There are no hidden secrets to choosing the best photos for your photo slideshow. But by following a few tips, you can greatly improve the quality of your show. Keep in mind these are only tips. Our goal is simply to help you choose the best photos possible!

SELECT GOOD-QUALITY PHOTOS

While we can greatly improve your digital images by fixing the color and contrast, it's best to start with photos that are good quality.
Make sure your photos are:
– In focus (not blurry).
– Lit well enough to see people's faces.
– Printed on flat paper. Photos that have raised ridges or other texture is not ideal.
– Clean! No fingerprints.
– Free from major damage, such as spots covering the photo or water damage.
Of course, you may have to use photos that possess one or more of the above qualities. That's the way it is, especially with older photos. But your DVD photo slide show will be better if you limit these types of photos as much as possible.

CHOOSE PHOTOS THAT ARE PHYSICALLY INTACT

Do not send photos that are cut. Send the original rectangular or square photos that were provided by the photographer or photo center. This means: avoid photos that are cut into shapes, such as circles, hearts, stars, or anything else. These photos are fabulous for scrapbooks, but work poorly onscreen because they do not fit the dimensions of a TV.
   Also, do not cut photos yourself in order to give us "cropping instructions." If you need a photo to be cropped to eliminate unwanted people or other content, simply note it on your DVD photo slide show order form.

CHOOSE MORE HORIZONTAL PHOTOS THAN VERTICAL ONES

Television screens are wider than they are tall, so horizontal pictures fit more naturally and look better. (This is true of widescreen TVs as well.) Horizontal shots easily fill the screen, which is a key element to a professional slideshow.
   If you must include some vertical photos, try to space them among horizontal ones if possible. Vertical photos are not visually appealing when presented one after the other. During our editing, we will crop a vertical photo to try to fill the screen as much as possible. However, some vertical photos may be presented onscreen with black borders on each side to accommodate the dimensions of the photo. We will do this if we cannot crop the photo without losing essential content.

LOOK FOR "ACTION" SHOTS

The best photos are the ones that evoke emotion or cause laughter to erupt from your audience. Most frequently, those will be "action" shots, where someone in the photo is doing something. These types of candid photos show a more natural side to the people in your show.
   Try to limit the number of formal or posed photos. These types of photos can be a bit dry and usually don't show a person's real personality very well. While posed photos are hard to exclude because they are always the essential photos to your family, try to intersperse them with action/candid shots. For example, if you have a few formal photos of your wedding party that you want to include in your wedding slideshow, select a few other candids to go in between, such as pics of the best man drinking champagne or the bridesmaids laughing together. This will break up the formality.

CHOOSE PHOTOS WHERE THE SUBJECT IS CENTERED WELL

Did you know that TV screens cut off the very edge of all sides of a video picture? Up to 10% of the picture can be cut off on some TVs. This is true of every video that appears on your TV. Consequently, we need to be aware of this when setting photos in your slideshow.
   For this reason, we encourage you to avoid photos in which the people are framed badly. For example, try to limit photos in which the subjects' heads have been cut off at the top or their shoulders cut off on the left or right sides. We will not be able to frame these types of photos very well on the screen.
   Therefore, look for photos in which the subject is relatively centered. That doesn't mean he or she has to be in the exact center of the photo. Just avoid photos where the subject is too close to the edge.
   Also, closeups and medium-distance shots are generally better than faraway photos, since the further the subject is from the camera, the fuzzier he or she usually appears.

MIX UP YOUR GROUP PHOTOS

Too many group photos can be deadly to a slideshow. We take time with group photos, carefully panning and zooming so that everyone in the photo can be seen up close. But this means that most group photos are onscreen for a longer period of time than other photos – sometimes up to 15 seconds, depending on how large the group is! And too many group photos can be very repetitious.
   So mix up your group photos. If you have a big group photo of your extended family from last Thanksgiving dinner, don't follow it with another group photo from the Christmas party. Separate them with a few action photos of the grandkids eating turkey, Mom ripping open a present, or the guys throwing around a football outside. Even adding a few photos that just contain two or three people rather than a large group can break up too many group shots. Spacing out your group photos will add more visual interest to the slideshow.

ELIMINATE SIMILAR PHOTOS

If two photos are very similar, consider eliminating one of them. Cutting extraneous photos will help the pace of your slideshow as well as help you avoid unnecessary costs.
   For example, you may have 10 photos of your child playing outside with your dog. As cute as all 10 undoubtedly are, most people viewing your slideshow will get the point after at least 5 photos. And it's a given that some of the photos will not be clear or as well-composed as others. So you may be able to omit some of them. Sometimes a friend can help you with this job because they can be more objective.

INCLUDE PHOTOS OF THE AUDIENCE

If you are showing your slideshow to a large audience, keep this in mind: everyone loves to see themselves on the screen! So try to include photos of audience members when appropriate. It makes your family and friends feel part of your special event and the occasion they are sharing with you. In addition, they will watch the show carefully to see who turns up next! This is a great technique for ensuring that the people in the audience will enjoy the DVD photo slide show as much as the guest of honor.

CHOOSE BEGINNING AND ENDING PHOTOS CAREFULLY

The photos that start and end your slideshow should be two of the best: clear, emotional, well-composed. They should be meaningful photos that strongly convey the main purpose of the slideshow. To a lesser degree, this also applies to the photos that start and end the individual sections within your slideshow.