Configure overlay text for the photo slideshow

The [ Text ] field holds the text shown in the slideshow. You can type anything in this field and use the special tags to show the picture information and other dynamic data, like the current date and time, the total number of pictures in the slideshow, etc. To use a tag select it in the drop-down list under the [ Text ] field and click the [ Insert the selected tag ] button. This will insert the selected tag at the cursor position in the [ Text ] field.

For example, you can type "Total number of pictures: " and add the [#ttTotalMediaFilesNumber#] tag. During the slideshow, the [#ttTotalMediaFilesNumber#] tag will be replaced with the actual number of pictures in your slideshow and you will see the following text:

Total number of pictures: 20985

You can use as many tags in the text field as you wish. For example, you can show the model of the camera that was used to shoot the current picture and the date the photo was taken like this:

Shot with [#ttEXIFMake#] [#ttEXIFModel#] on [#ttEXIF_DateTimeOriginal#]

This text will appear in the slideshow like this:

Shot with Canon EOS 5D on March 11, 2024

This example shows how to display the current date and time:

It is [#ttDate#] [#ttTime#] now

Text positioning and alignment

The position of every text in Endless Slideshow Screensaver can be tied to one of the following areas: picture, slideshow zone, and monitor background, and then aligned to one of the edges of the selected area or its center. You can choose where to place the current text in the [ Place this text on ] drop-down list:

Choosing the right text placement is very important especially when multiple photos are shown inside one slideshow zone. It is recommended to place any photo-related information on every media file, and the general information can be placed on every slideshow zone or specific slideshow zones, or even on the monitor background.

Placing a text on every media file limits the space available for that text within the area currently occupied by the photo and the text will be aligned to the edges of that area or its center. So, if there are 4 files shown at the same time then the text will appear 4 times: once within every photo area.

Text placed on a slideshow zone does not consider the photo placement or the number of photos shown in that slideshow zone. The text will be aligned to the edges of the slideshow zone or its center.

Finally, the text placed on the monitor background does not consider the placement or the number of slideshow zones currently shown on that monitor and will be aligned to the screen edges or its center. Please note that the monitor background is only visible if you have some space between one of the screen edges and your slideshow zones or between the slideshow zones, so you'll have to make sure there is enough space to display your text.

[ Vertical margin ] and [ Horizontal margin ] depend on the alignment selected for the text. In general, this is the space between the edge of the area the text is aligned to and the nearest edge of the text. If the text is aligned to the top or middle, then the [ Vertical margin ] is the space between the top of the area and the top of the text. If the text is aligned to the bottom, then [ Vertical margin ] is the space between the bottom of the area and the bottom of the text.

If the text is aligned to the left or the center, then [ Horizontal margin ] is the space between the area's left edge and the text's left side. If the text is aligned to the right, then the [ Horizontal margin ] is the space between the right edge of the area and the right side of the text.

Background

You can add a background to the text to make it more readable in situations when the color of the photo is almost the same as the color of your text by checking the [ Add background ] box. [ Vertical padding ] is the space between the top and the bottom of the background box and the text inside the background box. [ Horizontal padding ] is the space between the text and the left and right sides of the background box.

Shadow

Your text can have a shadow if you check the [ Add shadow ] box. The shadow is added directly to the text if it doesn't have a background box. If you choose to display a background box under the text, then the shadow is added to the background box.

Transparency

Adding transparency to your text can make it look more blended into the photo. The value of the transparency varies from 0 (no transparency) to 100 (full transparency).