Spartans,

As an SJSU Student, faculty member, or staff member, you have access to Google Workspace with Google Slides. With real-time collaboration and automatic saves to the cloud, Google empowers teams and groups to create impactful presentations together. Today, I’d like to share three helpful tricks that can elevate your slides and captivate your audience:

1. Apply Image Effects: Google Slides allows you to add a touch of creativity to your images. You can apply shadow and reflection effects to your pictures or photos. To do this, select your image, click on “Format Options” in the toolbar, and enable either the Drop Shadow or Reflection options. Adjust transparency, distance, angle, or size to enhance your visuals.
2. Crop Images to Shapes: Sometimes, you want an image to fit a specific shape. Google Slides lets you crop an image to various shapes using a feature called masking. After selecting your image, click the Mask Image arrow next to the Crop Image button in the toolbar. Explore shapes like arrows, callouts, or equations to create eye-catching visuals. You can further adjust size, rotation, brightness, and contrast using the “Format Options” menu.
3. Create Even Spacing: Ensuring elements are evenly spaced and properly aligned keeps your slides looking sharp. Click and drag your mouse to select all the objects you want to distribute horizontally. (You can also hold the Shift key and click each object individually to select them.) Once the objects are selected, go to the “Arrange” menu in the toolbar at the top. Hover over the “Distribute” option in the menu. You’ll see two choices: “Horizontally” and “Vertically.” Choose the one best suited for the slide. Google Slides will automatically distribute the selected objects evenly along the horizontal axis.

Thank you Andrew Weiglein, from the SJSU IT Program Management Office, for providing this tip. As always, the SJSU IT Service Desk is here to help by phone at (408) 924-1530 or online.

Thanks,
Bob Lim
Vice President for Information Technology
and CIO at San José State University