How to Make a Movie from Pictures on a PC or Mac OS

A movie made from your favorite personal photos can be a great gift or an ideal way to show off your best shots. With the right music and transitions, you can really add some life to your photos and make a fantastic slideshow.

I like to make movies from photos, but I don't like delving into complex video editing software. Here's a simple way to make high quality movies with videos by using free software.

Choose a movie editor. If you've got Windows XP, you've already got great video editing software in Windows Movie Maker. This is also available for free for Windows 7, although the name is changed to Windows Live! Movie Maker.

Mac fans have the wonderful iMovie software to work with. Regardless of the program that you use, open it up and take a few minutes to get acquainted with the functions of the software.

Import your pictures. In Windows Movie Maker, you can select the pictures that you want by clicking Import Pictures. In iMovie, you'll simply need to click on the Photos tab. However, you'll need to import any pictures that you want into iPhoto before you use this feature of iMovie.

Choose the order of your pictures. Drag your photos onto the timeline of the movie. You can adjust the duration of each picture by dragging the edges of it out or in with your mouse. Both iMovie and Windows Movie Maker are very intuitive, so you shouldn't have much trouble; just drop each photo where you want it and reorganize the pictures however you'd like. Add transitions by dropping them onto the pictures.

Add music. Your photo movie won't be too impressive without music, so in Windows Movie Maker, add music by importing an MP3 or WAV file and dragging it onto the timeline. In iMovie, click the Music tab and drag your song onto your project.

Make your movie. Once your photos are in the right order and everything looks right, you can make your movie in Movie Maker by clicking "Save To My Computer" under the "Finish Movie" list. In iMovie, hit File and Export. Select your settings; the more compression that you use, the lower the quality that the movie will be.

Once you're finished, open your movie and view it. You can now save your photo movie with family, friends, or the entire Internet.

Have any questions about making a movie from photos in either iMovie or Windows Movie Maker? Post below.