Memorial and Funeral Slideshow Maker
Bring together the photos and short videos of a life, choose the songs, and Onset Engine sets them to the music, in the order they were taken. It works on your own computer: nothing is uploaded, and no account is needed.
What to Gather
- ✓ Photos from every part of their life: childhood, family, work, friends, the recent years. Phone photos, including iPhone photos, work as they are; old prints can be scanned. Ask family members to send theirs.
- ✓ A few short video clips, if there are any: a laugh, a dance, a birthday. They mix in among the photos.
- ✓ One to three songs that meant something to them. They don't have to be slow or sad; what matters is that people recognize them.
Put everything in one folder on your computer. Subfolders are fine, for example one per decade.
How to Make the Slideshow
Add the Folder
Open ⚡ NEW VIDEO, choose Use my photos and clips, and add the folder with + Folder…. Each photo is shown once, turned upright if it was taken sideways.
Choose the Songs
Add one or several songs. A line shows how the photos fill them before you start, and every change of photo lands on the beat.
Set It Gently
Keep the order on Date taken so the photos play in the order they were taken, and under More options choose Dissolve between every shot. Tick Title Card in the Editor to open with the name you give the project.
Look It Over, Then Render
Watch the draft. Swap any photo for another, lock the ones that must stay, and render the finished video for the service.
Every Photo Moves, Quietly
A slideshow of still pictures can feel like waiting. Onset Engine moves gently across each photo for as long as it is on screen: a slow push toward the face in it, or a pan along a tall portrait. On a quiet song the movement is slight; it is never fast or flashy unless the music is.
If you'd rather have no effects at all, choose the Raw style with Dissolve between every shot: plain pictures, gentle movement and soft dissolves, nothing else. And whatever it chooses, you can change on the timeline before rendering.
How Long, and How Many Photos
Most memorial slideshows run five to eight minutes: one long song, or two or three shorter ones. At three to five seconds a photo, that is roughly:
| Length | Photos |
|---|---|
| One song, 3 to 4 minutes | 45 to 80 |
| 5 minutes | 60 to 100 |
| 8 minutes | 100 to 160 |
Onset Engine shows each photo once and fits them to the songs, and tells you before you start how they fill them. With more photos than the songs hold, it leaves some out, the extra shots of a burst first, and lists which: add another song to fit them all. With fewer, the video ends with the last photo and the music fades out over the last bar.
About dates: phone and camera photos and videos carry the date they were taken, so Chronological Order places them correctly, the videos among the photos. Scanned prints carry the date they were scanned instead: scan the oldest first, and they will play in that order.
Private, and Yours to Keep
Online slideshow tools need the family's photos on their servers. Onset Engine works on your Windows PC: the photos stay on it, nothing is uploaded, and there is no account to create.
The finished video is an ordinary MP4 file. Copy it to a USB stick or a laptop for the service, play it once on the screen you'll use beforehand, and keep it afterwards for the family.
The free Demo includes everything described here and renders the first minute at 720p with a small watermark, so you can see the photos with the music before deciding. The full version is a one-time $79, with no subscription, and renders the whole video in up to 4K.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest way to make a slideshow for a funeral?
Gather the photos (and any short video clips) into one folder, choose one to three songs, and let a slideshow maker put them together. With Onset Engine you choose Use my photos and clips, add the folder and the songs, and choose dissolves between every shot; it builds the whole video: every photo once, in the order they were taken, each with gentle movement, timed to the music. You can then swap or keep any photo before rendering the finished video.
What is the best program to make a funeral slideshow?
The best one is the one that lets you finish in time, with the photos you have. Online tools such as Canva, Animoto or Smilebox work from templates and need the photos uploaded. Onset Engine is a Windows program that works offline: it takes a whole folder of photos and video clips, orders them by date and sets them to the songs you choose, and lets you review every photo before rendering. It suits families with many photos, or anyone who would rather not upload them.
How many minutes should a funeral slideshow be?
Five to eight minutes is the usual guidance, including from funeral homes, so the service keeps its timing. One long song or two to three shorter ones fills it. In Onset Engine the video follows the songs you add, so the length comes from the music; you can also set a Length of your own, and it ends on a musical bar line rather than mid-phrase.
How many pictures should go in a funeral slideshow?
Plan around 15 to 20 photos a minute at a gentle pace, so 45 to 80 for one song of three to four minutes and roughly 100 to 160 for eight minutes. Fewer photos with more time each feels calmer; more photos feels livelier. Onset Engine shows each photo once and says before you start how they fill the song: if there are fewer than it needs, the video ends with the last photo and the music fades out; if there are more, it tells you which would be left out.
How much does a funeral slideshow cost?
Making one yourself can cost nothing beyond your time, with free tools and the photos you have; done-for-you services charge per video, and online tools often need a paid plan to download in full quality without branding. Onset Engine's Demo is free and renders the first minute with a watermark, so you can see the result first. The full version is a one-time purchase of $79 with no subscription, and renders the whole video in up to 4K without the watermark.
Is there a free way to create a memorial slideshow?
Yes. Presentation programs such as PowerPoint or Google Slides can play photos with music if you place each one by hand, and several online tools have free plans with limits. Onset Engine's free Demo includes every feature, so you can make the whole slideshow and see it with the music; its renders are limited to the first minute at 720p with a watermark. To render the full video for the service, the full version is a one-time $79.
What is a nice song for a funeral slideshow?
A song the person loved, or one the family connects with them, matters more than a slow tempo. Many families choose one reflective song and one that shows the person's spirit, often upbeat. Instrumental versions work well under a room of quiet conversation. Onset Engine works with any song file you have, and follows it: photos hold longer in quiet passages and change a little more often where the music lifts.
Can I include video clips and iPhone photos?
Yes. Onset Engine reads iPhone and iPad photos (HEIC) directly, as well as JPEG, PNG, WebP and BMP, and turns sideways pictures upright. Short video clips go in the same folder and play among the photos, in the order they were recorded, each one whole if it's short. Everything is processed on your computer and never uploaded.
Ready to Try It?
Download the free demo and see the results on your own footage. One-time purchase, no subscriptions.