Enhancing PowerPoint Visuals: The Grid Technique for Aesthetic Image Arrangement

Almost every day, I pass by Wu Mart, and since its renovation, it feels more grandiose. The most striking feature are the massive posters beneath the signboard—simple, clean, and visually impactful. Can we adopt this expressive approach in our courseware designs? When faced with numerous images to arrange on a slide, how can we ensure they appear organized, cohesive, and lively? Let’s draw inspiration from examples in the Before-After e-magazine:

Design Technique 1:

Corporate training sessions tirelessly emphasize “team spirit,” a theme often echoed in company brochures. Typically, this is depicted through group photos, either realistic or abstract. But what about alternative representations?

We can compile employee photos, not haphazardly, but through meticulous design. Start by placing a grid of guidelines on a blank page, facilitating orderly placement of photos. Prior to this, standardize each photo’s background and effects for consistency. Arrange the photos in a grid pattern, with faces mostly oriented towards the center, and strive for an even distribution of light and dark across the layout. Enlarging a select few images adds visual punch. Replace some photos with colored blocks, embedding relevant text within them. These blocks can mirror the photo backgrounds, enhancing depth.

Design Technique 2:

Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute’s 2006 annual report cover showcases a carefully curated collage of staff photos, exuding visual vitality in contrast to typical yearbook designs. The dynamic arrangement of images infuses the cover with energy. How to replicate this? Begin by selecting and cropping images to create a sense of foreground, midground, and background. Next, horizontally stagger the rows, avoiding a static, brick-wall-like pattern. Lastly, resize certain images for added variation.

The art of the grid goes beyond these two examples; with a keen eye, you’ll discover beauty in everyday arrangements.