Mask images while using action build

Question

I have this small problem. I wanted to create a tiny slideshow in the corner of one slide. I masked one photo to the size I wanted. I used the action build with dissolve effect from the Build inspector and dropped other photos I wanted to use. But Keynote doesn't seem to let me mask other photos so they fit in the shape. Scale images to same size option doesn't really do what I want (as you can see in the photo below). Can this be done somehow? What are my options?

Answer 1

Well, this is probably more trouble than it's worth, but you can use Keynote to make a a little video out of the pictures and then drop that into your presentation. Size your images the way you like, then make a custom Keynote show the size of your photos, so they're full-frame, even if the show is only 300 x 400 pixels. Make a slide show that starts and ends on the same slide. If you want each photo to hold for, say, 4 seconds and then do a 1-second dissolve, set those timings for all the "middle" slides, then have the first and last (identical) slides hold for only 2 seconds each. The first slide should have no "build in" and the last slide should have no "build out". Then export the show to Quicktime and you'll have a little video the size you want that you can insert into your main presentation and loop. If you use identically-sized images and dissolves, you'll have no issues. If you use any images that don't fill the frame, and/or any transitions that reveal the background, make sure the background of the little video is the same as the background of the main presentation. If your background from the main presentation has a design, you'll want to pick the exact area where you want the video to play, copy that area and paste it into the background of your slide master. LIke I said, perhaps more trouble than it's worth, but it's worked for me in the past.