If you're looking for a way to make your wedding reception memorable, consider presenting a slideshow of your lives. A slideshow of photographs, both old and new, allows your families to see just how far you've come in order to arrive at your special day — they'll enjoy seeing baby pictures along with the special moments you and your future spouse have shared together as a couple. If you think this is something that you would be interested in, here's some information about how to present a picture slideshow of your lives during the reception.
Collect All Your Photographs and Digitize Older Photos
First, you'll have to gather together all the pictures you need for your slideshow. While you may have a large number of recent pictures saved on your social media accounts, it's a good idea to include pictures from every phase of your life — both the bride and groom's families will love seeing your baby pictures during the reception! This means you'll have to digitize old photographs so that you can include them in your slideshow. You can either scan them yourself (public libraries and print shops often have scanners you can use, if you don't own one) or pay to have your old photographs digitized by a professional.
Create Your Slideshow With Either Presentation or Movie Making Software
Next, you'll need to create the slideshow itself. You can choose to use presentation software such as Microsoft PowerPoint or create a video file using movie maker software. Presentation software is easier to use, but creating a movie will allow you to add an audio track to your video file — this gives you the opportunity to play your favorite songs on the sound system while presenting your slideshow.
The entire slideshow should be under five minutes long and each photo included in the slideshow should remain on the screen for around five to six seconds. This allows you to include around sixty photos in the slideshow. If you're including audio, this also gives you time to include two short songs. You don't want to create a slideshow that's too long, as you don't want your wedding guests losing interest and becoming bored during the show.
Choose How to Display the Slideshow, Renting a Projector or Television if Necessary
You'll need to choose between renting a large television or renting a projector and screen in order to display your slideshow to your guests. Televisions are a bit simpler to set up, and their built-in speakers make it much easier to play sound during your slideshow. If you use a projector, you'll need to go through the extra step of connecting it to the sound system. However, projectors are much more suitable to receptions where there are a large number of guests — even a very large flat-screen TV can be difficult for everyone to see in a large reception hall. If your wedding has over fifty guests and you want people to remain at their tables while the slideshow is playing, it's best to opt for a projector.
If you don't have a projector or a television you can use, it's very inexpensive to simply rent one from an AV service for a day or two. You or your DJ may already be working with an AV rental company in order to rent a sound system for the wedding, so all you need to do is add a television or a projector and screen to your rental.
Test Your AV Setup During the Rehearsal Dinner
Finally, it's best to test your setup during the rehearsal dinner. This gives you the chance to familiarize yourself with how the equipment works and ensure that you won't run into any technical issues during the reception itself. If you're including audio in your slideshow, it also allows you to calibrate the audio level of your presentation so that everyone in the room can easily hear it.
Wedding slideshows are popular for a reason — families absolutely love them and often become very emotional during the presentation. If you want to include a slideshow in your wedding, remember to contact an AV rental company and rent either a high-quality digital projector (along with a sound system, if necessary) or a very large flat-screen television. You'll save money and make transportation easier by renting your AV equipment for the rehearsal dinner and the reception.
