Previously we discussed how to cover sections of an image to achieve animation as different sections in this post from February 12th. The issue that we learned was that by covering the sections with white boxes, that this would be more difficult to see while reviewing in slide sorter.  The solution was to animate the images as separate elements. But how did we crop the image into 3 sections? Let’s review how. 

Insert the Image: 

  • Click on the “Insert” tab in the ribbon. 
  • Choose “Pictures” or “Online Pictures” to insert an image from your computer or from the web. 
  • Select the image and click “Insert”. 

Once we have the original image, now we can split it into 3 sections.  

Duplicate: 

We now need to duplicate the image 2 more times. This will come in handy to have 3 images in the same position so the cropping sections will look seamless. There are a few ways to duplicate the easiest is selecting the image and PC: ctrl + c then ctrl v Mac: cmd + c > cmd + v. 

Let’s crop the first image then we will duplicate this process for the other 2 shapes. Here is a trick to map out the sections on how we are going to crop them.  

  • Create a shape that’s the same height as the image 

  • Next is duplicate the shape 2 more times. 
  • Align the 3rd shape the right of the image > then used “Distribute Horizontally” in the ribbon tool, to evenly space out the 3 shapes equally across the image. 

Now we have a clear guide on where to crop each section. 

Crop: 

  • Click on the first image to select it. 
  • Go to the “Picture Format” tab that appears when the image is selected. 
  • In the “Size” group, click on “Crop”. 
  • Position your mouse over the cropping handles
    (the black squares around the image). 
  • Drag the cropping handles inward to crop the image to the first section you want. You can adjust the cropping by dragging the handles until you’re satisfied with the section. 
  • Click outside the image to apply the crop. 

Repeat for the Other Images: 

  • Click on the second image to select it. 
  • Follow the same steps to crop it into the 2nd and 3rd section you want. 
  • Remove the 3 orange shapes as those are no longer needed as guides. 

Now we have 3 sections of the one image that we can animate individually  

Christie @ TLC