There are several possibilities for adding narration and
other forms of multimedia to PowerPoint presentations.
To begin, the right hardware is needed: A microphone for
capturing voice and a webcam for video. Most laptop computers have these
features built-in, but some desktops may be lacking this hardware. Webcams that
include microphones are inexpensive (about $30) if your computer does not have
microphone or video capture capabilities.
The most basic software option would be to use the
presentation recording options in PowerPoint. These can be accessed using the
“record slide show” option of the “slide show” tab. When a recording is started,
PowerPoint will capture narration plus slide transitions, pen annotations
(control-p), and laser pointer effects (control-left mouse button). The
resulting multimedia presentation can be saved as a PowerPoint file. Another
option is to export the narrated PowerPoint file to video (file > export
> video) for sharing.
For more information:
The recording and editing features of PowerPoint are
limited. Techsmith’s Camtasia offers more powerful options for combining
presentations with webcam video and audio. Similarly, OBS Studio is a free,
open-source application for capturing and editing multimedia.
Adding audio and video to a presentation has a “wow!”
factor, but there are some important downsides to consider. Multimedia requires
a lot of data, resulting in large files. People with slow or unreliable
internet connections could have difficulty accessing these files. If the
presentation is shared as a PowerPoint file, the viewer will also need to have
PowerPoint software to open the file. This can be problematic because not everyone
has this software due to the expense. Finally, the creation of files with audio
and video can be technically demanding and labor intensive for the presenter.
Files for sharing this blog post:
Created: March 20, 2020
Gary Fisk, Ph.D., Professor of
Psychology, Georgia Southwestern State University
Author of Slides for Students,
a book about teaching with PowerPoint
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