Photo Slideshow

[ronf119]

Not sure if this is in the correct forum, but i'm looking to do a photo slideshow that would be projected during the wedding. I have both access to Mac and PC although i'm still primarily a PC user. I have used Canopus Imaginate in the past but want to know if there is something better out there now. I tried using iPhoto and iMovie but it definitely lacks the control I had with Canopus Imaginate. I have used Keynote for short presentations and it works actually quite well but it's a bit time consuming as you have to manually add the pictures one by one. I like iPhoto and iMovie because you can instantly get a slideshow up and running but I would like more control to fine tune things. Anyone have recommended programs for both PC and/or a Mac.

[Mike R]

I'm not familiar with Canopus Imaginate but I use ProShow Producer. It's fairly easy to learn. Easy to use with features such as layers. It's truly full featured.

[EOS_JD]

Producer is the best! Imaginate was a reasonable program and you could get decent results using that but Proshow is easier.

[tomd]

+1 for Photodex ProShow Gold ($80)

[myjunk]

+1 for proshow as well.

before this I was using Microsoft PhotoStory (freeware)

[ronf119]

thanks. I'll look into it. I just purchased a copy of iLife 09 which has the new iPhoto and iMovie so I'll check that out. If it doesn't work the way I'd like it to, ProShow it is

[Alv]

Not sure if this is in the correct forum, but i'm looking to do a photo slideshow that would be projected during the wedding. I have both access to Mac and PC although i'm still primarily a PC user. I have used Canopus Imaginate in the past but want to know if there is something better out there now. I tried using iPhoto and iMovie but it definitely lacks the control I had with Canopus Imaginate. I have used Keynote for short presentations and it works actually quite well but it's a bit time consuming as you have to manually add the pictures one by one. I like iPhoto and iMovie because you can instantly get a slideshow up and running but I would like more control to fine tune things. Anyone have recommended programs for both PC and/or a Mac.

Photo Flash Maker (http://www.photo-flash-maker.com) is my favorite. You could have a try.

[moviemaker]

have you tried soundslides.com

I used to use PS gold, but found SS much easier and less time consuming

[moviemaker]

have you tried soundslides.com

I used to use PS gold, but found SS much easier and less time consuming

[EOS_JD]

thanks. I'll look into it. I just purchased a copy of iLife 09 which has the new iPhoto and iMovie so I'll check that out. If it doesn't work the way I'd like it to, ProShow it is

not sure if it is different now but proshow gold/producer were always PC only applications....

just checked and it seems that is still the case.

proshow gold/producer do not support Mac

[h_A_Z]

I use Fotomagico for my iMac! Check out the slideshows i've made at http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=48169281271&subj=551676271 and http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=44942341271&subj=551676271

[ronf119]

So I asked this question more than a year ago. I ended up using a combination of programs to finish a project I was working on. I now have another relatively large slideshow I need to produce by Monday so i'm looking to see if ProShow is the one to purchase. Does it have an option to make a looping DVD after creating the slideshow. Thanks

[Mike R]

So I asked this question more than a year ago. I ended up using a combination of programs to finish a project I was working on. I now have another relatively large slideshow I need to produce by Monday so i'm looking to see if ProShow is the one to purchase. Does it have an option to make a looping DVD after creating the slideshow. Thanks

Welcome back!

Yes. I program all my shows to run continuous.

[ronf119]

ok. Thanks. Maybe, i'll download the free trial and if I really like it, then I can buy it. Does anyone know if the free trial is fully functional

[Mike R]

ok. Thanks. Maybe, i'll download the free trial and if I really like it, then I can buy it. Does anyone know if the free trial is fully functional

The free trials are fully funtional.

ProShow Producer can do a lot more than ProShow Gold and is well worth the additional expense.

[ronf119]

So I downloaded proshow gold to see if there is something that I need/want that I found missing. For the most part, it seems to fit what I needed it to do. I showed the demo slideshow I made today and everyone seems to like it. So now I have 3 questions

1. If I purchase proshow and register, will their "watermark" saying it's an evaluation copy disappear without me having to redo my entire show.

2. Can I install this on say my work computer (i'm purchasing it personally for my use) and then later, remove it from my work computer, and install it on my home machine.

3. What did you find in proshow producer that was essential to you that proshow gold was lacking. The only thing from my limited use is I would have liked to be able to put a background (lower third) under the captions. It doesn't have any built-in so I assume I would have to create one in photoshop and put it on a layer. Not that hard but an extra step.

Thanks

[neil_r]

FotoMagico (http://boinx.com/fotomagico/overview/) by Boinx is great on the Mac

http://boinx.com/fotomagico/overview/

[fionali]

Hi, i often use Photo MovieTheater to make photo slideshow (http://www.etinysoft.com/slideshow-photo-movietheater.html). It is cheaper than Proshow Gold, and i like its HD transitions.
http://www.etinysoft.com/slideshow-photo-movietheater.html

[EOS_JD]

So I downloaded proshow gold to see if there is something that I need/want that I found missing. For the most part, it seems to fit what I needed it to do. I showed the demo slideshow I made today and everyone seems to like it. So now I have 3 questions

1. If I purchase proshow and register, will their "watermark" saying it's an evaluation copy disappear without me having to redo my entire show.

Yes - your show will be fine.

2. Can I install this on say my work computer (i'm purchasing it personally for my use) and then later, remove it from my work computer, and install it on my home machine.

No reason technically but your work's IT dept may not like you doing that.

3. What did you find in proshow producer that was essential to you that proshow gold was lacking. The only thing from my limited use is I would have liked to be able to put a background (lower third) under the captions. It doesn't have any built-in so I assume I would have to create one in photoshop and put it on a layer. Not that hard but an extra step.

Thanks
http://www.photodex.com/products/proshow/gold/compare

Extra slide styles are great, but keyframing is the one big difference. You can control the movement and look of images with keyframes ande make very complex single slides - (probably the biggest difference) loads of other effects....

See the link above.

[mcorrea]

ProShow Gold!

[superdiver]

PC= ProShow Gold

Mac = iMovie and iPhoto are even better and easier to use..

[ronf119]

PC= ProShow Gold

Mac = iMovie and iPhoto are even better and easier to use..


I found iMovie and iPhoto a bit buggy at times. Not sure if the updates fixed them but I ran into issues on several projects over the last year. As an example. I would finish a project, export to a file and when viewing the file, text or transitions are missing or not correct. Or if I close out iPhoto and come back to the project later, random things are missing. And the fact, you can't save multiple renditions for comparison to see what you like better just wasn't for me. Also, if I work on my macbook pro and want to switch to my desktop, no easy way to move the project files.

[superdiver]

Probably an update problem as they work fine the last couple of years for me...

[ronf119]

Proshow Gold is working well. I haven't had a lot time to mess with the styles that are included but the program is easy to use and renders out fairly quickly. There are a few things that I noticed now that I wish it had but it only comes with Proshow Producer. If it becomes annoying enough to warrant the upgrade, than i'll purchase it but for now, it fits almost all my requirements. I did wish the program had built in lower thirds as I sometimes run text down at the bottom of the image. Not a huge problem as I can make one in Photoshop but it would be nice to have that option

[anmracing]

Can you also do pip on the videos/slideshows?

[ronf119]

i haven't tried it myself with video, but i don't see why you can't. It works on layers. So you can have 1 layer playing one thing and then have another layer on the same slide playing another video

[gsspirit]

I found iMovie and iPhoto a bit buggy at times. Not sure if the updates fixed them but I ran into issues on several projects over the last year. As an example. I would finish a project, export to a file and when viewing the file, text or transitions are missing or not correct. Or if I close out iPhoto and come back to the project later, random things are missing. And the fact, you can't save multiple renditions for comparison to see what you like better just wasn't for me. Also, if I work on my macbook pro and want to switch to my desktop, no easy way to move the project files.


I too am not happy with the transitions which is why I am looking at this thread. It is user friendly and easy in that respect but the finished product is lacking. I have read of many others that have this problem, I have not tried to export in all formats etc.

Superdiver - could you share the settings, formats and work flow that you use and I will give that a try before I switch.

[merefizi]

proshow producer is the best, have many options of transitions , customize or to randomize etc. see this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5U52jqxD6c

[Car2n]

I was looking for slideshow software recently and found this link useful.
http://photo-slideshow-software-review.toptenreviews.com/
(I went with #3)

[Thorrulz]

3D Album lets you preview your show as well as output to a number of different formats. There are several wedding styles available. Here is a Link (http://www.rickzphoto.com/Other/SlideZhows/12725615_uAvU2#919826702_XQB8K) to a few samples I've done.
I should also add you can go with the more traditional slideshow features other programs provide and include video into many of the different stylepacks also.

[EOS_JD]

Nothing I've seen comes anywhere near the professional output of proshow.