I need to create a "slide show" of digital images for a client. It has to synch with music and be compatible with the PC world. I use a Mac and have used a wonderfully simple program called FotoMagico that works like a charm on Macs but can't be successfully exported to the PC world. Also it has the defect that the music is not precisely synchronized with the imagery. If there's a slight glitch or pause in project images, the synchronization between music and imagery goes out.

I know there are some very elaborate programs that can accomplish what I need to do. (Final Cut is one.) But is there a simpler program with less of a learning curve?

Thanks for any suggestions.

SoundSlides Plus.
http://www.soundslides.com/

actually iPhoto works pretty well...... opps, just saw the PC thing. Nevermind.

You can build the slide show on your Mac in iMovie and then export it to iDVD and burn it to a disk where it will play on a DVD player and never get out of sync. It takes a little practice but does great things.

Even better, get Keynote for your Mac and export to iDVD. It will play on any computer or TV with a DVD drive. The effects in Keynote will blow your mind.

TC

Thanks to RD3F and TC for their suggestions. I checked out Soundslide Plus and it seems to be a very clever and simple program but so far as I can tell it is only for creating a web based presentation. It can't be used for a DVD presentation. (Am I right?)

As for Keynote, it certainly is slick and some of the transitions are "mind blowing" but I'd rather not have my mind blown. I'd rather have the straight forward Ken Burns effects of pan and zoom. These are so elegant and straightforward. It's all I want, really.

I have not checked on I Photo or I Movie yet.

There is a slide show feature in Adobe Lightroom, but I don't think you can sync it to music...

You might want to take a look at the software this company offers:

http://www.verticalmoon.com

I have a couple of their simpler packages, and they are very easy to use. They create small, clean files that work across many platforms and older versions of Flash player. Good choice when you have clients who might not be updated on the latest Flash.

How about...
http://slideshowpro.net/

I'm a bit surprised ProShow Gold hasn't been mentioned yet. Very popular and versatile slideshow production software. I use it for weddings and other productions. Music is easy to import and sync to the show. Has a good number of transitional effects including panning and zooming which really add dynamics to the show. Good number of output formats are available.

http://www.photodex.com/

On the site page check out the Sharing tab to get a sampling of some slideshows.

ProShow Producer is the pro version of the software and has more features. I've using the ProShow Gold version and have found sufficient for what I do.

Support forum for ProShow..

http://www.proshowenthusiasts.com/

Mark........

I believe the Photodex program is PC only so it wouldn't be useful if making shows off a Mac for PC. Try David Jay's program used by many wedding photographers: www.showitfast.com seems user friendly with plenty of options.

I mean Proshow Gold is PC only, right?

Oops!!

You are correct johanna.... I checked the site and it is PC only. I somehow had thought there was a Mac version, but evidently not.

Mark......

They are missing the boat not having a MAC version.

emailed Photodex about the possibility of a Mac version and got this reply. Evidently possible to run it on Intel based Mac's using an appropriate emulator....

"Mark,
Unfortunately, there are no Mac versions of our software available at
this time. While we do not officially support it, many users have
reported to us that ProShow runs very well on Intel based Macs using
Boot Camp or a Windows emulator such as Parallels, or VMware for
Windows. I will be sure, however, to forward your interest in a Mac
version to our development team for consideration. My apologies for any
inconvenience this may cause.

Please do not hesitate to contact us, if you need further assistance or
have additional questions.

Best regards,

Chuck
Photodex Customer Service
support@photodex.com
----------------------------------
Photodex Corporation - www.photodex.com
1-800-37-PHOTO'