Transparent images in PowerPoint presentations can help add visual appeal and make it easier to adjust to suit branding needs. If you want to make an image transparent in PowerPoint, you can reduce its transparency or remove the background to give it a look that best suits your needs.
How to Make an Image Transparent in PowerPoint
Go to Insert -> Images -> Pictures and add an image to your PowerPoint slide.
Select the image and go to Picture Format -> Transparency. From here, you can pick a preset to make your image transparent or use a custom transparency level via Picture Transparency Options.
Using Picture Transparency Options, you can adjust the image’s transparency to a custom level from the menu in the right pane.
When making an image transparent, you might want to consider what you intend to achieve visually. For example, when using PowerPoint templates or Google Slides templates in PowerPoint, you might want to see which slide elements you intend to emphasize by making an image transparent. In the example below, we made the image transparent to make the underlay logo pop out.
How to Make Shape Transparent in PowerPoint
Overlay slide elements like shapes can be made transparent to add text or emphasize certain slide parts. In our example below, we added a shape for this purpose via Insert -> Shapes.
Once added, go to Shape Format -> Shape Fill -> More Fill Colors.
Now, adjust transparency to a desired level to make the shape transparent.
By making shapes transparent, you can stylize your slides, such as by adding text within the added shapes to create title slides, subheadings, or infographics.
The below example shows a rectangle shape made semi-transparent with overlay text added using a text box.
How to Remove Image Background to Make it Transparent in PowerPoint
To remove the background of an image in PowerPoint to make it transparent, select Remove Background via the Picture Format tab.
Remove Background allows two options to make the picture transparent on PowerPoint. You can select Mark Areas to Keep and pick the parts of the image to keep or select Mark Areas to Remove and select parts of the picture you want to discard. You can adjust to make the image transparent using any of the two options. Once you are satisfied, select Keep Changes.
Once the image background is removed, you can make further adjustments to your slide design to match the image to your design requirements.
Final Words
Making an image of a PowerPoint slide element transparent can help make visually pleasing designs and to emphasize parts of the slide. When an image appears to make a slide crowded, you can remove its background or part of the background design to adjust your slide design.
