Manage Your Pictures in Windows XP
See It in Action, Then Do It Yourself
Published: November 1, 2002
Learn how to view, zoom, play a slideshow, and more with your digital photos in Windows XP
See It in Action
Watch the video, and then follow the steps below to do it yourself. Watching the video requires that you have Windows Media Player. If you're using a dial-up connection, we recommend that you use the "download" link to download the video to your computer before playing it.
Broadband: Watch the video now.
Dial-up: Download the video (instructions)
Do It Yourself
The My Pictures folder in Windows XP offers a variety of options for viewing or managing your digital pictures. From within My Pictures, you can view photos at different sizes, rotate them, view a slide show, print photos, or copy photos to a CD. You can easily access the My Pictures folder from the start menu. Click Start and then click My Pictures.
To rotate a photo
1. | Open My Pictures. |
2. | Double click the photo that you want to rotate. This will start the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer. |
3. | Click the Rotate Clockwise or Rotate Counterclockwise buttons at the bottom of the window. 
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To zoom in or zoom out on a photo
1. | Open My Pictures |
2. | Double click the photo that you want to see more closely or take a longer view. This will start the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer. |
3. | Click the Zoom In or Zoom Out buttons at the bottom of the window. 
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In the Thumbnails view, the images in the My Pictures folder or a subfolder are presented as a collection of thumbnails arranged in rows and columns.
To rearrange photos using Thumbnails
The Thumbnails view gives you a view of your digital photos much like a contact (or index) sheet for a roll of pictures you have developed at a photo shop.
1. | Open My Pictures. |
2. | Click View, and then click Thumbnails. |
3. | Drag and drop photos to rearrange their order in Thumbnails view. For example, if you're viewing 50 photos, you can drag your favorites, one by one or in groups, to the start of the folder. When you open that folder next time, your favorites will top the list of 50. 
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To view photos as a Filmstrip
The advantage of looking at photos in Filmstrip view is that it always shows the selected image at full size.
1. | Open My Pictures. |
2. | Click View, and then click Filmstrip. |
3. | You can rearrange the order in the filmstrip. Drag and drop one or more photos to a new position. Photos stay sorted unless you change the view mode for that folder. 
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To start a slide show
Slide show view allows you to see all your photos at full size, without the distraction of folder controls getting in the way.
1. | Open My Pictures. |
2. | Click View as a slide show under Picture Tasks in the left pane. |
3. | Once the slide show begins, a toolbar appears on-screen. It provides controls to start, pause, advance, reverse, or stop a slide show. Alternatively, you can use the left and right arrow keys to move backwards and forwards, or click within the photo itself to advance. When you want to stop the slide show, click the Exit button on the toolbar, or simply press the ESC key. 
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