How to Make a Slideshow with Music and Pictures for Free

For the purpose of this article, we suggest using free video editors to create a slideshow with music and pictures. So how to make a slideshow with music and pictures for free?

A slideshow is a compilation of pictures and is usually used with music, at times transition effects also, to deliver happiness on special occasions. For example, wedding slideshows and graduation slideshows. With the right tool, making slideshows with music and pictures is a breeze.

Apart from the detailed steps to make a slideshow with music and picture, other details such as text, transitions, and important slideshow ideas are during are included in this guide as well.

In the following part, we recommend the best free slideshow maker, FilmForth, to help you turn photos into impressive slideshows. FilmForth is an easy-to-use video editor as well as a free slideshow maker with music, which contains lots of built-in music that you can apply to the slideshow for free. Also, it contains a bunch of transition effects that can be added to the pics. Now, let’s get to it.

How to Make a Slideshow with Music and Pictures – Step by Step

Now, let’s meet the video tutorial to make a slideshow with music and pictures for free.

Step 1. Launch the Free Video Editor

Go to Microsoft Store to download FilmForth. And then you can install it on your computer. After successfully installed, you can run it on the computer.  Click the [Launch] button to start up FilmForth. The main screen will appear.

Step 2. Upload Picture or Video

Now you should tap the New Project to start to make a slideshow. Then there will pop up a window that is asking you to ADD Video/Photo Clips. You can hit the button to import your pictures or drag and drop your pics into the box.

Step 3. Make the Slideshow

This part will include 3 sections. The first one is how to add music to the slideshow; the second is how to add text to the slideshow; the third one is how to add transitions to the slideshow.

You can control how images appear in video using duration (the amount of time a slide appears for) and transitions (how one image replaces another). You might choose to have all your images appear for the same duration, but sometimes it is good to give the viewer more time with certain slides if there is more to look at.

Tap the Duration button and set the pics duration by moving the blue circle or just text the seconds you need to the box. You can also see there are Effects and Transform you can use to apply to the slides.

How to Add Music to the Slideshow for Free

There are lots of music on FilmForth that can be used for the slideshow for free. If all music won’t meet your need, you can use the Voiceover feature to record your own audio and apply it to your slideshow. Besides, you can import your own music from the computer.

You can choose from the 3 options to get the music you want. Accessing the Add Audio mode also lets you add your own audio files.

When using audio, be sure it is public domain so it can legally be used with your video. Using pre-recorded music without proper permissions can be an issue especially if you are using a slide show in public venues and for a product or business promotion.

Voiceovers are just another form of sound. They can emphasize text that appears in your video or provide a narrative. Voice overs are popular for use in instructional video and product introductions where text may get in the way of visuals and other messaging.

While you can record voiceovers outside FilmForth and import them like you would other audio files, FilmForth can record your voice-overs live. This is a great advantage for timing your narrative to match up with slides.

How to Add Text to the Slideshow

Slides with text are a good example of elements that might stay on longer. It can add interest to have some variation in the duration of the slides. So text won’t be the last thing you might concern about. The animated text also explains a lot about the details of the pics.

Via FilmForth, you can tap the Text button to add text to the slideshow. Before you text the text to the slideshow, you need to place the cursor to where you want and start adding the text.

You can tap the Animation button to animate the text on the screen. Choosing a fascinating intro will make the slideshow more impressive. Select the Entrance and set the duration.

How to Add Transitions to the Slideshow for Free

Transitions are necessary for an impressive slideshow. How to add transitions to the slideshow? It’s really easy on FilmForth. FilmForth has lots of transition effects and you can apply them to the slideshow just in clicks.

Here you will see there are some white vertical lines between the clips. Hit the white vertical lines and the transitions FilmForth owns will show up. All you need to do is select a transition and set the duration.

As you add slides, many editing programs allow you to control how slides transition. Options for transitions often include fades or directional movements (replacing from the top, bottom, or sides). FilmForth automatically places a transition icon between each pair of slides. This makes working with transitions easy.

Step 4. Save the Slideshow

Once you have everything the way you want it, your final step is to export your video into a usable format so you can share it. FilmForth automatically stores the source so you can edit the presentation later. Exporting creates a new file that can be used with social media or played with virtually any video player on any device.

Simply tap the Save Video button and you will see the settings of the video. Set the settings, you will export a slideshow without a watermark.

After all this work is done, you will export a slideshow with music, effects, text, and no watermarks.

Tips to Make a Slideshow with Music and Pictures for Free

In this post, you can learn all these detailed steps to make a slideshow with music and pictures for free. So in the following part, you can learn more tips about how to make a slideshow.

What is the Best Free Slideshow Maker?

A slideshow maker should contain all the factors you need to apply to the slides. No matter the text, music, or effects, the slideshow maker should provide. Then the slideshow maker can be a good one. Like FilmForth, which is totally free and provides lots of powerful features. It can be the best free slideshow maker.

Consider the Story You Want to Tell

To make a good slideshow, you need to make people want to watch it. You have to consider the topic or message, how you will use the slideshow, who the audience is, and how to present it.

For an event, like a wedding, you want to follow it from beginning to end. Doing it in order makes the special day a story instead of just a jumble of frames. If you make a slideshow to introduce a new product, you want to present what it is and what it does. Think of how to grip your audience with something interesting, cute, surprising, or with impact.

Have a clear idea of who will see the slideshow. Knowing who your audience is can make all the difference in showing them the right content. Your content should be age-appropriate. It might be a little fun or maybe even silly for friends and family, but you would want to be more on point with a business presentation. Think of the tone you want to set and keep that in mind.

You can use more than just images in a slideshow presentation. Video clips, text, music, and voice-overs can help you create a mood, fill in details, and vary the viewer’s experience.

Gather the Pictures You Want to Include

Let’s face it, every picture you take won’t be a winner. At times you have to take 100 shots to get a really good image. Other shots may need to be edited, cropped, or corrected in some way to make them their best. An image might be good but too dark. It might be out of focus or have motion blur. Go through your images to select only the best ones for the story you want to create. If necessary, do some adjustments to make them better.

When cropping images, keep in mind what the final size of the video will be in pixels.

For example, YouTube dimensions in HD are typically 1280 X 720 (720p) up to 1920 X 1080 (1080p). Often you can place images into your video editing program and the software will either resize for you or offer some editing options. The more professional you want the final look and feel of the video, the more you want to control the quality of the images you use.

Put the images you want to use in a folder where you can find them easily and get ready to start making your slideshow.

The Bottom Line

When the export is done, you have a complete slideshow to share or present to your audience. You can now close out of the program with your source files safely stored and your video exported for use. Moreover, another great free tool to make slideshows effortlessly is PowerPoint, and here’s the guide to make a slideshow with PowerPoint for you to follow.

We think FilmForth is a great tool for those getting interested in producing their own videos. Being free and easy to use while offering many great options, you can enjoy making and sharing your videos and slideshows with no risk and great creative satisfaction.