How to: Photo Collages in iWork

Photo collages display photos with a common theme.

Pablo Picasso created his 1912 painting, "Still Life with Chair Caning," using collage. Many other artists have used the technique, but it also works well for attractively displaying your photos. Collage involves creating a picture from other parts, such as photographs. Often, the collage includes words and phrases that fit the overall theme of the picture. Originally done by gluing photographs to a flat surface, photo collages can now be easily made using computer software, such as iWork Keynote.

Instructions

Create a Slide

1. Click on the "File" menu and select "New from Theme chooser."

2. Click on a theme and then select "Choose."

3. Click on the text boxes and hit "Delete" on your keyboard to remove the default text boxes from the slide.

Add Photos

1. Click on the "Insert" menu, select "Choose," select the file and then click "Insert."

2. Click on a photo, and then click on and drag one of the white rectangles on the edges to adjust the size of the photo.

3. Click on and drag the photos to the desired location.

Mask Photos

1. Click on the photo and then click on the "Format" menu.

2. Select "Mask with Shape" and then choose a shape from the list.

3. Click on and drag the corners of the shape mask to adjust the size of the mask.

4. Click on and drag the photo to adjust which part of the photo shows through the mask.

5. Click anywhere else on the slide to crop the photo using the mask. Now, only the part of the photo that showed through the mask will remain.

Add Text

1. Click on the "Insert" menu and select "Text Box."

2. Type text in the box.

3. Click on and drag the text box to move it to a new location.

4. Click on and drag one of the white rectangles on the ends of the text box to change its size.

5. Click on the text box and change the font type, style or size using the drop-down menus on the toolbar.

Add Shapes

1. Click on the "Insert" menu, choose "Shape" and select the shape type.

2. Click on and drag the white rectangles on the edges to resize the shape.

3. Click on and drag the middle of the shape to move it to a new location.

4. Double-click in the middle of the shape and type to add text to the shape.

Arrange Objects in Layers

1. Click on the object that you want to place in front of or behind other objects.

2. Click on the "Arrange" menu and then choose "Bring Forward" or "Send Backward" to move it one layer at a time.

3. Click on the "Arrange" menu and then choose "Bring to Front" or "Send to Back" to move the object all the way.

Export Collage

1. Click on the "Share" menu and select "Export."

2. Select "Images."

3. Choose the image type under the "Format" drop-down.

4. Click "Next" and save the image file.

Tips & Warnings

• If you make a mistake, undo the last action by pressing the Apple-Z on your keyboard.

• If you plan on covering the entire Keynote slide with photos, you can choose the "White' template. Otherwise, choose one that will look attractive behind the photos.

• You can also add a photo to the slide by dragging the file from the Finder window to Keynote.

References

• A Dictionary of Twentieth-Century Art; "collage"; Ian Chilvers; 1999
• University of Southern California: Still Life with Chair Caning

Resources

• Apple.com: Getting Started with Keynote '09
• Apple.com: Create and Use Shapes