment

Previous post: Guidelines for Designing Tables

Next post: Designing Interactions for a Positive Experience

When you know how people understand graphics, yours will be more effective. That's why I wrote Visual Language For Designers . This website is an extension of my book. Hope you enjoy it! -- Connie Malamed

Visual Design for Learning Professionals

Top reads last month.

• 10 Reasons to Use Color
• Guidelines for Designing Tables
• Visual Language of Timelines
• Information Display Tips
• Communicating with Animated Infographics

BROWSE BY TOPIC

• Brainy Stuff (12)
• Graphic Analysis (5)
• Reviews (1)
• Visual Design (16)
• Visualizations (7)

Copyright ©2024 Connie Malamed. All Rights Reserved.

We use essential cookies to make Venngage work. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.

Manage Cookies

Cookies and similar technologies collect certain information about how you’re using our website. Some of them are essential, and without them you wouldn’t be able to use Venngage. But others are optional, and you get to choose whether we use them or not.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

These cookies are always on, as they’re essential for making Venngage work, and making it safe. Without these cookies, services you’ve asked for can’t be provided.

Show cookie providers

• Google Login

Functionality Cookies

These cookies help us provide enhanced functionality and personalisation, and remember your settings. They may be set by us or by third party providers.

Performance Cookies

These cookies help us analyze how many people are using Venngage, where they come from and how they're using it. If you opt out of these cookies, we can’t get feedback to make Venngage better for you and all our users.

• Google Analytics

Targeting Cookies

These cookies are set by our advertising partners to track your activity and show you relevant Venngage ads on other sites as you browse the internet.

• Google Tag Manager
• Infographics
• Daily Infographics
• Popular Templates
• Accessibility
• Graphic Design
• Graphs and Charts
• Data Visualization
• Human Resources
• Beginner Guides

Blog Beginner Guides How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

How To Make a Good Presentation [A Complete Guide]

Written by: Krystle Wong Jul 20, 2023

A top-notch presentation possesses the power to drive action. From winning stakeholders over and conveying a powerful message to securing funding — your secret weapon lies within the realm of creating an effective presentation .  

Being an excellent presenter isn’t confined to the boardroom. Whether you’re delivering a presentation at work, pursuing an academic career, involved in a non-profit organization or even a student, nailing the presentation game is a game-changer.

In this article, I’ll cover the top qualities of compelling presentations and walk you through a step-by-step guide on how to give a good presentation. Here’s a little tip to kick things off: for a headstart, check out Venngage’s collection of free presentation templates . They are fully customizable, and the best part is you don’t need professional design skills to make them shine!

These valuable presentation tips cater to individuals from diverse professional backgrounds, encompassing business professionals, sales and marketing teams, educators, trainers, students, researchers, non-profit organizations, public speakers and presenters. 

No matter your field or role, these tips for presenting will equip you with the skills to deliver effective presentations that leave a lasting impression on any audience.

Click to jump ahead:

What are the 10 qualities of a good presentation?

Step-by-step guide on how to prepare an effective presentation, 9 effective techniques to deliver a memorable presentation, faqs on making a good presentation, how to create a presentation with venngage in 5 steps.

When it comes to giving an engaging presentation that leaves a lasting impression, it’s not just about the content — it’s also about how you deliver it. Wondering what makes a good presentation? Well, the best presentations I’ve seen consistently exhibit these 10 qualities:

1. Clear structure

No one likes to get lost in a maze of information. Organize your thoughts into a logical flow, complete with an introduction, main points and a solid conclusion. A structured presentation helps your audience follow along effortlessly, leaving them with a sense of satisfaction at the end.

Regardless of your presentation style , a quality presentation starts with a clear roadmap. Browse through Venngage’s template library and select a presentation template that aligns with your content and presentation goals. Here’s a good presentation example template with a logical layout that includes sections for the introduction, main points, supporting information and a conclusion: 

2. Engaging opening

Hook your audience right from the start with an attention-grabbing statement, a fascinating question or maybe even a captivating anecdote. Set the stage for a killer presentation!

The opening moments of your presentation hold immense power – check out these 15 ways to start a presentation to set the stage and captivate your audience.

3. Relevant content

Make sure your content aligns with their interests and needs. Your audience is there for a reason, and that’s to get valuable insights. Avoid fluff and get straight to the point, your audience will be genuinely excited.

4. Effective visual aids

Picture this: a slide with walls of text and tiny charts, yawn! Visual aids should be just that—aiding your presentation. Opt for clear and visually appealing slides, engaging images and informative charts that add value and help reinforce your message.

With Venngage, visualizing data takes no effort at all. You can import data from CSV or Google Sheets seamlessly and create stunning charts, graphs and icon stories effortlessly to showcase your data in a captivating and impactful way.

5. Clear and concise communication

Keep your language simple, and avoid jargon or complicated terms. Communicate your ideas clearly, so your audience can easily grasp and retain the information being conveyed. This can prevent confusion and enhance the overall effectiveness of the message. 

6. Engaging delivery

Spice up your presentation with a sprinkle of enthusiasm! Maintain eye contact, use expressive gestures and vary your tone of voice to keep your audience glued to the edge of their seats. A touch of charisma goes a long way!

7. Interaction and audience engagement

Turn your presentation into an interactive experience — encourage questions, foster discussions and maybe even throw in a fun activity. Engaged audiences are more likely to remember and embrace your message.

Transform your slides into an interactive presentation with Venngage’s dynamic features like pop-ups, clickable icons and animated elements. Engage your audience with interactive content that lets them explore and interact with your presentation for a truly immersive experience.

8. Effective storytelling

Who doesn’t love a good story? Weaving relevant anecdotes, case studies or even a personal story into your presentation can captivate your audience and create a lasting impact. Stories build connections and make your message memorable.

A great presentation background is also essential as it sets the tone, creates visual interest and reinforces your message. Enhance the overall aesthetics of your presentation with these 15 presentation background examples and captivate your audience’s attention.

9. Well-timed pacing

Pace your presentation thoughtfully with well-designed presentation slides, neither rushing through nor dragging it out. Respect your audience’s time and ensure you cover all the essential points without losing their interest.

10. Strong conclusion

Last impressions linger! Summarize your main points and leave your audience with a clear takeaway. End your presentation with a bang , a call to action or an inspiring thought that resonates long after the conclusion.

In-person presentations aside, acing a virtual presentation is of paramount importance in today’s digital world. Check out this guide to learn how you can adapt your in-person presentations into virtual presentations . 

Preparing an effective presentation starts with laying a strong foundation that goes beyond just creating slides and notes. One of the quickest and best ways to make a presentation would be with the help of a good presentation software . 

Otherwise, let me walk you to how to prepare for a presentation step by step and unlock the secrets of crafting a professional presentation that sets you apart.

1. Understand the audience and their needs

Before you dive into preparing your masterpiece, take a moment to get to know your target audience. Tailor your presentation to meet their needs and expectations , and you’ll have them hooked from the start!

2. Conduct thorough research on the topic

Time to hit the books (or the internet)! Don’t skimp on the research with your presentation materials — dive deep into the subject matter and gather valuable insights . The more you know, the more confident you’ll feel in delivering your presentation.

3. Organize the content with a clear structure

No one wants to stumble through a chaotic mess of information. Outline your presentation with a clear and logical flow. Start with a captivating introduction, follow up with main points that build on each other and wrap it up with a powerful conclusion that leaves a lasting impression.

Delivering an effective business presentation hinges on captivating your audience, and Venngage’s professionally designed business presentation templates are tailor-made for this purpose. With thoughtfully structured layouts, these templates enhance your message’s clarity and coherence, ensuring a memorable and engaging experience for your audience members.

Don’t want to build your presentation layout from scratch? pick from these 5 foolproof presentation layout ideas that won’t go wrong. 

4. Develop visually appealing and supportive visual aids

Spice up your presentation with eye-catching visuals! Create slides that complement your message, not overshadow it. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words, but that doesn’t mean you need to overload your slides with text.

Well-chosen designs create a cohesive and professional look, capturing your audience’s attention and enhancing the overall effectiveness of your message. Here’s a list of carefully curated PowerPoint presentation templates and great background graphics that will significantly influence the visual appeal and engagement of your presentation.

5. Practice, practice and practice

Practice makes perfect — rehearse your presentation and arrive early to your presentation to help overcome stage fright. Familiarity with your material will boost your presentation skills and help you handle curveballs with ease.

6. Seek feedback and make necessary adjustments

Don’t be afraid to ask for help and seek feedback from friends and colleagues. Constructive criticism can help you identify blind spots and fine-tune your presentation to perfection.

With Venngage’s real-time collaboration feature , receiving feedback and editing your presentation is a seamless process. Group members can access and work on the presentation simultaneously and edit content side by side in real-time. Changes will be reflected immediately to the entire team, promoting seamless teamwork.

7. Prepare for potential technical or logistical issues

Prepare for the unexpected by checking your equipment, internet connection and any other potential hiccups. If you’re worried that you’ll miss out on any important points, you could always have note cards prepared. Remember to remain focused and rehearse potential answers to anticipated questions.

8. Fine-tune and polish your presentation

As the big day approaches, give your presentation one last shine. Review your talking points, practice how to present a presentation and make any final tweaks. Deep breaths — you’re on the brink of delivering a successful presentation!

In competitive environments, persuasive presentations set individuals and organizations apart. To brush up on your presentation skills, read these guides on how to make a persuasive presentation and tips to presenting effectively . 

Whether you’re an experienced presenter or a novice, the right techniques will let your presentation skills soar to new heights!

From public speaking hacks to interactive elements and storytelling prowess, these 9 effective presentation techniques will empower you to leave a lasting impression on your audience and make your presentations unforgettable.

1. Confidence and positive body language

Positive body language instantly captivates your audience, making them believe in your message as much as you do. Strengthen your stage presence and own that stage like it’s your second home! Stand tall, shoulders back and exude confidence. 

2. Eye contact with the audience

Break down that invisible barrier and connect with your audience through their eyes. Maintaining eye contact when giving a presentation builds trust and shows that you’re present and engaged with them.

3. Effective use of hand gestures and movement

A little movement goes a long way! Emphasize key points with purposeful gestures and don’t be afraid to walk around the stage. Your energy will be contagious!

4. Utilize storytelling techniques

Weave the magic of storytelling into your presentation. Share relatable anecdotes, inspiring success stories or even personal experiences that tug at the heartstrings of your audience. Adjust your pitch, pace and volume to match the emotions and intensity of the story. Varying your speaking voice adds depth and enhances your stage presence.

5. Incorporate multimedia elements

Spice up your presentation with a dash of visual pizzazz! Use slides, images and video clips to add depth and clarity to your message. Just remember, less is more—don’t overwhelm them with information overload. 

Turn your presentations into an interactive party! Involve your audience with questions, polls or group activities. When they actively participate, they become invested in your presentation’s success. Bring your design to life with animated elements. Venngage allows you to apply animations to icons, images and text to create dynamic and engaging visual content.

6. Utilize humor strategically

Laughter is the best medicine—and a fantastic presentation enhancer! A well-placed joke or lighthearted moment can break the ice and create a warm atmosphere , making your audience more receptive to your message.

7. Practice active listening and respond to feedback

Be attentive to your audience’s reactions and feedback. If they have questions or concerns, address them with genuine interest and respect. Your responsiveness builds rapport and shows that you genuinely care about their experience.

8. Apply the 10-20-30 rule

Apply the 10-20-30 presentation rule and keep it short, sweet and impactful! Stick to ten slides, deliver your presentation within 20 minutes and use a 30-point font to ensure clarity and focus. Less is more, and your audience will thank you for it!

9. Implement the 5-5-5 rule

Simplicity is key. Limit each slide to five bullet points, with only five words per bullet point and allow each slide to remain visible for about five seconds. This rule keeps your presentation concise and prevents information overload.

Simple presentations are more engaging because they are easier to follow. Summarize your presentations and keep them simple with Venngage’s gallery of simple presentation templates and ensure that your message is delivered effectively across your audience.

1. How to start a presentation?

To kick off your presentation effectively, begin with an attention-grabbing statement or a powerful quote. Introduce yourself, establish credibility and clearly state the purpose and relevance of your presentation.

2. How to end a presentation?

For a strong conclusion, summarize your talking points and key takeaways. End with a compelling call to action or a thought-provoking question and remember to thank your audience and invite any final questions or interactions.

3. How to make a presentation interactive?

To make your presentation interactive, encourage questions and discussion throughout your talk. Utilize multimedia elements like videos or images and consider including polls, quizzes or group activities to actively involve your audience.

In need of inspiration for your next presentation? I’ve got your back! Pick from these 120+ presentation ideas, topics and examples to get started. 

Creating a stunning presentation with Venngage is a breeze with our user-friendly drag-and-drop editor and professionally designed templates for all your communication needs. 

Here’s how to make a presentation in just 5 simple steps with the help of Venngage:

Step 1: Sign up for Venngage for free using your email, Gmail or Facebook account or simply log in to access your account. 

Step 2: Pick a design from our selection of free presentation templates (they’re all created by our expert in-house designers).

Step 3: Make the template your own by customizing it to fit your content and branding. With Venngage’s intuitive drag-and-drop editor, you can easily modify text, change colors and adjust the layout to create a unique and eye-catching design.

Step 4: Elevate your presentation by incorporating captivating visuals. You can upload your images or choose from Venngage’s vast library of high-quality photos, icons and illustrations. 

Step 5: Upgrade to a premium or business account to export your presentation in PDF and print it for in-person presentations or share it digitally for free!

By following these five simple steps, you’ll have a professionally designed and visually engaging presentation ready in no time. With Venngage’s user-friendly platform, your presentation is sure to make a lasting impression. So, let your creativity flow and get ready to shine in your next presentation!

Discover popular designs

Infographic maker

Brochure maker

White paper online

Newsletter creator

Flyer maker

Timeline maker

Letterhead maker

Mind map maker

Ebook maker

• Insert a picture in PowerPoint Article
• Edit pictures Article
• Add SmartArt to a slide Article
• Put a background picture on your slides Article
• Add a background picture to slides Article
• Use charts and graphs in your presentation Article
• Insert icons in PowerPoint Article

Use charts and graphs in your presentation

You can make a chart in PowerPoint or Excel. If you have lots of data to chart, create your chart in Excel , and then copy it into your presentation . This is also the best way if your data changes regularly and you want your chart to always reflect the latest numbers. In that case, when you copy and paste the chart, keep it linked to the original Excel file .

To create a simple chart from scratch in PowerPoint, click Insert > Chart and pick the chart you want.

Click Insert > Chart .

Click the chart type and then double-click the chart you want.

Tip:  For help deciding which chart is best for your data, see Available chart types .

In the worksheet that appears, replace the placeholder data with your own information.

When you’ve finished, close the worksheet.

Create an org chart in PowerPoint

Create charts in Excel

Need more help?

Want more options.

Explore subscription benefits, browse training courses, learn how to secure your device, and more.

Microsoft 365 subscription benefits

Microsoft 365 training

Microsoft security

Accessibility center

Communities help you ask and answer questions, give feedback, and hear from experts with rich knowledge.

Ask the Microsoft Community

Microsoft Tech Community

Windows Insiders

Microsoft 365 Insiders

Was this information helpful?

Thank you for your feedback.

100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics For Better Presentations [Free PPT]

PowerPoint graphics to move your presentation up a level, and plenty of top quality free options.

• Share on Facebook
• Share on Twitter

By Lyudmil Enchev

in Freebies , Insights

4 years ago

Viewed 113,610 times

Spread the word about this article:

PowerPoint graphics are a great addition to all PowerPoint presentations no matter what the audience. A Powerpoint simply containing text and bullet points is not going to hold the attention, even with your hot topic content. You run the risk of being dry and dull, and simply put graphics are more visual and therefore more interesting. You know it too if you are happy with your material you feel better and more confident as a speaker. Double plus.

Of course, the quality of your PowerPoint Graphics is important, this isn’t just a case of adding visuals for visual’s sake. High quality, highly appropriate, thoughtful graphics will enhance any presentation and will be a vital tool in getting your message across, succinctly and memorably. Equally poor quality clip art type graphics, blurry, pointless, and inappropriate images may get you to remember as well, but probably not how you would wish.

So let’s look at some great keys ways you can impress with a presentation, it’s not hard but it is effective.

In this article: 1. How to insert graphics into PowerPoint 2. 100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics by GraphicMama 2.1. Free PowerPoint Templates 2.2. Free Arrows, Pointers, Bullets for PowerPoint 2.3. Free Icons for PowerPoint 2.4. Free Stats, Charts, Graphs for PowerPoint 2.5. Free Numbers and Steps Graphics for PowerPoint 2.6. Free Text Section Graphics for PowerPoint 2.7. Free Presentation Graphics for PowerPoint 2.8. Free Speech Bubble Graphics for PowerPoint 2.9. Free Sale Graphics for PowerPoint 2.10. Free Infographic Kit 2.11. Free Infographic Templates 3. More places to find PowerPoint Graphics

In the meanwhile, do you know, that you can use premade infographic templates? Check out our  50 Free Timeline Infographic Templates .

1. How to insert graphics into PowerPoint

Once you’ve created your presentation it’s time to add those all-important PowerPoint Graphics. And it’s easy, easy, easy.

Step 1: Go to the slide and create a space for your graphic Step 2: Go to insert on the toolbar at the top of PowerPoint, click on it Step 3: This will open up insert options depending on your version of PowerPoint ( 2019 reveals online pictures, photo albums, pictures, or screenshots, older versions are similar but replace online pictures with clip art.) Step 4: Choose an image from your files or online through categories or the search bar – filter general images through creative commons only licensed pictures (free to use), select, click on insert. Step 5: Resize and reposition

Alternatively:

Step 1: Select an image, right-click, and copy. (Ctrl+C) Step 2: Right-click and paste on the desired slide. (Ctrl+V)

It really is that easy.

2. 100+ Free PowerPoint Graphics by GraphicMama

One of the best ways to make your presentation look professional is by using professionally designed PowerPoint graphics and one of the best design agencies, Graphic Mama has plenty of options to choose from. As well as paid-for bundles of design icons you can take advantage of a great range of free graphics from sales icons, holiday icons, speech bubbles, people avatars, and many more. These are graphics designed in a vector file format, so the quality will stay as good even when resized. there are free backgrounds, templates, and infographic bundles too. It’s a no-risk option that will certainly add a high-quality, professionally designed look to your slideshow. Just click on the links below and you are almost there.

2.1. Free PowerPoint Templates

A tremendously good way to create a stunning professional look is by using templates for your PowerPoint Design and the good news is there are lots of free options out there just waiting for you to fill with content.

Free Hand-Drawn PowerPoint Presentation

This freebie from Graphic Mamas’s collection of free templates shows off the power of a sketched hand-drawn style in adding a customized look that is both attractive and clear.

Free Corporate Presentation Template

Ideally suited to a business proposal, this free template can be edited and customized for anything that would benefit from fresh, clear colors and fantastically designed and organized slides.

Free Business PowerPoint Presentation Template

Another free business template that benefits from strong structural elements and a great mix of text boxes and images in this modern-looking option. Superb editable infographics to get that all-important message to stand out.

Free Minimalist Presentation Template

This minimalist template broken up into large blocks of strong color is perfect for making a statement. Instant impact and full of confidence.

Take a look at Graphic Mama’s Modern Templates for the New Era of PowerPoint Presentations

2.2. Free Arrows, Pointers, Bullets for PowerPoint

Basic icons such as arrows, bullets, and pointers are so ubiquitous that they are often forgotten about. Big mistake. These free PowerPoint graphics show just how much impact well-designed elements can make and they’re a quick and easy way of raising your presentation to another level, and all for free.

2.3. Free Icons for PowerPoint

The cool, simplicity of these PowerPoint graphic icons can add swagger and style to your show. This completely free bundle gives a great selection all in the same consistent style and multiple usages will hold a presentation together in a subtle way.

2.4. Free Stats, Charts, Graphs for PowerPoint

Powerful infographics give you a great chance to get inventive and creative. Fully customizable, fully editable, and a fantastically varied and imaginative selection of all kinds of charts, graphs, and pictograms. It’s difficult to believe they are free but they really are.

2.5. Free Numbers and Steps Graphics for PowerPoint

You will need numbers, so why not take advantage of this free collection and make the mundane come alive. The key is to keep a consistent design and it will create a magical flow throughout the whole show from beginning to end.

2.6. Free Text Section Graphics for PowerPoint

PowerPoint graphics for text sections do a vital job. It is well known that text-heavy presentations are not popular and therefore less effective but you do need text. A great way of drawing the eye, focusing on text content, and still keeping people awake are these text section graphics. Customizable colors (ideal for branding), all forms and functions, a fully flexible and fully free bundle of creativity.

2.7. Free Presentation Graphics for PowerPoint

PowerPoint Graphics come in all shapes and sizes and illustrate all kinds of ideas. Download this free pack and check out a wide range of options to create visual impact, a professionally customized look, and vitality.

2.8. Free Speech Bubble Graphics

Speech bubble PowerPoint graphics can make your presentation pop, and with this stylish selection, you can’t go wrong. Flat, shaded, angular, rounded, clouds, and all sorts of variations on the theme. Impactful and fun they help create the conversation you want to have.

2.9. Free Sale Graphics

PowerPoint graphics for sales will do the crucial job of getting you and your product noticed. Fit your show with these free high-quality vector graphics and watch the crowds flock in. Once you’ve downloaded the graphics, you are not limited to PowerPoint, use the same images on posters, advertising, social media, etc., and get selling. The vectors’ technique means that there will be no loss of quality whatever the size and function.

2.10. Free Infographic Kit

A fully comprehensive infographic PowerPoint graphic pack that is crammed full of everything you could want to bring your statistics to the audience. Carefully crafted, tremendously varied, customizable, editable, flexible, and all this with the added professional pizzaz of expert design. It’s free and it’s ready to rock.

2.11. 20 Free Infographic Templates

If you want to speed things up, you can try using premade PowerPoint templates for your presentation. In this huge bundle of 539 infographics, you will find 20 free infographic templates. They are made with a lot of graphics, and you can easily grab some of the elements and adapt it to your presentation.

3. More places to find PowerPoint Graphics

Although it’s difficult to believe you haven’t found exactly what you are looking for already in our classic collection, let’s not worry. The one thing we do have now is plenty and plenty of choice. Here are some paid-for possibilities that you may want to jazz up that make or break a presentation.

PresentationPro

For $49.00 you could check out this royalty-free Graphics pack from PresentationPro. This pack contains thousands of graphics, clipart, and illustration in all sorts of categories from geography to calendars, from Scrabble to sport, and in differing styles. The graphics can be used in other formats too so you are not limited to PowerPoint.

GraphicMama

As well as the free offers, already covered Graphic Mama has a top-class selection of paid-for bundles ranging from characters to graphics assets, backgrounds , and templates from a little as $31 per set. This is ideal if you’d like to theme your presentation around a character as there are multiple gestures and poses for each. All are easily customizable, editable, and adaptable to any project and design. A gallery of cartoon characters , including businessmen, animals, robots, superheroes, doctors, ninjas, and more. Graphic Mama also offers custom designs, so you can turn yourself into a caricature and animated puppets to really make waves.

GetMyGraphics

At GetMyGrpahics you can take up a subscription giving you access to over 9,000 professional PowerPoint graphics starting at $49 per month or a Pro package at $99 per month.  Obviously, at this price, it is not for a one-off or occasional piece but for professionals it does provide plenty of options. They include infographics and illustrations in a wide range of categories and differing styles.

Final Words

The old PowerPoint presentation. It’s been around for years and it truly isn’t enough to just churn out the old stuff. Vital though they may be, people always expect more, always expect better, and why not? With a little extra effort, you can turn your slideshow presentation into something that isn’t just a time filler but that really makes a difference, communication, and shows you off in the best light. PowerPoint graphics can make all the difference by breathing life and energy into your presentation and consequently your performance. If you feel confident in your material it will help your delivery. Best of all you can step it up for free, so why wouldn’t you?

You may also be interested in some of these related articles:

• The Best Free PowerPoint Templates to Download in 2022
• Need PowerPoint Backgrounds? The Best Places to Check Out [+ Freebies]
• 10 PowerPoint Tutorials to Help You Master PowerPoint

Add some character to your visuals

Cartoon Characters, Design Bundles, Illustrations, Backgrounds and more...

Like us on Facebook

Subscribe to our newsletter

Be the first to know what’s new in the world of graphic design and illustrations.

• [email protected]

Browse High Quality Vector Graphics

E.g.: businessman, lion, girl…

Related Articles

The best free icon packs everyone must download in 2020, the best free google slides templates to grab in 2020, 47 free psd infographic templates to download right now, 81 impressive free presentation backgrounds for outstanding presentations, 16 free vector infographic design templates: on different themes in different styles, 500+ free and paid powerpoint infographic templates:, enjoyed this article.

Don’t forget to share!

• Comments (0)

Lyudmil Enchev

Lyudmil is an avid movie fan which influences his passion for video editing. You will often see him making animations and video tutorials for GraphicMama. Lyudmil is also passionate for photography, video making, and writing scripts.

Thousands of vector graphics for your projects.

Hey! You made it all the way to the bottom!

Here are some other articles we think you may like:

Online Graphic Design Courses: The Most Comprehensive Guide

by Iveta Pavlova

Web Design Trends in 2021 That Blow the Cobs From the Web

by Lyudmil Enchev

‘Ultra Violet’ is Pantone Color of The Year 2018

Looking for design bundles or cartoon characters.

A source of high-quality vector graphics offering a huge variety of premade character designs, graphic design bundles, Adobe Character Animator puppets, and more.

How to develop a graphical framework to chart your research

Graphic representations or frameworks can be powerful tools to explain research processes and outcomes. David Waller explains how researchers can develop effective visual models to chart their work

David Waller

• More on this topic

You may also like

Popular resources

.css-1txxx8u{overflow:hidden;max-height:81px;text-indent:0px;} Students using generative AI to write essays isn't a crisis

How students’ genai skills affect assignment instructions, turn individual wins into team achievements in group work, access and equity: two crucial aspects of applied learning, emotions and learning: what role do emotions play in how and why students learn.

While undertaking a study, researchers can uncover insights, connections and findings that are extremely valuable to anyone likely to read their eventual paper. Thus, it is important for the researcher to clearly present and explain the ideas and potential relationships. One important way of presenting findings and relationships is by developing a graphical conceptual framework.

A graphical conceptual framework is a visual model that assists readers by illustrating how concepts, constructs, themes or processes work. It is an image designed to help the viewer understand how various factors interrelate and affect outcomes, such as a chart, graph or map.

These are commonly used in research to show outcomes but also to create, develop, test, support and criticise various ideas and models. The use of a conceptual framework can vary depending on whether it is being used for qualitative or quantitative research.

• Using literature reviews to strengthen research: tips for PhDs and supervisors
• Get your research out there: 7 strategies for high-impact science communication
• Understanding peer review: what it is, how it works and why it is important

There are many forms that a graphical conceptual framework can take, which can depend on the topic, the type of research or findings, and what can best present the story.

Below are examples of frameworks based on qualitative and quantitative research.

As shown by the table below, in qualitative research the conceptual framework is developed at the end of the study to illustrate the factors or issues presented in the qualitative data. It is designed to assist in theory building and the visual understanding of the exploratory findings. It can also be used to develop a framework in preparation for testing the proposition using quantitative research.

In quantitative research a conceptual framework can be used to synthesise the literature and theoretical concepts at the beginning of the study to present a model that will be tested in the statistical analysis of the research.

It is important to understand that the role of a conceptual framework differs depending on the type of research that is being undertaken.

So how should you go about creating a conceptual framework? After undertaking some studies where I have developed conceptual frameworks, here is a simple model based on “Six Rs”: Review, Reflect, Relationships, Reflect, Review, and Repeat.

Process for developing conceptual frameworks:

Review: literature/themes/theory.

Reflect: what are the main concepts/issues?

Relationships: what are their relationships?

Reflect: does the diagram represent it sufficiently?

Review: check it with theory, colleagues, stakeholders, etc.

Repeat: review and revise it to see if something better occurs.

This is not an easy process. It is important to begin by reviewing what has been presented in previous studies in the literature or in practice. This provides a solid background to the proposed model as it can show how it relates to accepted theoretical concepts or practical examples, and helps make sure that it is grounded in logical sense.

It can start with pen and paper, but after reviewing you should reflect to consider if the proposed framework takes into account the main concepts and issues, and the potential relationships that have been presented on the topic in previous works.

It may take a few versions before you are happy with the final framework, so it is worth continuing to reflect on the model and review its worth by reassessing it to determine if the model is consistent with the literature and theories. It can also be useful to discuss the idea with  colleagues or to present preliminary ideas at a conference or workshop –  be open to changes.

Even after you come up with a potential model it is good to repeat the process to review the framework and be prepared to revise it as this can help in refining the model. Over time you may develop a number of models with each one superseding the previous one.

A concern is that some students hold on to the framework they first thought of and worry that developing or changing it will be seen as a weakness in their research. However, a revised and refined model can be an important factor in justifying the value of the research.

Plenty of possibilities and theoretical topics could be considered to enhance the model. Whether it ultimately supports the theoretical constructs of the research will be dependent on what occurs when it is tested.  As social psychologist, Kurt Lewin, famously said “ There's nothing so practical as good theory ”.

The final result after doing your reviewing and reflecting should be a clear graphical presentation that will help the reader understand what the research is about as well as where it is heading.

It doesn’t need to be complex. A simple diagram or table can clarify the nature of a process and help in its analysis, which can be important for the researcher when communicating to their audience. As the saying goes: “ A picture is worth 1000 words ”. The same goes for a good conceptual framework, when explaining a research process or findings.

David Waller is an associate professor at the University of Technology Sydney .

If you found this interesting and want advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week,  sign up for the THE Campus newsletter .

Students using generative AI to write essays isn't a crisis

Eleven ways to support international students, indigenising teaching through traditional knowledge, seven exercises to use in your gender studies classes, rather than restrict the use of ai, embrace the challenge, how hard can it be testing ai detection tools.

Register for free

and unlock a host of features on the THE site

Home Blog PowerPoint Tutorials PowerPoint Slide Size: What is the Best Size for a Presentation

PowerPoint Slide Size: What is the Best Size for a Presentation

Whether you’re a business professional, educator, or public speaker, understanding what are the optimal slide dimensions can enhance the impact of your presentation. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about the size of your PowerPoint presentation, from the basics to advanced tips.

What is the PowerPoint Slide Size?

PowerPoint slide size refers to the dimensions of the slides within your PowerPoint presentation. These dimensions determine how your content is displayed in a monitor or projector, and can significantly affect the overall look and feel of your presentation.

The most common slide sizes in PowerPoint are 16:9 (widescreen) and 4:3 (standard).

Choosing the right slide size is essential as it impacts how your content is perceived and ensures compatibility with various display devices. Once you define the optimal slide size for your next presentation, you can change the slide dimensions in PowerPoint following the steps described in our article.

It is important to understand the differences between Aspect Ratio and Pixel Dimensions.

The specific pixel dimensions for a standard 16:9 slide are 1920 pixels in width by 1080 pixels in height.

Understanding Aspect Ratio vs. Pixel Dimensions

Aspect ratio vs. pixel dimensions: what’s the difference.

When defining the optimal slide size for your presentation, it’s important to understand the difference between aspect ratio and pixel dimensions, as these terms often cause confusion but are critical for creating well-designed presentations.

Aspect Ratio

The aspect ratio refers to the proportional relationship between the width and height of your slide. It’s expressed as two numbers separated by a colon, such as 4:3 or 16:9. The aspect ratio defines the shape of your slide and how it will appear on different screens.

Pixel Dimensions:

Pixel dimensions, on the other hand, specify the total number of pixels in the width and height of your slide. This measurement determines the resolution and quality of your images and text in your PowerPoint slide size. For example:

• 1920 x 1080 pixels: This is a common dimension for a 16:9 aspect ratio, known as Full HD. It provides high clarity and detail, making it suitable for large screens and high-resolution displays.
• 1024 x 768 pixels: This dimension matches a 4:3 aspect ratio and is often used for smaller screens or lower resolution displays. It’s less detailed than 1920 x 1080 but can be effective for standard printouts or older projectors.

Why both slide size definitions matter? Understanding both aspect ratio and pixel dimensions is important because they impact how your PowerPoint slide size is viewed across different devices and formats. Here’s why:

• Consistency Across Devices: Ensuring your aspect ratio is compatible with the display device prevents issues like black bars on the sides (letterboxing) or content being cut off (cropping).
• Clarity and Detail: Choosing appropriate pixel dimensions ensures that your images and text appear sharp and clear, avoiding pixelation or blurriness.
• Professional Appearance: Matching the right aspect ratio and pixel dimensions helps maintain a polished and professional look, whether you’re presenting on a large screen, sharing a PDF handout (as we will see later), or displaying your slides online.

The Impact of Slide Size on Different Industries

Different industries have unique needs when it comes to presentation slide sizes. For instance:

• Business: Corporate presentations often require widescreen formats (16:9 slide size) to showcase detailed charts and data on modern projectors and screens. However, in some environments there are still projectors using the traditional 4:3 aspect ratio format for slide sizes.
• Education: Lectures and workshops benefit from both 16:9 and 4:3 formats, depending on the teaching aids and screen setups used.
• Design: Creative professionals need to create visually appealing slides that may require custom dimensions to stand out and effectively communicate their ideas.

Best Practices for Choosing a Proper Slide Size for your Presentation

When selecting an optimal PowerPoint slide size, consider the following:

• Audience and Venue: Tailor your slide size to the screen size and setup of your presentation venue. Widescreen (16:9) is typically best for large screens, while standard (4:3) works well for print distributions.
• Presentation Type: Webinars and online presentations held via Zoom or Teams , for example, often benefit from widescreen formats, while in-person meetings might require flexibility.
• Aesthetics vs. Functionality: Balance visual appeal with readability and content integrity.

When creating PDF handouts from your PowerPoint presentation, it’s also important to choose a convenient slide size that ensures readability and clarity in print.

The 4:3 aspect ratio is generally preferred for printed handouts as it aligns well with standard paper sizes such as A4 or Letter. This format ensures that your content fits neatly onto the page without excessive margins or cropping.

Additionally, using 4:3 for print ensures that text and graphics are appropriately scaled, maintaining the legibility and professional appearance of your handouts. This consideration is essential for creating effective printed materials that complement your live presentations.

Overcoming Challenges with Slide Size

Adapting content for different slide sizes.

Resizing images and adjusting layouts can be challenging. Here are some tips:

• Resizing Images: Ensure that images maintain their aspect ratio to avoid distortion.
• Text Adjustments: Modify font sizes and text boxes to fit the new slide dimensions without compromising readability.
• Consistency: Keep a consistent layout throughout your presentation to maintain a professional look.

Dealing with Mixed Slide Sizes in a Presentation

Sometimes, you may need to integrate slides with different dimensions. Here’s how:

• Transition Techniques: Use smooth transitions to blend slides of varying sizes seamlessly.
• Tools and Add-Ins: You can use PowerPoint add-ins that help manage and standardize slide sizes across your presentation.

Advanced Tips for Custom Slide Sizes

When it is time to innovate, the PowerPoint slide size can also play an important role. If you are considering to create a presentation for digital signage, or non traditional devices, choosing a custom PowerPoint slide size can help to achieve this. Here are some ideas and ways you can innovate by choosing a different slide size:

• Unique Dimensions: Create custom slide sizes for branding or special events.
• Custom Branding: Use non-standard slide sizes to align with your brand identity and marketing materials.
• Innovative Uses: Experiment with different dimensions to create unique visual experiences.

For example, to create high-quality digital signage content, you’d need to set the PowerPoint slides to a 1920×1080 resolution in vertical (portrait) or horizontal (landscape) mode, which are the typical digital sign screen sizes.

Understanding what is the optimal slide size and how to configure it is essential for creating effective and engaging presentations. By optimizing your slides, and overcoming common challenges, you can ensure your visual aids are impactful and professional. Keep experimenting with different sizes and formats to find what works best for your needs. Remember, the key to a successful presentation lies in the details—choosing the right slide size is one of them.

Like this article? Please share

Presentation Tips Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials

Related Articles

Filed under Google Slides Tutorials • May 17th, 2024

How to Import Google Slides Themes

Importing Google Slides Themes is an easy task that can bring life into your presentations. Learn how to reuse old slides to create new cool themes here.

Filed under PowerPoint Tutorials • May 17th, 2024

How to Edit Background Graphics in PowerPoint

You don’t have to stick with template designs that don’t appeal to your intended message. Learn how to edit background graphics in PowerPoint to become a master user.

How to Make Google Slides Vertical

Power up your presentation skills by learning how to make google slides go vertical. Step-by-step instructions with examples.

Leave a Reply

10 Free Canva Alternatives For Eye-Catching Designs And Presentations

I n the digital age, eye-catching designs and stunning presentations are more important than ever. Canva has long been a go-to tool for creating these visuals. However, there's a world of options beyond Canva, each with its unique strengths and capabilities.

Whether you're a small business owner, a blogger, or someone looking to spruce up a presentation, each of these tools has something helpful to offer. They made the list not just for their affordability but also for their ease of use and flexibility in design. From editing PDFs to creating social media graphics and beyond, these platforms can expand your creative possibilities.

We have explored each alternative's features, such as background removal tools, advanced editing capabilities, and user-friendly templates. The goal is to equip you with the knowledge to choose the right tool for your design needs so you can create stunning visuals without breaking the bank. Here are the best 10 free Canva alternatives for eye-catching designs and presentations.

Read more: Major PC Brands Ranked Worst To Best

Stencil  is a great tool for creating easily shareable images tailored for social media, small business owners, and bloggers. Stencil's focus is to make image creation easy with a free all-in-one app. It has an impressive stock photo library available to both free and premium users, and creating images for social media or blog posts is intuitive. The actions are simple clicks and drag-and-drop functions that users of all tech and graphic design levels will recognize.

Posting images is simplified through several convenient features. Users can directly send images via SMS or post them to Facebook or Instagram feeds through login integration. Additionally, there's an option to connect with a Buffer account to schedule posts after creation. Stencil's free option allows users to save 10 images per month with access to a limited stock library. It won't be enough for a full-time blogger, but it's a great test drive. Unlocking everything Stencil has to offer costs $12 per month or a yearly fee of $86.40. This essentially removes all limitations and gives full access to its stock library. There are no other microtransactions or add-ons.

Snappa is another great alternative to Canva, especially if you're not a graphic designer. Its user interface is remarkably user-friendly, with easy adjustments made through simple sliders and menus. Snappa has over 6,000 templates to get started with, as well as an impressive library of free images and graphics. The images provided are royalty-free and can be used for any project without incurring additional costs.

The downside to Snappa's simplicity and ease of use is that graphic designers may find it lacks the functionality of some of the other services on this list. It's ideal for beginners and those who need an image but don't have any idea how to make one.

Snappa's free version functions more like a trial, granting access to all templates and images but limiting users to only three downloads per month. Access to all other features requires a paid account, which is priced at $15 per month or $120 annually -- equivalent to $10 per month.

Adobe Express

While the AI image creator Adobe Firefly has been getting most of the press these days, Adobe still has plenty of traditional image editing tools available. One of the most affordable is  Adobe Express , an entry-level software that's ideal for those unfamiliar with Adobe's range of products and as a user-friendly image creation and editing tool.

You'll find many of the standard Adobe tools you would with Photoshop and other Adobe products , but they have been streamlined for ease of use for beginners. Users can quickly create images for social media and smaller projects with ease. Included are numerous templates that can be customized for different projects, as well as options for creating vector images.

The free version of Adobe Express provides users with a limited capacity for image generation each month and offers access to a basic range of templates and stock photos. For those who want more comprehensive features, there's a premium subscription available at $100 per year or $10 per month that unlocks full access to all tools and an extensive stock library.

Adobe Express is much more intuitive and easy to use than Photoshop, making it a good starting point for beginners. However, those without any design experience may find it a bit challenging. In addition, more experienced users will find it easy to use but less comprehensive than Photoshop.

If you're looking for a powerful no-frills editor, Pixlr X is a great place to start. It's completely free, although the website monetizes itself through ads. However, this means you don't even have to make an account and can jump right into editing and content creation.

As a free product, Pixlr X offers its complete range of features through a web app. The app itself has a streamlined interface with menus that provide a wide array of customization tools and options, allowing precise image alterations according to user preferences.

The software includes templates and settings for virtually every need. It features ready-made templates for popular social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch, allowing users to create perfectly sized images right from the start. Additionally, Pixlr offers templates for podcast cover art and much more.

The user interface of Pixlr X is clean and uncluttered, without any distracting graphics. It presents a simple menu packed with various editing options. The toolset is comprehensive, making it easy for beginners to use while also offering enough advanced features to satisfy experienced users and graphic designers.

VistaCreate

VistaCreate is an excellent tool for creating visual marketing materials and ads for your business. The platform is designed to be easy to use and user-friendly while still providing visually impressive results. It offers templates for different seasons and industries that users can easily alter and customize to quickly create promotional materials, even if they lack an eye for design. Included with the editor is a massive library of tools like stock photos, videos, logos, fonts, and more that all can be used for free without licensing issues.

Signing up for the premium membership unlocks all of the available templates and graphics. Most users won't be stunted by the offerings from the free version, but the premium version has significantly more variety. If you want to try it before you buy, VistaCreate does offer a 14-day trial that gives access to the premium version. However, this trial requires a credit card entry, so you need to remember to cancel before the trial period ends to avoid charges.

The free version is free forever. It offers a respectable 10 GB of storage for projects and files. The premium version has unlimited storage, more templates and graphics, and access to unique tools like a background remover and instant sticker makers. VistaCreate premium costs $13 per month or $10 per month if paid annually.

Visme is a fantastic and incredibly versatile tool. It's a single app that can do most things that you'd want from an image editor, plus a few extra features that go beyond simple image content creation and editing. 

Like many other platforms, it has a host of templates, fonts, and stock images that make it easy to create brandable materials, social media posts, and digital media. However, in addition to the simple image editor, Visme also has a lot of intuitive tools for small businesses. Users can easily upload data from spreadsheets and graph it visually using a simple, drag-and-drop interface that can readily be branded. Images and content you create on Visme can also be turned into videos and edited directly on the platform.

The only downside to Visme is its price. The website offers a free version that allows you to take the system for a test drive, but it doesn't allow you to export any of the files that you create. While there may be workarounds, it may be better to consider purchasing a membership or choosing another service from this list. The Starter membership costs $12.25 per month when paid annually, or $29 monthly, and the Pro membership costs $24.75 per month when paid annually, or $59 billed monthly. Although this pricing is on the higher end compared to other services, Visme's comprehensive all-in-one solution justifies the cost for many users.

If you need infographics, PowerPoint presentations, or short videos, then Piktochart is one of the best alternatives to Canva. The platform doesn't concentrate on pure image design and generation. Instead, it focuses on bringing data to life through fun and interesting infographics.

For businesses that generate significant traffic through social media or understand the value of SEO, Piktochart recognizes that a well-crafted infographic can be a powerful asset. Its tools and templates are designed to present data in a visually attractive manner, highlighting key points. All of Piktochart's tools and templates present data in visually appealing ways while still clearly showing key data points. The user interface is very user-friendly and comes with tutorials on every aspect of the system. There's even a quick crash course that claims can get you up and running within an hour.

Piktochart also has rudimentary video editors that are surprisingly easy to edit. While it may not offer the extensive functionality of dedicated video editing software, it meets the needs of most users. There's also the option to quickly turn images into PowerPoint presentations and videos, making it an excellent choice for office workers. Piktochart is free but only offers limited online storage options. It's essentially a forever-free trial that allows users to get started with the system and determine if they can make use of it. The paid version costs $14 per month when paying annually or $29 monthly. 

The makers of DesignCap took all the fun aspects of making a poster or collage for grade school and turned it into software. Surprisingly, the software is known for its ease of use, making image creation as straightforward as those school projects.

DesignCap presents itself as a one-stop shop for all of your design needs, but in reality, it works better if you look at it like a poster maker. The platform can help users create simple images using templates and tools for social media posts, cards, wedding invitations, posters, and social media.

While it's not advanced enough for a professional graphic designer, it is ideal for someone who needs to make some eye-catching visuals. The free version has a smaller library of templates and stock photos available and is limited to five image saves. The only other limitation is export file formats. It has fewer options than some of the others on this list, but if you just need JPEGs to post or create images quickly, DesignCap is a great resource.

For more advanced users on a budget, Photopea is a fantastic solution. Photopea is not specifically tailored for bloggers or social media users -- instead, it is fundamentally an image editor. This focus on image editing first is reflected in its user interface and color scheme, which might not be specifically designed for bloggers and influencers but still offers useful functionality for them. The UI is very bare bones, devoid of any testimonials or marketing trying to upsell users.

Upon visiting the Photopea site, users can immediately upload and start editing images. The more you use Photopea, the more functionality you'll discover in the software. Users can create vector images, create layers, apply filters, and so much more. There's a dedicated tutorial section of the site to help users navigate the numerous features. If you can't find the answer there, Photopea also has a very active Reddit community as well as email support.

Photopea is unique in that beginners can do all of the simple editing that they'll need, while advanced graphic designers will also find a lot of useful tools to make something truly memorable. Photopea is a free service that supports itself through ads. Users have the option to purchase a premium membership, which removes ads and supports the developers. The free version already provides full access to all features, although premium users benefit from prioritized email support.

Desygner is a budget-friendly alternative to Canva that was specifically designed to be a more user-friendly alternative to Adobe InDesign. Desygner has intuitive controls that allow users to easily choose and modify templates. Like many of the other alternatives on this list, it comes equipped with a large stock image and template library that is free to use for commercial and personal use.

One of its best features is its PDF editor. All of the easy-to-use tools can be used to edit and alter PDFs to create impressive documents. These are perfect for flyers, notices, resumes, and much more. This task can often be tricky in standard word processors, but Desygner simplifies it with the same tools used for image creation. Another standout feature of Desygner is its background removal tool. If you've been creating images for a business, you'll know how essential this feature is, not to mention how frustrating it can be when it doesn't work well.

In terms of affordability, Desygner is very budget-friendly. Its pricing is among the most economical on this list, at approximately $5 per month when paid annually or $10 paid monthly. The free version of Desygner provides access to many of its tools and templates. While the free version is sufficient for smaller businesses and casual users, the premium version is a worthwhile investment for regular image creators. It includes the background remover tool and offers a significantly larger selection of stock images and templates.

Read the original article on SlashGear .

👀 Turn any prompt into captivating visuals in seconds with our AI-powered design generator ✨ Try Piktochart AI!

• Piktochart Visual
• Video Editor
• AI Design Generator
• Infographic Maker
• Banner Maker
• Brochure Maker
• Diagram Maker
• Flowchart Maker
• Flyer Maker
• Graph Maker
• Invitation Maker
• Pitch Deck Creator
• Poster Maker
• Presentation Maker
• Report Maker
• Resume Maker
• Social Media Graphic Maker
• Timeline Maker
• Venn Diagram Maker
• Screen Recorder
• Social Media Video Maker
• Video Cropper
• Video to Text Converter
• Video Views Calculator
• AI Brochure Maker
• AI Document Generator
• AI Flyer Generator
• AI Image Generator
• AI Infographic
• AI Instagram Post Generator
• AI Newsletter Generator
• AI Report Generator
• AI Timeline Generator
• For Communications
• For Education
• For eLearning
• For Financial Services
• For Healthcare
• For Human Resources
• For Marketing
• For Nonprofits
• Brochure Templates
• Flyer Templates
• Infographic Templates
• Newsletter Templates
• Presentation Templates
• Resume Templates
• Business Infographics
• Business Proposals
• Education Templates
• Health Posters
• HR Templates
• Sales Presentations
• Community Template
• Explore all free templates on Piktochart
• Course: What is Visual Storytelling?
• The Business Storyteller Podcast
• User Stories
• Video Tutorials
• Need help? Check out our Help Center
• Earn money as a Piktochart Affiliate Partner
• Compare prices and features across Free, Pro, and Enterprise plans.
• For professionals and small teams looking for better brand management.
• For organizations seeking enterprise-grade onboarding, support, and SSO.
• Discounted plan for students, teachers, and education staff.
• Great causes deserve great pricing. Registered nonprofits pay less.

AI-Powered Poster Generator

With the Piktochart AI poster generator, you can turn any prompt into a gorgeous poster in seconds. No design skills? No problem. Just tweak it as you wish, then share your poster.

The new way of creating posters

Create in a Flash

Prompt to poster in 10 seconds

Say goodbye to complicated design steps. Simply type in your theme and watch as our AI poster maker transforms it into reality.

AI Image Generation

Bring your vision to life

Go stock photos and generate images that are contextualized to your needs with our advanced AI image generator. Put your creativity to the test and generate highly realistic images that make you stand out.

Create Without Limits

Where every idea finds its canvas

For events, marketing, learning, or personal creations, Piktochart AI delivers captivating poster designs for every need. Dive into a universe of impressive imagery tailored to suit any subject.

Create Your Vision

Piktochart starts, you put the finishing touches

Our AI sets the stage with a professionally crafted poster, then passes control to you, allowing you to modify and refine each detail to amplify your visual impact while keeping true to your brand.

Posters created using Piktochart’s AI-powered poster maker

Professionals like you use Piktochart’s free online poster maker to:

• Create eye-catching promotional materials that align with brand identity, ideal for advertising campaigns, product launches, and trade shows.
• Design captivating posters for corporate events, webinars, and conferences.
• Communicate new offers, services, or store openings.

HR & Internal Comms

• Internal announcements, motivational quotes, or event notifications.
• Job advertisements and onboarding materials to attract and welcome new employees.
• Convey important company policies and reminders through clear, engaging posters, ensuring better compliance and awareness.

NGOs and Government Organizations

• Develop impactful posters for awareness drives, fundraising events, and community outreach programs.
• Attract volunteers, highlighting the roles, benefits, and the difference they can make.
• Announce charity events, workshops, and seminars.

• Create informative posters on health topics, wellness tips, and medical advisories.
• Showcase healthcare services, specialist departments, and new medical technologies available at healthcare facilities.
• Display important health and safety protocols within healthcare settings.

How to Make a Digital Poster

1. Define Your Story

Briefly describe (within 120 characters) the purpose behind your poster. Whether it’s for promotion, making an announcement, driving awareness, or sharing health information.

2. Select from Our Varied Poster Designs

Jumpstart your project with our array of ready-to-use poster templates, perfect for shining a spotlight on any subject. After picking your preferred design, you’ll find yourself in our editing suite.

3. Tweak the Design with Piktochart Editor

With your template chosen, hitting the “Edit” button grants you entry into the Piktochart editor. This is your playground to adjust, alter, and align the design to reflect your personal touch and message.

4. Enhance with Visual Elements

Piktochart’s user-friendly drag-and-drop editor makes personalization a breeze. Tap into our rich collection of complimentary photos, icons, illustrations, and text options to craft a poster that stands out. Enhancing and tailoring colors is just a click away with our versatile design tool.

5. Publish and Promote

Once your poster is exactly as you envisioned, it’s time to save and share your work. Export in various formats like JPG, PNG, or PDF, catering to both digital platforms and print materials.

AI-Powered Visualization for Any Topic

What kinds of posters can be generated using this AI tool?

Navigating design elements and finding the right visual style can be daunting. With Piktochart AI, it’s easy to transform data into high-quality posters . Excellence made simple, just for you.

Event posters

Drum up buzz and awareness for an upcoming event. Piktochart AI transform dense data and information into engaging invitational posters for your events.

Advertising posters

Spark emotions that incite action – whether it is to make a purchase, improve brand opinion, donate to a cause, or make a lifestyle change. With Piktochart AI, it’s achievable at the click of a button.

Conference posters

Inform your audience with a glance about an upcoming conference. Whether it’s for a medical conference, marketing conference, or any conferences, Piktochart AI’s user-friendly poster maker helps you catch the attention of your audience effortlessly.

Ready to use AI to design posters like a pro?

Join more than 11 million people who already use Piktochart to create stunning posters.

Is it possible to personalize my poster with my own photos and diagrams?

What’s the limit on poster creation, how do i enhance the quality of my posters, is signing up mandatory to use piktochart, poster resources.

How to Make a Poster in 6 Easy Steps [2023 Guide With Templates]

25 Poster Ideas, Templates, and Tips for Creative Inspiration

Communications

7 Types of Posters and What Makes Them Stand Out

What else can you create with piktochart ai.

Hellblade 2's Excellent Presentation Goes Far Beyond Its Graphics

Your changes have been saved

Email Is sent

Please verify your email address.

You’ve reached your account maximum for followed topics.

Hellblade 2 Should Be The Final Nail in One Video Game Marketing Trend's Coffin

Hellblade 2 is the best example of unreal engine 5 yet, senua's saga: hellblade 2 ending explained.

• Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 offers fans a short, emotionally-driven experience with exceptional graphics and sound design.
• The game's innovative binaural audio design immerses players in Senua's world, enhancing the narrative and gameplay.
• Cinematography in Hellblade 2 plays a crucial role in making the game feel cinematic, offering dynamic perspectives during gameplay.

While its gameplay may not offer the improvements that fans were hoping for, there's still a lot to love about Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 . Another short but sweet 5-6 hour experience, Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 delivers another intriguing, emotionally-driven story that once again centers around the titular Pictish warrior whose new journey sees players explore a brand new land similarly inspired by Norse mythology.

On this new journey, Senua faces off against undead Draugr, meets some unfriendly Giants, and comes close to death more times than fans thought possible, and each step of the way Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 wows players with its exceptional presentation. But while Hellblade 2 's excellent graphics have been a common point of praise since its launch last week, there's far more to Hellblade 2 's presentation than its visuals.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 was announced all the way back in 2019, and its divisive reception should be the end of one longstanding industry trend.

Hellblade 2's Presentation Is Great All-Round

One of hellblade 2's biggest strengths is sound design.

When Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice first launched in 2017, it quickly became one of the year's biggest surprises, and its presentation played a key role in that. More specifically, Hellblade 's audio design became a hot topic among critics. When booting up Hellblade for the first time, players are encouraged to use headphones to make the best use of the game's innovative binaural audio design.

For those unaware, binaural audio is a technique that utilizes stereo technology to submerge players in a sort of sphere of sound. This means that if players are wearing headphones, it'll sound as though the game's audio is coming from all around them. Ninja Theory was able to use this technique in the first Hellblade to carefully choose where the game's audio would come from. In doing this, Hellblade was able to reinforce the symptoms of Senua's psychosis , having the voices that appear in her head dart around the player's own audio space.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 takes its predecessor's excellent audio design and builds on it, introducing a few new layers that go a long way in enhancing the player experience. One of these new layers is voice modulation and volume, which give Senua's voices even more prominence. Hellblade 2 also features more characters than its predecessor, and the audio design does some interesting things when those characters are interacting with Senua.

It's often the case that when a character talks to Senua in Hellblade 2 , players will hear that voice all around them as if they were standing in front of them in real life. But as those characters are talking, Senua's voices will often chime in with their own commentary on what's being said, appearing in alternate ears to evoke the feeling that the player is constantly surrounded by an unseen presence that they can't control.

Hellblade 2's Cinematography Is an Unsung Hero

Cinematography doesn't get talked about much in the world of video games, but for narrative titles like Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 , it's just as important as it would be in a movie. The vast majority of Hellblade 2 's runtime is spent with the camera placed firmly behind Senua's back, and just above her shoulder, a common perspective of modern narrative games. However, Hellblade 2 's camera isn't afraid to get a little more creative than some of its contemporaries, occasionally panning around Senua during cinematic moments to show her facial expressions, or naturally panning to characters and items of interest during gameplay. Hellblade 2 's camerawork plays a vital role in making the game feel cinematic and seamless.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2

Ninja Theory's highly anticipated sequel, Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2, will continue Senua's journey, with the story rumored to be set in Iceland. The PC, Xbox Series X/S game will be launching directly on Game Pass.

We hope you like the items we recommend and discuss! Game Rant has affiliate and sponsored partnerships, so we receive a share of the revenue from some of your purchases. This won’t affect the price you pay and helps us offer the best product recommendations.

Victoria Police presentation on youth crime criticised for 'racist' focus on 'African gangs'

The first email landed just after 1:30pm on the final day of May last year.

"I want to provide the feedback that the language, tone, and imagery of the second presentation this morning was very racist," it read.

"I assume formal feedback will be provided to Victoria Police but wanted to flag my concerns."

The internal email from Victoria's justice department was about a recent presentation by police, which had been pitched as a "really impactful" look at the youth gang landscape in Victoria. In the aftermath, attendees complained they should have been warned beforehand they would see "someone get stabbed to death".

Warning: This story contains references to racial slurs.

The presentation followed a three-day conference on gangs which had attracted law enforcement officers from America, England, Italy and New Zealand.

Dozens of public servants from the Department of Justice and some from the premier's department had been invited to take part.

The two-and-a-half-hour session started well, with police staff outlining details of the state's 47 youth gangs and 607 known members and their approach to disrupting them.

But the second half left staff "disturbed", "upset" and "extremely affected", according to more than 200 pages of internal departmental documents obtained by the ABC under Freedom of Information laws.

Police later apologised for the presentation, but denied it was racist.

'Very graphic and violent footage'

The day before the presentation, an email went out warning that Victoria Police had advised there would be "graphic footage that some attendees may find confronting" and that people might want to "excuse themselves" if they found it distressing.

In the aftermath, multiple staff said the warning was insufficient for what was shown.

One staff member said to put it "bluntly", police "should have said, 'We are about to show you someone get stabbed to death.'"

Victoria Police told the ABC its warnings gave people "ample opportunity" to leave the presentation.

Internal emails from the justice department said "explicit videos and even CCTV footage of a murder was shown", along with "very graphic and violent footage" from a "range of serious violent incidents including stabbings and still images involving young people and adults allegedly involved both as victims and perpetrators".

On eight separate occasions in the documents, the word "gratuitous" is used to describe the graphic content shown.

In one person's handwritten notes from the session, they questioned why they were watching a murder. The attendee wrote: "Unclear purpose of showing [this] video is." 

Among the audience were people who knew both victims and offenders.

"Some of those in attendance are also members of our vibrant African and South Sudanese Australian communities, including those who personally knew the victims of serious assaults and who were shown video in the presentation of these assaults," one email said.

While several people acknowledged the "traumatic experiences" officers faced, and the need for policy makers to "understand the practical and operational realities" of frontline police work, they didn't think the presentation helped achieve this.

One person commented they were "disturbed" by "the casual way the violent imagery was discussed" and another said the commentary was "upsetting … flippant, and racist in several points."

It is unclear how many of the attendees complained based on the consolidated feedback provided in the emails, but the secretary of the department described it as "significant staff concerns".

Victoria Police says it received "a combination of both positive and negative feedback" following the presentation.

'Utterance of racial slurs' and a focus on 'African gangs'

It wasn't just the graphic videos and photos that left people "disturbed".

Department emails said the second presentation "focused almost exclusively on offending by African background Australian young people and adults", without "any explanation or evidence as to why".

Attendees contrasted that with the first presentation delivered during the same session, which also referenced Caucasian and Afghan-Australian offenders.

One attendee recalled a slide in the second presentation that featured pictures of two young men of African background handcuffed on the ground.

"The presenter went on to say that one of these men had been found to not be involved in the incident at all," they said. "I question why the image of this person's face was kept in the presentation."

Multiple attendees complained that the presenter referred to a 13-year-old as an "offender for life", laughed "inappropriately" when identifying people in prison, made comments "trivialising family violence", and used the 'n-word'.

The slur was reportedly used by the presenter when reading a social media post that wasn't on the screen, "meaning there was a deliberate decision to use that word which would otherwise not have been seen/heard by the audience," one attendee said.

One staff member's notes of the presentation said, "'n-word'… completely gratuitous" and the photos were "all POC [people of colour], no blurred faces" including one of a "bloody wound to face" and one of someone "in a pool of blood".

Police said, "with hindsight" it accepted that "reading out social media posts from gang members containing certain words may have been offensive to a number of individuals and this was not our intent."

Members of the department's South Sudanese Australian Youth Justice Expert Working Group, who were at the session, said the "utterance of racial slurs" needed to be denounced and that the focus on people of African background should be "called out as racist or, at the very least, noted that it was received as racism by many members of the audience".

The Department of Justice refused a request from the ABC to speak with the chair of the working group.

That the presentation was "solely focused on African gangs" was raised during the session, according to one person who emailed their managers.

"One person posted a question asking whether 'youth gangs is an African young people issue only or was this presentation designed to focus on one group.' This question was not answered," another attendee wrote. 

Another person's notes of the session disagreed, they said the presenter acknowledged white gang members, but said "memberships of non-Caucasians is over represented".

A third person said it "bordered on racial profiling" and lamented a lack of awareness "that ethnicity is not the true common denominator".

"We expect that the longer‐term corporate memory of Victoria Police provides ample evidence that the common denominator is poverty, marginalisation, pre‐existing trauma and/or cultural barriers," they wrote. "Accordingly, it is not a surprise that offending may be temporarily elevated amongst ethnic groups associated with recent mass migration trends."

Victoria's Crime Statistics Agency data shows the number of offenders under 24 who were born in Sudan and South Sudan has fallen in the past few years, from 508 in 2020/21 to 258 in 2022/23.

That's compared to the 13,973 youth offenders who were born in Australia.

However, nearly 18 per cent of youth offenders did not have their country of birth recorded, and data on the  ethnic identity of known offenders is not available .

The new chair of the South Sudanese Community Association in Victoria, Andrew Ohide, said he could not comment on the presentation but that it was difficult for young people who were unfairly judged by police or members of the public when they were with a group of friends, saying it was "rubbish" and "not helpful".

"For a community to be safe, we need to look to each other and see all of us as Australian," he said.

He said if people did the wrong thing, he expected police to act, but he worried the public and the media often focused on offenders from an African background.

"When they're [involved in] positive things, you call them Australian, but when they cause any minor problem, now — it's South Sudanese," he said.

Acting chief commissioner apologised to department secretary, documents show

Just after 6pm on the day of the presentation, senior justice department staff were emailed a summary of concerns and complaints regarding the presentation.

One deputy secretary replied that it was "disappointing and shocking".

Another wrote: "It seems a massive backward step by VicPol. A response is clearly warranted."

They emailed staff who had attended, "to acknowledge and apologise for the distress, anger, and disappointment that the presentation has caused" and tell them the material "did not reflect [the department's] values".

Two days after the presentation, justice department secretary Kate Houghton and then-acting police chief commissioner Neil Paterson had "a few conversations".

If the secretary stuck to the speaking notes prepared for the call, she raised concerns about gratuitous use of graphic and violent footage, unacceptable language and commentary, racial profiling, and the potential misuse of CCTV footage from correctional facilities.

A follow-up email went out to attendees that afternoon saying: "The Acting Chief Commissioner has apologised and confirmed that action will be taken to address the concerns raised. The Secretary would like to thank you for having the courage to raise that this presentation was not acceptable."

Then-acting chief commissioner Neil Paterson also made an apology to a member of the South Sudanese Australian Youth Justice Expertise Working Group, which one working group member described as "both sincere and assuring".

"He apologised on behalf of the VicPol and asked me to convey his apologies to the team," the group member wrote in an email, adding Mr Paterson "said it was inappropriate to give such a graphic presentation" particularly "to those who might know some of those young [people]".

Victoria Police declined an interview with the ABC, but did respond to a series of questions in a statement.

"While everything presented depicted the realities of the job and the youth gang situation, we understand the content may have been confronting for people who do not work in a policing environment," it said.

It said the footage was not "shown to be gratuitous but rather to demonstrate the factual reality" of what "police are confronting on a regular basis".

The statement pushed back against allegations of racism or racial profiling.

"To be clear, there was no racism in the presentation, nor did Victoria Police employees focus on any specific ethnicity or group but rather criminal offending examples."

The Chair of Criminology at the University of Melbourne, Associate Professor Diana Johns said she wasn't surprised to hear about the presentation and the concerns that were raised.

"These are not the everyday things that most of us live with, they're exceptions.

"Yet, the world of policing, very often there's a focus on violence and a normalisation of the things that police see each day, in their working day, that normalises both the violence and the violent response to violence," she said.

She claimed "every city in the world, policing is racialised" and said the community needed to listen to the experiences of young people of colour.

"Police accountability is absolutely critical — police accountability in terms of having independent oversight, in terms of having mechanisms for police to be held accountable when they do the wrong thing, but also to be accountable to their communities they're serving."

Attendees question motivation for presentation

The documents obtained by the ABC suggest some attendees interpreted the presentation as a "scare campaign" attempting to dissuade department staff from supporting a rise in the minimum age of criminal responsibility or bail reforms.

One person was typing notes while the police session was underway.

They started out detailed, but during the second presentation they had largely descended into a serious of questions, including: "What do these phrases mean?", "Rubbish family violence thing?", "Know your audience?", "Bit propaganda-ish?".

The notes finish with one final thought: "What is the purpose of your presooooo"

Another attendee said "there was no constructive discussion of what tools/levers police were lacking other than that we shouldn't be making their lives harder by changing bail, raising the age etc".

The invitation to the session was targeted at people working on raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility, which is currently 10, but is set to increase to 12 by the end of the year.

Victoria Police said the presentation was requested by some Justice Department staff who had attended the international gangs conference.

"The purpose was to give employees an insight into the youth gang environment, including some of the challenges police face, impacts on community, and the considerable efforts being made to manage, engage and divert these young people before they escalate into more serious offending," its statement said.

You can read a letter of complaint to the Acting Chief Commissioner below:

• X (formerly Twitter)
• Race Relations