As a post-pandemic celebration, my family splurged by vacationing in Norway. We figured it was our last chance to tour his grandmother's native country with her as our guide, given her age.
I returned with over 1,000 photos (no joke) of our 10-day trip. Our Norwegian and American relatives alike are awaiting my compilations of the journey and I have been wrestling with slideshow generation software for weeks. Having worked as a Senior Technical Writer, managed a creative staff, and helped develop in-house proprietary software, I feel I am above average in my computer savvy. Yet, none of the software I am working with come close to the discontinued Picasa. Yes, that is a worn-out statement made by many over the years. But the level of frustration I feel with the "alternatives" in 2022 -- years after Picasa became unavailable -- warrants repeating that sentiment because it represents a failure (in my mind) of companies to offer a product that can accomplish its objectives.
Here are the basic functions I need/want in a slideshow generator:
- Maintain order of uploaded images and videos or allow 'sort by' options that include "by name"
- Maintain size and edges of all photos (i.e. no automatic cropping)
- Play the entirety of each video or allow video editing customization within same program (i.e. do not slice up my video using some algorithm that presumes to know what I want)
- Allow captions for each photo/video
- Provide caption/text editing tools (including placement on slide and font type, size, and color)
- Auto fit text onto slide/image (below image is fine too) or allow easy resizing
- Display all photos in album/collection (i.e. do not pick and choose for me)
- Provide background music options
- Let me download a viewable production of the completed slideshow
So far, most of the generators I'm seeing overcomplicate some things while limiting others. Or the software tries too hard to do everything for you, eliminating the ability of the user to decide how the slideshow should be set up.
My needs boil down to these things:
- Can I edit the order of appearance of or easily sort/organize my photos and videos?
- Can I add text to each item/slide and customize that text?
- Are there built-in templates and/or music tracks to present the collection?
- Can I save and share my slideshow for others to see?
These feel like obvious asks that most users want: a way to customize the order of photos, captions, and presentation, then to share it with friends and family. While each person will want or expect different features, the fact that users still mourn Picasa says something about what's available in the market.
The following product reviews are based on my experience and needs only. I am not affiliated or incentivized with any of these companies. This is one independent source.
Why am I writing this post? While searching for the right product to try for this trip's slideshows, I read more than ten reviews of the so-called "best products on the market", only to discover that EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM was biased content designed to highlight their sponsored product. These review articles were essentially ads. I understand that tactic. The institute I worked for before did the same thing. No judgement here. But I would have liked to see a sincere review with all the quirks, realities, and opinions of an independent reviewer. So here you go: my limited review of nine slideshow generators.
