This is Part III in the series of how to add an audio or video clip to a PowerPoint presentation.  This TechTIP, will explain how to add your own video, captured with a simple webcam and using Microsoft Windows Movie Maker.

We're not going to try and tell you how to edit a video in WMM, because the options are many and the steps are well laid-out.  But for first time users, getting all the settings and configurations for capturing your first video can be confusing.

From step 1. Capture Video, select capture from video device and the Video Capture Wizard will open.  Your camera and audio devices (microphone and audio card) should be selected.  Click the configure button and when the Configure Video Capture window opens select the video settings button. For output size select 320 x 240 from the pull-down menu, then Apply, OK and Close.

From the Video Capture Wizard select Next enter a filename and choose where you want the file to be saved and click Next and then select Best Quality for playback on my computer (recommended) and then Next.

The video capture window should open and you should see the image from your webcam.  Check the box, Create clips when wizard finishes and then select the Start Capture button whenever you are ready to begin capturing your video, click the Stop Capture button when you want to end the video capture and then click Finish.  A thumbnail of your video clip will now be visible in the work area and you could edit it to add a title, special effects and background music.  Leave that for another time, and let's complete getting your raw video clip into a PowerPoint slide.

Once you have the video, select the slide where you want it and Insert/Movie and Sounds/Movie from File.  An Insert Movie window will open and you can navigate to the location where your video clip is stored and select it, and then click OK.  Another window will open and ask, "How do you want the movie to start in the slide show?", I suggest choosing, When Clicked.  You can position the video clip wherever you want it , but try to refrain from making the image larger by dragging the handles.  It will get larger, but the result will have less resolution and appear grainy.  When the slide show is running, clicking on the video will make it play.

By default, all video files are linked. That means a video file must be accompany the PowerPoint file, and reside on the original path from where it was inserted.  That is why presentations that contain video clips are usually presented on the computer where they were created, or in a presentation burned to a CD-ROM.  You can not email a stand-alone PowerPoint presentation that has a video clip and have the recipient be able to view your video.

Video files can get very large, very quick, and a one minute clip could be 14MB, or more.  The typical display sizes (in pixels) for a video are: 160 x120, 320 x 240 and 640 x 480.   I suggested using the 320 x 240 size as the best compromise in viewing size and file size, but the chart below shows the other options available in WMM (all files are in wmv format).

I have created a demo PowerPoint presentation with an audio and video clip as explained in this three-part series.  If you would like to receive the demo PowerPoint, just click the following link - Sight and Sound PPT Demo.