Powerpoint

Using Slide Masters, Part Two

This article is the second part of our tutorial on how to use Slide Masters in Microsoft PowerPoint.

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In this article, we will learn how to:

  • Work with placeholders
  • Change a slide’s layout

Working with Placeholders

Open Slide Master view by clicking View → Slide Master:

Slide Master View Part 2

Scroll to the bottom of the Slides pane and click to select the last slide layout:

Last Slide Layout Part Two

This slide layout contains a title and footer. Our next step is to add placeholders, which will allow the user to insert objects (such as text and pictures) into specific areas of the slide.

To insert a placeholder, click Slide Master → Insert Placeholder (drop-down arrow):

Insert Placecard From Slide Master

From the drop-down menu, click on the type of placeholder you would like to insert. For this example, click Picture:

Select Placecard Type from Drop-down

Then, your cursor will change into a crosshair (+) so that you can draw the placeholder. For this example, click and drag to draw a rectangle below the slide’s title:

Cursor Change On Placecard

Release your cursor when the placeholder has been drawn. It will be placed on the current slide layout using the dimensions that you specified:

Placecard Appears On Current Slide

Close Slide Master view by clicking Slide Master → Close Master View:

Close Slide Master View

Let’s create a new slide using the layout you just modified to see how the placeholder works. Click Home → New Slide (drop-down arrow):

Create New Slide From Modified Placecard

This drop-down menu will list all of the slide layouts that exist in the current template, including the new slide layout that you just customized (Custom Layout). Click this slide layout:

Select Customize Slide Layout From Menu

A new slide using the layout that you selected will be inserted into the current presentation. Test the placeholder you just created by clicking the picture icon in the middle of it:

New Slide Appears In Presentation

In this case, as it is a picture placeholder, the Insert Picture dialog will be displayed. Using the controls in this dialog, you can search for and select a picture on your computer that you would like to insert into this placeholder. Close the Insert Picture dialog by clicking Cancel:

Insert Picture Dialog Box

Save the changes that you have made to the presentation and close Microsoft PowerPoint.

Changing the Slide Layout

To begin, open Module 1-4 using Microsoft PowerPoint 2013.

In addition to using layouts for new slides, you can change the layout of existing slides. For example, with the first slide in the current presentation selected, click Home → Layout:

Change New Or Existing Slide Layout

The Layout drop-down menu will then list all of the possible slide masters to choose from. For this example, click Title and Content:

Full Master Slide Layout Menu

The new slide master that you selected will now be applied to the current slide:

New Master Slide Applied To Current Slide

Save the changes that you have made to the presentation and close Microsoft PowerPoint.

See Using Slide Masters Part 3

 

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