PhotoActive FX

Introduction

Adding some pizzazz to your next PowerPoint presentation can be easy with PhotoActive FX from CrystalGraphics. This two volume add-in for PowerPoint allows you to create photo effects right inside PowerPoint. It also includes a video rendering engine that creates customized video clips that integrate seamlessly within your presentation. CrystalGraphics, based in Santa Clara, California, United States, is probably the largest provider of PowerPoint add-ins. Their PowerPlugs series of add-ins include Transitions, Music, SuperShapes, Headings and PhotoActive FX, the subject of this review. In addition, CrystalGraphics also creates a combo collection of PowerPoint add-ins called the Ultimate Combo.

Download and Installation

You can download a demo version of PhotoActive FX from the CrystalGraphics website:

Download Demo

The download weighs over 9 mb. Installation is simple—just click the downloaded file to install the product. The next time you run PowerPoint, you'll find a small PhotoActive FX toolbar within the program. Also, you'll find two new options in your Format menu. In addition, you'll find a new PhotoActive FX group within your Windows Start menu. If you have more than one version of PowerPoint installed on your system, you'll find that PhotoActive FX shows up only in the latest version of PowerPoint. To enable it in an older version of PowerPoint, follow these steps:

1. Open the version of PowerPoint in which PhotoActive FX does not show up.
   
2. While PowerPoint is still active, go to your Windows Start menu and choose the Reconfigure option from the PowerPlugs/PhotoActive FX group.
   
3. Within the Reconfigure dialog box, click the Remove option. Thereafter, click the Add into PowerPoint button.
   
4. PhotoActive FX should now show up in the open PowerPoint window.

Now that we have got the installation issues resolved, let's get to actually using PhotoActive FX. PhotoActive FX comes in two volumes and each volume contains both still and animated effects. For this review, I have both volumes installed. CrystalGraphics sells both volumes individually—you can also buy a combined version. In addition, PhotoActive FX is also available as a component of the Ultimate Combo suite of PowerPoint add-ins. The current version of PhotoActive FX is 1.33 and it works with PowerPoint 97, 2000, 2002 and 2003.

Still Effects

Follow these steps to apply a sample effect:

1. Insert and select a picture in PowerPoint. Click the Still Photo Effects icon on the PhotoActive FX toolbar.
   
   
2. This opens the Still PhotoActive FX interface (see screenshot below)—on the left you will find various categories of effects. The middle pane previews these effects and the right pane allows you to preview a chosen effect on the selected image. Most such previews work only on square images—to make them work on rectangular images, you might want to click the F button.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Try and experiment with various effects—once you are happy with a certain result, click the OK button.

While working with any effect, you can click the Advanced button to launch a specialized image editor that offers more possibilities. All custom settings can be saved to be used again. All settings are saved as individual file presets in folders and can be shared with others. Amazingly, this aspect of PhotoActive FX is not particularly well publicized.

Animated Effects

Animated effects work exactly like still effects—the only difference between them is that unlike still effects, animated effects are saved as AVI files linked to the active presentation. All animated effects can be further fine-tuned using the Advanced Edit controls. I wish CrystalGraphics allowed rendering of these videos to MPG and WMV video formats other than plain AVI. Many of these videos can be created within PowerPoint and exported for use in other programs as well. A word of caution, though—experimenting with all video effects can become very addictive and you might not realize the amount of time you spent trying it out!

Pricing

For what it does, PhotoActive FX is surprisingly very competitively priced. Each volume costs US$49 and both volumes together cost US$98. The product includes full image and video editing engines and is entirely customizable. What's more—presets can be saved to be used again or shared. I have no hesitation in recommending this product at this price point.

You can buy the product online from CrystalGraphics.

Conclusion

Barring a few glitches like no availability of MPG and WMV export in the animated effects, PhotoActive FX is a winner. Also, you get a More Effects option in both the Start menu group and the PhotoActive FX interface—clicking this takes you to the PhotoActive FX homepage. I could find no extra effects available there.

Having said that, PhotoActive FX is still one add-in I would never like to be without. It saves you from running back and forth between PowerPoint and an image or video editor. The amount of saved time alone would be worth investing in this product.

Other than that, almost anyone can be creative using PhotoActive FX.