Canva Update 2024 - How to Create Video Excerpts to Appear as Audio Files on the Screen One at a Time
Hello, everyone! It's fantastic to discover the latest Canva features they recently rolled out. If you visited Canva's homepage and clicked on the “For you” icon seven times, the first million users could access these new Canva updates. If this offer is still valid, give it a try.
1:19 - Creating Powerpoint Features in Canva
I am currently exploring Canva for Education and am interested in testing out features that will enhance its resemblance to PowerPoint or Google Slides. One limitation we face with Canva is the inability to add audio excerpts directly onto the screen, which remains unchanged. Nonetheless, I believe I can improve by utilizing video excerpts as audio and displaying them individually on the screen.
Here's what I mean by that. I will switch to present mode to demonstrate what I'm talking about and how I achieved it. For instance, if I were to introduce the characters, instruments, and excerpts from Prokofiev’s "Peter and the Wolf," I would display each character on the screen one by one, followed by playing their excerpt. I have control over how each element appears on the screen, enabling me to pause, skip, or advance to the next one. I manage all aspects like playing, pausing, bringing in elements individually, and incorporating a blur effect for added visual appeal.
In the next slide, I replace the animated characters with photos using background removers to showcase the actual instruments. Once again, the excerpts are shown one by one on the screen. This time, instead of graphics, actual photos are used, enhancing the representation of the instruments. The process involves displaying each excerpt individually. Now, let's delve into how I accomplished this and how the new features in Canva aided me in this task.
2:53 - How This Was Made
I began with a simple background named "outside" and gradually incorporated additional elements. You may have already noticed that this is Canva's updated appearance. When selecting elements, a floating menu now appears, and to access more items, you can click here, shifting everything to the right side. This change, as many have noted in their videos, declutters the screen and allows for more workspace.
However, Canva's new feature that allows projecting one image at a time has caught my attention. To achieve this, I simply clicked on the image and selected Animate. Within this menu, you can choose "Appear on click." By selecting this option, the image will appear during the presentation when you click on the screen. Among the new animations available, "Blur" stands out to me. By clicking on "Click Order," you can specify the sequence of animations to suit your needs.
So, Peter was listed first, followed by the violin, then Grandpa, the bassoon, and so on. One slight quirk I observed was that when I combined two elements, such as Grandpa with a bassoon, it disrupted the sequence. I'm uncertain about the reason behind this. Consequently, I decided to avoid grouping them and instead presented them individually, as demonstrated to you. Place the presentation in present mode and they will now click onto the screen in the order that you have chosen. You could not do that before this update.
Regrettably, we currently lack the capability to insert audio files into the screen or slide. However, video files can be added. Thus, I uploaded a video file and positioned it on the screen. Subsequently, I adjusted its size, selected “Position,” and placed it behind the initial “outside” element. To enhance its presentation, I applied animation by clicking on “Animate” and selecting “Appear on Click.” Moreover, I arranged the sequence by clicking on “Click Order” to ensure the video appears after the character.
Helpful Hint:
For better control over the video playback, I disabled the “Play automatically” feature by clicking on the video, accessing the floating toolbar, and selecting “Playback.”
6:38 - Magic Grab Tool to Layer or Position Elements
The background is currently one large element. I aimed to separate some elements to allow for layering items both in front and behind it. To achieve this, I selected the background image, clicked on “Edit” in the floating toolbar, and then on “Magic Grab”.
The Magic Grab feature has been enhanced, enabling you to either choose an item to grab or brush over a specific area you wish to isolate. By doing so, the Magic Grab tool detaches that area from the background image, allowing you to delete it or, like I did, position the wolf behind the fence by placing the fence in front of the wolf.
Helpful Hint: Background Remover is now a default in the floating toolbar.
Hopefully this helps you with ways to add video (trying to be audio) excerpts to your Canva presentations, how to utilize the order to add items to a screen in presentation mode, and how to use Magic Grab to layer items.
