[Solved] Insert background image & set its transparency

[madebymia]

Hi,

I am preparing a presentation and have inserted an image as background but it's in full colour.
How do I "lighten"/set its transparency for it to become translucent so the text shows up better?

I have searched for solutions online but can't seem to find any regarding transparency!

Attached is an image I found from a help page, the effect is what I need!

I was able to have a translucent background when I did the .pptx in MS Powerpoint but when I opened it again in OO Impress, the background image becomes full colour.

HELP PLEASE!!

[acknak]

If you set the image as the page background, you can't change its transparency. To do that, you'd have to edit the image to add whatever effect you wanted before you set it as the background.

However, you can insert the image on a master slide, just as a plain image, and send that image to the background of the master slide, and then you can change the transparency of the image.

The only problem I can see with that is it may possibly take longer to switch between slides--especially if you use a large image for the background--but it may not be too bad.

[madebymia]

I managed to do it silly me
There's an icon that sets transparency (top left set to 50%).


However, after I saved it as .ppt and reopen it, it loses all the transparency and goes back to original!
ARGH.

[Hagar Delest]

That's the vendor lock-in policy. Remember that the .ppt import/export file formats have been reverse engineered, hence some flaws.
If you need to work with .ppt, then use MS Office.

You can still ask for a fix (it may have been reported already): [Tutorial] Reporting bugs or suggestions.

[RoryOF]

It may be that if you process the graphic in an external application you can alter its transparency to suit your need and save an image of the file. Then insert that modified file into your presentation. .ppt format should not then be able to revert the transparency. Experience shows that it is always best to work in OpenOffice's native formats and save out to other formats only when necessary and the project is complete.

[wolfduck]

I imported an image to a slide in Impress, where I changed it's transparency. However, it's not clear to me how I then use that same image to be the background? I say this based on acknak's statement: "... and send that image to the background of the master slide". Do I right-click on the image to get a menu? Or do I use something from the toolbar? Or do I right-click on the slide itself? I know if I click on the slide itself, I get a menu like what's pictured, but the options from the menu don't let me select a picture already in the slides, only to search through files on my computer.

I also tried following advice here, but it lack the detail I need. https://wiki.openoffice.org/wiki/Docume ... de_masters

[Hagar Delest]

Not sure with AOO but in LibreOffice, once in the master slide view, I can use the menu Slide > Set background image.

[RoryOF]

In OpenOffice 4.1.15 also in /View /Master Slide, a right click on the slide brings up context menu, from which select Slide, offers Set Background Picture for Slide, opens a file selection offering various image formats.

[wolfduck]

Thanks. acknak's post makes it sound like an image can be inserted in the slide deck, made transparent, and then somehow turned to the background from within the slide deck.

The screenshot I attached shows the context menu. However, I don't know how to take an image that is already inserted in the slide deck and made transparent within the slide deck and either a) send that to the background or b) use the context menu to select and image that is part of the slide deck itself. The language from acknak says "... send the [inserted] image to the background".

Otherwise, I have to have an image already made transparent elsewhere in a file and have to use the context menu with Set Background Picture..., I understand that.

Maybe I need to try LibreOffice. Thanks.

[Hagar Delest]

You can insert a picture in the slide and then send to back, that was the meaning I guess (it's 13 years old now). It's a workaround because it's not actually in the background.
A background is like a wallpaper, there is no point adding transparency. Why do you want to add transparency? If you need to make it lighter, then do it directly on the pic with a picture editor, save it and import it as the background pic.