Changing Color Schemes, Background Effects and Master Pages

The look of your presentation is based on several things...all of which you can easily change. Color Schemes, Backgrounds and Master pages all control how pages in a presentation look. We will look at the simpliest way to change the design using Color schemes and backgrounds to more complex ways using Master Pages.
Color Schemes -- Version 2000
 

Each design template includes several color schemes. A color scheme is a set of colors that are part of that particular design (background, text, lines, shadows, title text, fills, accent, accent and hyperlink, accent and followed hyperlink).

Applying a New Color Scheme
1.

Click on Format - Slide Color Scheme. This dialog box contains two tabs - Standard and Custom.

Standard Tab
 

The Standard tab will show what color schemes are available with the selected template design. The scheme currently in use will have a black border around the slide (see example). In the Standard tab, there may be several choices for different color schemes of a particular design template. This allows you to use the same design template but change what colors are used. Change the slides colors very easily by clicking on the box with the color scheme you want to use. You can also create your own custom color scheme. (See the Help menu to find out how to do this if you want.)

When you have selected the color scheme you want, choose Apply to apply it to only the slide you are on or Apply to All to apply to all slides in your presentation. (See example).

Using this feature is an easy way to use the same consistent design throughout your presentation but still be able to break up individual subtopics by choosing a different color scheme for each subtopic.
 
Custom Tab
 

In the Custom tab, you can change the color for individual elements in the presentation. Eight different elements of your presentation are defined by a color scheme. (See example). These eight elements include background, title and lines, shadows, title text, fills, accent, accent and hyperlink, and accent and followed hyperlink. For instance, you can change the color for the background, or for the title text, or for Fills.

To change the Title color,

1. Click in the colored box next to the word Title to select that elements color.
2. Then click on the Change Color button at the bottom of the dialog box. This will open Title Text Color dialog box. This dialog box is the same Color dialog box you see when changing the color of anything in PowerPoint. (See example).
3. Choose a new color and click OK.
4. Then choose Apply or Apply to all to accept this color. In your presentation now, the color of all the Titles should now be the new color you have selected.

NOTE: If you make a change to an element on an individual slide and then change the color scheme of that element, the Color Scheme commands will not override the action that you did on that individual page already. If I change the color of the title text on slide 3 and then go into Color Scheme and change the Title text to a different color, the title text on slide 3 will not be affected.
Color Schemes -- Version 2002
 

Applying a New Color Scheme

1. Select Slide Design - Color Scheme from the dropdown menu (down arrow) on the Task pane. The Slide Design task pane will appear. The available color schemes for the design template you have chosen now appear in the task pane.
2. Click on a color scheme to select a new one for your entire presentation.

Click on the down arrow to the right of any scheme to get three choices:

a. Apply to All Sides - will apply the color scheme to al slides in the file.
b. Apply to Selected Slides - will apply the color scheme only to slides that are selected.
c. Show Large Preview - to view larger previews of the available color schemes. The preview screens in the task pane will increase in size.
  To go back to normal-size preview, select this option again and remove the check mark in front of Show Large Preview.
 

Edit Color Scheme

  Sometimes you may want to customize an individual color in a color scheme. For example, you want to change the Title Text color only and leave the rest of the color scheme alone. To do this:
1. From the Slide Design task pane, click Edit - Color Schemes at the bottom of the task pane. This will open the Edit Color Schemes dialog box with the Custom tab selected.
2. Choose the object whose color you want to change, such as the background or text.
3. Click on the Change Color button. This will display the Color dialog box (title of this dialog box will change depending on what you have selected to change).
4. Choose a new color and click OK.
5. Click the Preview button to preview this new color in your presentation.
6. Click Apply to apply the color scheme.
7. Click the Add as Standard Scheme button if you want to add this scheme to your selections on the Slide Design task pane.
Deleting a Color Scheme
  To delete a color scheme, go to the Standard tab on the Edit Color Scheme dialog box, select the scheme you no longer want, and click the Delete Scheme button.
Change the color scheme of multiple slides in PowerPoint
 

You can change the color scheme of a few slides in your show without having to change it for all of them. To change the color scheme of just a few slides in the presentation:

Version 2000
1. Switch to Slide Sorter view.
2. Hold down the SHIFT key and click on each slide you want to modify to select them.
3. Choose Format - Slide Color Scheme (version 2000)(same dialog box described above) and make your changes.
4. Click Apply so the new color scheme applies only to the selected slides. Clicking on Apply All applies the new color scheme to all the slides in your show.
   
Version 2002
1. Select the slides or slides you want to apply a separate color scheme.
2. Select the scheme on the Slide Design task pane of the preview you want.
3. Click the down arrow to the right of the selected scheme.
4. Choose Apply to Selected Slides. The color scheme will be applyed only to the selected slides.
   

To return to a single color scheme, select that scheme and choose Apply to All Slides from the dropdown menu when you click on the down arrow next to the preview.

NOTE: Just because you can apply different color schemes throughout your presentation doesn’t mean you should. Make sure it will add to your presentation rather than make it inconsistent and distracting.
   
Background Effects
  You can also add special background effects such as shading, patterns, textues, and pictures to your presentations.
1. Choose Format - Backgrounds to open the Background dialog box. From the drop-down list in the Background Fill group box, choose:
a. A color under the Automatic color box.
b. More Colors to open the Colors dialog box.
c. Fill Effects to open the Fill Effects dialog box.
2. After you have selected your new background, click on Preview to see the effects before applying them.
3. Choose whether to Apply to current slide only or Apply to All the slides in the presentation.
Using Master Pages
  Instructions for PPT version 2000 or 97
  Instructions for PPT version 2002

PowerPoint Lessons Table of Contents

Last updated January 2002. These courses are copyrighted by the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Communications and Information Technology. Contact Lana Johnson at ljohnson1@unl.edu