Preparing Powerpoint files

A guide of sizes are as follows:

A0 - 841mm x 1189mm
A1 - 594mm x 841mm
A2 - 420mm x 594mm
A3 - 420mm x 297mm
A4 - 297mm x 210mm

Important, Please set your page size exactly to the print size you require
Page set-up
Go to File — Slide Set-up and use the Custom setting (portrait or landscape).
Or in later versions ,Go to Design--- Page setup.
It is best to set the final size or a proportionate reduction of it, we can then scale this to fit.

Layout and design tips within powerpoint
Use separate text boxes for different sections on a poster. It is then easier to move sections around and to size text boxes according to available space.
Turn off the Snap-to-Grid feature once text boxes are aligned properly. This allows finer movement of graphics and other items.
Alignment of boxes can be accessed by selecting the required elements then select draw, alignment ...
Ensure all the text boxes and graphics stay within the page.

Dealing with images in Powerpoint
If a file size is originated at A3 it will be enlarged by 280% to reach A0, so image resolution must be adequate to cope with this resizing. 72 dpi images are not adequate; at this magnification it would result in an equivalent resolution of 25 dpi/12 lpi. Many posters are spoiled by pixellated images that have been scanned at low resolution or downloaded from the Internet.
The resolution required will depend on the page size selected relative to the final printed size. If the page set up is the same as the required printed size then a resolution of 150—250dpi is plenty. However, if we have to make an enlargement from your file then that must then be taken into consideration and the sums worked out to achieve approximately 150—250dpi on output.
JPG and TIF files give best results (leave JPG files at their largest i.e. maximum file, minimum compression). Both are formats that can be readily inserted into Powerpoint and interpreted by our RIP. Do all image work out of Powerpoint, text can be added in Powerpoint.
Background texture effects are possible but do not always work, it is best not to get too clever with Powerpoint. Inserting background files is not a good idea, if you want a background picture insert it into the master slide or send it to the
back of your main image. Do not copy and paste images from Word, use the originating file.

Colour matters within Powerpoint
Powerpoint does not support colour management which means that we cannot guarantee colour matching.).
Keep backgrounds light and pastel. Saturated and darker colours are fine for text and reversing out should be used sparingly.
Graduations are popular but not particularly practical. There is always a point where you need to reverse the colour of text to background for legibility. If graduations are used then keep the contrast to a minimum.
You may wish to put colour behind your text. If this is required it can be done in one of two ways:
1. Create your text then fill the background with colour. You will note that the text is very close to the edge of the box - to adjust this go to"format text box" and enter appropriate margins.
2. Create text box and use "no fill" for the background colour. Create a rectangle box and fill it with the desired colour. Bring the text box to the front and place it over the filled box you have created. Align and group as appropriate.
Semi transparencies do not work well for printing, it is best to leave fill colours at 100%.

Back to poster page or student poster page