Best Output Format for Slide Show?

Studio X wrote:
Quicktime is a file wrapper that can contain anyone of a number of codecs.

Yes, I understand that.

H.264 is the prefered version for web/apple TV delivery.

A 90s slideshow that was less than 2 MB as a SWF file became a 27 MB behemoth when exported using the H.264 codec. The exported file had the same frame rate and resolution (pixel dimensions) as the original Flash file. The audio was optimized as well. Why the dramatic difference? (I think I know why, but perhaps I'm missing something.)

That being said, Final Cut Pro is a video editing program and is a waste of money if all you are doing is simple slideshows.

Slideshows are not all I will be doing, but I will be doing them occasionally, and it's hard to justify purchasing Flash just to create slideshows that are optimized for the Web.

Have you tried iMovie then converting the output to either Flash or (if you have Quicktime Pro) converting to h.264 QT?

My tests indicate that anything but Flash format results in a monstrous file for a simple slideshow. I have a notion as to why this is, but I wanted to check to make sure that I'm not overlooking some way of creating smaller non-Flash files.

The bottom line is that Final Cut Studio will be far more useful and versatile for what I need to do, and I would be much more proficient with that software; but if I can't output video files that rival those of Flash in terms of quality and file size, then I might have to get a copy of Flash after all.

And yes, you can convert a QuickTime movie to flash, but it's just not the same in terms of file size as generating the same slideshow directly in Flash. I suspect this is because Flash is optimized for animation, whereas the QuickTime codecs are designed for video, and a simple slideshow is more of an animation than a video.

So my real question is (and I suspect the answer is no), is it possible using Final Cut Studio to generate a simple slideshow which rivals the output from Flash in terms of file size for a given resolution?

-Steve

Gary Scotland wrote:
If you want to create slideshows use a slide show creator, there are many, Photomagico is $50
http://boinx.com/fotomagico/overview/

Thanks for the reply, Gary. I checked out the product features on that Web site, and I don't see any option for outputting to Flash.

-Steve

Gary Scotland wrote:
Keynote,
http://www.apple.com/iwork/keynote/

To my knowledge, based on my (admittedly limited) use of Keynote, there is neither a timeline feature nor any way to adjust the timing of the slides relative to the soundtrack with any reasonable degree of precision (in order to get professional results). Trying to do so by guessing or "trial and error" would be an exercise in frustration and inefficiency.

If I've overlooked some capability of Keynote, please let me know.

Powerpoint,
http://store.microsoft.com/microsoft/powerpoint-2008-for-mac-full/product/891590 d3

PowerPoint is not an option. And besides, I own Keynote; I don't need another presentation package.

SWFslide $35
http://www.verticalmoon.com/products/swfnslide/swfnslide.htm

That looks interesting. I'll have to check into it to see if it provides the timing control I need to sync imagery with the soundtrack. I'll post back here with what I learn.

Thanks again. It never occurred to me to search for slideshow-specific software. I'll see what else I can uncover.

-Steve