Photos & Memories
Software options, how to collect old family photos before the reunion, slideshow structure options, copyright-safe music recommendations, how long it should be, and how to share the finished slideshow after the event.
Recommendation for most families: iMovie (Mac) or Canva (any platform). Both are free, produce good results, and are learnable in an afternoon.
Web, iOS, Android · Simple slideshows, automatic creation
Pros
Easiest to use, automatically creates 'movie' slideshows from albums, great for sharing link after the event
Cons
Limited creative control, basic transitions only
Mac, iPhone, iPad · Mid-complexity slideshows with music
Pros
Good transition controls, excellent music integration, easy export to MP4
Cons
Apple only, learning curve for first-time users
Web, iOS, Android · Visually designed slideshows with text and templates
Pros
Beautiful templates, easy text overlays, timeline controls, good for presentation-style slideshows
Cons
Export quality limited on free plan, some templates require paid
Web · Professional-looking slideshows quickly
Pros
Very easy, professional results, music selection included
Cons
Paid plan required for best quality, less control over individual elements
Windows (PPT) / Mac (Keynote) · Slideshows with text captions and narrative
Pros
Maximum control over each slide, great for narrated presentations
Cons
Requires more manual work, export as video can be clunky
🎉 With Reunly
Set up your reunion — then focus on the memories
Reunly keeps your guest list, schedule, and day-of details organized.
Choose a structure before you start organizing photos — it determines which photos you need and makes editing much faster.
Start with the oldest family photos available and move forward through time to the present day. Most natural for families with a long reunion history.
Organize by theme rather than time. Works well for families whose history spans multiple countries or chapters.
Build the slideshow around people rather than time. Works well as a tribute slideshow at an elder's milestone birthday reunion.
Do not use popular copyrighted songs — if you share the slideshow on YouTube or Facebook, it will be muted or removed. Use these sources instead:
Style tip: Use instrumental music, not songs with lyrics. Lyrics compete with the images and any narration, and the emotional effect of a well-chosen instrumental piece is just as powerful.
Thousands of free tracks, all licensed. Filter by genre, mood, and duration. Best single resource for slideshow music.
Free for personal use. Beautiful instrumental tracks in many styles. Credit required in commercial use.
Completely free, no attribution required. Good variety of instrumental tracks.
If a family member plays guitar, piano, or another instrument, ask them to record 5–10 minutes of instrumental music. More personal than any online track.
Background during meal
8–15 minutes
Loop it — guests dip in and out
Focused group viewing
5–8 minutes
Announce it and gather everyone
Tribute to a specific person
3–5 minutes
Tight, emotional, no padding
🎉 With Reunly
Build the Slideshow. Reunly Handles the Rest.
Collect photos from every branch in one place, then build your slideshow from the best ones.
To make a family reunion slideshow: (1) Choose your software (Google Photos, iMovie, Canva, or Animoto). (2) Collect photos from family members 4–6 weeks before the reunion — send a form with a link to upload to a shared album. (3) Organize photos into a logical structure (chronological or thematic). (4) Add text captions and music. (5) Export as an MP4 video file for easy playback. (6) Test on the actual display equipment before the event. Plan for the slideshow to run 8–15 minutes as background during the meal, or 5–8 minutes as a focused presentation.
Avoid copyrighted music — using popular songs in a slideshow shared publicly can result in the video being muted or removed on YouTube. Safe options: (1) YouTube Audio Library (free, thousands of tracks, licensed for use), (2) Pixabay Music (free, royalty-free), (3) Bensound.com (free for personal use). For a family-specific touch, ask if a family member plays an instrument and would record a short piece for the slideshow. Instrumental tracks work better than songs with lyrics — words compete with the images and any narration.
A family reunion slideshow should run 8–15 minutes if used as background during the meal, or 5–8 minutes if presented as a focused viewing moment where everyone stops to watch. The rule of thumb: 1 minute per decade of family history covered, plus 1–2 minutes for this reunion's specific photos. A family with 60 years of reunion history would have a 6–8 minute slideshow. Longer slideshows lose attention — better to leave people wanting more than to overrun. Show 3–5 seconds per photo maximum.
Send a request to family members 6–8 weeks before the reunion asking them to upload old photos to a shared Google Photos album or Dropbox folder. Include specific requests: 'We especially need photos from the 1970s–1990s and any photos of [grandparents' names] when they were young.' For relatives who can't upload digitally, ask them to bring physical photos to a family member who can scan them, or plan to scan them at the reunion using a phone scanning app (Adobe Scan or Google PhotoScan work well). Pay extra attention to reaching elderly relatives who may have rare photos no one else has.
Reunly helps you plan the reunion that makes the slideshow worth watching — guest management, budget, and schedule all in one place.