how do I compress a large photos in powerpoint without losing the quality. I find I get very big files which slow the whole presentaition down. Can it also reduce the size of the whole powerpoint presentation.

Hi Adrian, Thank you for your post, in answer to your question, there is a facility called Compress which will allow you to compress the graphics in your presentation, however it does reduce the quality, if you wish to use this option, right click on your graphic/photo/picture and choose Format Picture, on the dialog box you will see a button labeled Compress, click this button and the Compress Pictures dialog box will open, note the options available, choose as required.
However: I have found a method of placing a graphic on the page which saves all the nonsense; it is not rocket science, it is available to all, and can be very effective in enhancing your presentation.
1. In your presentation on the slide you wish to insert your graphic, from the drawing toolbar insert frame from the AutoShapes button or draw a rectangle or oval (hold down shift key to get square or circle) select the frame, and right click on it to open the Format AutoShape dialog box, in this box, click the drop down arrow next to the Fill Color box, and Choose Fill Effects from the options, From the dialog box click the tab for Picture, and click the button for Select Picture, navigate to your chosen graphic and click Insert, Click OK and Ok again, Hey Presto, you can now remove the border and you have your Photo/Graphic/Image in place. If you find that it is too big (slowing your presentation down) you can go through the Compress options above. I hope that has helped, best regards Pete
Pete Emmerson, Microsoft Office Specialist Master Instructor