In PowerPoint, the colors of shapes are preconfigured depending on the slide design.
You can change these colors later to suit your preferences.
You can also edit the shapes in a variety of ways, such as by entering text within a shape.
What this page covers
Changing the color of a figure
PowerPoint offers “quick styles” that combine formatting such as colors, shadows, and 3-D effects. Using quick styles allows you to apply a variety of styles in one go, not just the color.
In this example, let’s try using a quick style to change the color of the rectangle.
- Click the rectangle.
- In Shape Styles in the Format tab, click
from the quick style gallery (list of styles).
A list of many styles is displayed.
Move the mouse pointer over the style that you like. This allows you to check how the shape will actually appear when the style is applied.
- Click the style that you like.
The style you selected is applied to the rectangle.
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Tip: I only want to change the fill color or line color |
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You can change just the fill color or line color of a shape by using Shape Fill or Shape Outline in Shape Style in the Format tab.
If you click the part of the button with ▼ as shown below, the color palette is displayed. Click the color you like to apply that color to the shape.
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Entering a text in a figure
Let’s try entering text within the rectangle or arrow.
- Place the cursor on the rectangle, click the right mouse button, and then click Edit Text.
A cursor is displayed within the rectangle, and you can now enter text.
- Enter the following text inside the rectangle.
If the text does not fit within the rectangle, make the rectangle bigger.
- Use the same procedure to enter text inside the arrow.
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Tip: I want to move a shape that I entered text in |
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When you want to move a shape that you have entered text in, take note of the shape of the mouse pointer. If you click inside the text area of the shape, the cursor will be displayed and you will not be able to move the shape.
To move the shape, move the mouse pointer over a part of the shape outside the text area (for unfilled shapes, use the perimeter of the shape), and then drag the shape once the mouse pointer changes to the following shape.
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Grouping figures
You can group multiple shapes together. By grouping shapes, you can handle multiple shapes as if they were a single shape. This is useful for simultaneously moving multiple shapes or setting the same formatting.
In this example, let’s try “grouping” the rectangle and arrow into a single group.
- Click the rectangle to select it.
- Click the arrow while holding down the Ctrl key.
You can select multiple shapes by using the Ctrl key.
- Click Group in Arrange in the Format tab, and then click Group.
The rectangle and arrow become grouped.
Let’s check how the shapes will behave when moved or resized.
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“Using SmartArt” is next.
