How To Insert P-I-P Video On PowerPoint Video Using Camtasia Studio

An inset video, or picture-in-picture video as it is also referred to, adds a special dimension to the main running video.

Often the need arises when, to take an example, a PowerPoint presentation video has super-imposition of second smaller video at one corner, which is that of the person who narrates the slides as they appear.

Compared to the earlier versions, insertion of video in PowerPoint 2010 is easy. As can be seen in the following image, quite a few types of videos can be inserted in PowerPoint 2010. And they can also be re-sized once you have it in the main work area.

For all those plus point, there are a few minus points as well. The one that intrigues most is that an embedded video does not extend beyond the particular slide in which it is appearing.

There is a theoretical solution though, using the Trim Video function. What happens is that the Start Time and the End Time are specified therein, so that the video plays only for that time in a particular slide. The next slide begins from the previous slide’s End Time while a new End Time is now fixed after the second slide finishes. This process repeats itself till the end of the slideshow.

In actual practice, making the video run smoothly is rather difficult without any hiccup as the slides change from one to the next.

That being the case, there has to be some other means to embed a second inset video on a PowerPoint video. When you check it out you’ll find that the second video fades in, plays seamlessly, and finally fades out seamlessly, all the while remaining within a small space on the main PowerPoint video.

Let me play the video again.

How To Do It

The above example of inset video upon the main PowerPoint-to-video is made possible by the picture-in-picture tool of the Camtasia Studio. Take a look at the following video for the steps to do it.

Following are the steps to embed PIP video on PowerPoint video by using Camtasia.

PIP track comes below video track on timeline in Camtasia (click to view large image)

• In Camtasia you can have 2 separate tracks for the main video and the picture-in-picture video. In this case the main video is a series of screencasts, while the P-I-P video is a WMV file. Both are already in timeline, and the P-I-P video is at the place where I want it to be.

 

• To see the details of the P-I-P video let me click on the link, Modify selected PIP clip.

 

• In the dialog box that now opens, it is possible to alter the P-I-P video in 4 ways. You can change its opacity, include a border around it, make it fade in and out, and have a Drop shadow in one of the 4 corners of the video.

 

• Once you have done the changes as you want, simply click OK and then Finished. Your P-I-P video is now ready to play on the main video.