Prezi PREZI ONLINE ACCOUNT Go to www.prezi.com/pricing/edu and sign up for an online only account. This account is available anywhere in the world as long as you have access to the internet. After creating your account you will login via www.prezi.com and your home page will look similar to below. Click on the New Prezi button to start a new presentation. If you already have created some, click on the presentation to enter the presentation or the Edit button when you hover over the presentation. START FROM A TEMPLATE When you create a new presentation, you can choose from a number of reusable templates or a blank canvas (located in the bottom right corner). When you decide to use a template, you can edit everything you see on the canvas, including copying and pasting pre-made content from other Prezis or applications. 1
ASPECT RATIO When presenting, you will doubtlessly need to know exactly what your presentation will look like on the screen. Unfortunately, some projectors and screens have a 4:3 ratio and some a 16:9 ratio (widescreen), which will change how it looks. You can overcome this by setting a guide to your canvas that shows you the exact dimensions to work to for each common aspect ratio. 1. When in Edit Mode, click on the options icon in the top-right corner of the screen. 2. Then select the ratio you wish to display your presentation in. NAVIGATE THE CANVAS The key feature of Prezi is the ability to move around your presentation easily. This can be done via zooming into objects or moving to different locations on your presentation. The trick to this is to not go overboard but to make it follow a flow with minimal movements or slow movements. Don t have it spinning, zooming in, then straight back out again causing motion sickness. To make a great presentation the first step is to master how to manipulate and edit objects on the canvas. Prezi follows a very freestyle visual approach to editing so rather than choosing drop down commands, editing requires you to arrange and move elements manually with the mouse. Once you are aware of the on screen commands below, then you re on your way. Zooming around: You can zoom in and out by using your mouse s scroll wheel or by clicking the + and - symbols on the right hand side of your screen. Panning: To move your canvas around, hold down the left button of your mouse and then move in the direction you want to go. 2
The Transformation Tool The Transformation Tool is your best friend. Once you add anything to your canvas, click on it once to bring up the Transformation Tool. Now you can move, size, and rotate your content any way you like. If you add a frame, you can click on it once to bring up the Transformation Tool and move, scale, or rotate everything inside. Themes: Customize colors and fonts Click on Themes to customize the colors of your presentation and to set your font choices from the small font library. You can also create custom themes by setting your own colors and adding a logo by clicking Customize Current Theme. The Home Button To take a step back and get an overview of everything you've added so far (both in Edit and Present mode), you can use the Home button on the right hand side of your screen (move your mouse to the right side of the canvas and it will appear). Clicking the Home button before you start making a Prezi will also ensure that you're starting from the right place. FRAME YOUR CONTENT Frames are a major part of Prezi and a great way to manage your content. Frames work like slides and can be used to group your ideas. Use frames to create a placeholder and then add content to them. Frames come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and you can change the 3
color of them as well as their size and position. The other great thing about frames is that once you place one on your canvas, you can move, size, and rotate it, and all the content within your frame will move, size, and rotate too. Create frames Choose 'Frames & Arrows' from the top menu. Then choose whether you want a circle, rectangle, bracket, or invisible frame. Click on the canvas and drag the mouse out to the size you want to start with. Frames are used to add animation (move from one area to another). INSERTING With Prezi you can insert Images, Symbols & Shapes, Diagrams, YouTube videos, Music and Microsoft PowerPoint. Select 'Insert' from the top menu, and then click on the option you want. A side bar will open on the right or a pop-up window depending on the option selected. Images Prezi currently supports JPG, PNG, GIF, and SWF formats. The maximum size for any image is 2880 by 2880 pixels. You may succeed in uploading a JPG larger than this, but this will likely cause various problems while editing and presenting. If you upload a JPG larger than these specifications, Prezi will prompt you to resize the image. Click 'Resize image' to reduce the image to a usable size. For file formats other than JPG, you will need to use third party software to reduce the size of the image file. If you want to select an image from your computer's hard drive, simply click Select files and browse to the location of the image file you want to upload. If you want to search the Internet for a picture, you can do it directly from Prezi without having to open a separate browser window or tab. Simply enter your search into the search bar that appears under Search images on the web. Click the blue Google' icon to bring up further options. It is recommended to select the check box that filters out all images that are not licensed for commercial use, especially for public presentations. Once you have entered your search words into the search bar, click the search icon (magnifying glass) and the images available will appear in the sidebar Scroll through the images until you find one you like. You can then either double-click it or drag and drop it onto your canvas. 4
After you have successfully added your image to the canvas, you can then use the Transformation Tool to size and rotate it as you wish (or delete the image if you want to). Cropping Images You can crop an image simply by clicking on the image and selecting Crop Image. This will bring up the image cropping tool. From here you can drag anyone of the four corners to crop your image. When you are happy click away from the image and you will see the changes take effect. Replacing Images: You can switch one image for another by clicking on it when in Edit Mode and then clicking Replace Image. You will then be prompted to select an image from your computer to replace the existing image. The second image will then occupy the exact same space as the original. Note: It can take a few seconds to start to import the second image. Please be patient. Diagrams Prezi has created layout drawings, diagrams, and charts that can help you better communicate your ideas to your audience. Quickly add content to your diagrams, and duplicate them (using the right-click menu) to start creating your content. Symbols and Shapes You can add purpose designed drawings, shapes and more to your presentation. From the right panel select your shape or type of image and either drag it onto the canvas or double click it. Each box has multiple images in them. 5
Videos You can insert the following video file formats into a Prezi: FLV, MOV, WMV, F4V, MPG, MPEG, MP4, M4V, 3GP Note: The AVI format can sometimes cause difficulties when used. You may find that this format works occasionally, but we do not suggest using AVI with Prezi. From the Insert option choose: YouTube video - this will open up a new window. Paste the YouTube URL into the window and click insert. (e.g. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adz9jfoqmdc) This will embed the video in your presentation but will still require the internet to run. From File - then browse for the file and click insert. Once you have inserted the videos you can resize, rotate using the Transformation tool. ADD URLS TO YOUR PREZI To put live links into your prezi, copy and paste the desired URL into a text box. Then click away from the text box and your link will become active (you will see it automatically underline). PATH: NAVIGATE AND REARRANGE WITH THE PATH SIDEBAR When presenting your ideas, it can sometimes help to have a clear narrative that takes your audience through your Prezi. With the Left Sidebar, you can create a journey from one idea to the next. Edit your path and its points in Edit mode and take your audience along that path in Present mode. To set your path, click the pencil icon on the left-hand side of screen. Then click on the objects in your Prezi canvas in the order you wish them to appear. You can also use the sidebar to rearrange and delete path points or to zoom to a specific path point. FADE IN EFFECTS When a shape or frame contains more than one element, a small star will appear next to the path number. Clicking on the star will open a new animation window and allow you to select the order that elements will fade in on mouse click. There is currently no fade out option. Too add a more complex effect, you can choose to group elements together first and then fade them in as a collection. It's possible to fade in a group of content for one frame, then have more content fade in as you explore the contents of that frame. The key is to animate the smallest group first. 6
OTHER PREZI DESIGNS On the Prezi Explore page (www.prezi.com/explore) you can find loads of great prezis from which you can borrow content, animations or even sound effects. Reusing content in this way allows you to share your ideas more effectively and is a great way to get started with Prezi. To use content from another Prezi, first select a reusable Prezi you like from the Explore page, then click Save a copy to place a copy of the Prezi in your own Prezi library. From here, you can open the Prezi and start putting your own content into it. Alternatively, cut and paste the elements you like into one of your own prezis. TIPS Spend some creative time mapping out your content first before opening Prezi Movement with Purpose Big transitions to change topics/create impact. Keep the rest of the Prezi smooth and elegant in its layout and animation. Show not Tell Move away from agenda slides and show the structure of your Prezi instead. The structure should have meaning and pass the squint/semantic test Using lines and arrows together to link the groups of content immediately shows the flow of your presentation. Space > Click > Space Quickly move between ob1ects by going into present mode,.clicking on an element then going back to edit mode. This will save lots of time. Layer Objects for Effect If you are adding photos or videos, think about using a background image to help make your presentation look awesome. You could use anything from ipads to retro photo frames Try to keep these elements consistent with your overall theme. Printing your Prezi If you have to use a printed copy of your Prezi, be brief. Make a copy of your final Prezi, clear all the paths, and then choose a select few frames that you want to have as a printed handout. Video and Images Embed video as much as possible as only inserting the link will mean that your video will not work when you download it and don't have internet access. Maximum image size is 2200 x 2200. If your image is pixelated use a high resolution version or just don't zoom in as much by using frames. Prezi is not the presentation, you are. A presentation is a person to person real life experience. When designing your Prezi think about how you could use in a supporting role to help make your presentation stronger. Think about creating a Prezi that matches your presentation style and helps give a visual representation of the content you are presenting on. 7