Use the eyedropper to fill a shape in PPT 2019-2021

If you want to fill a shape with a colour from a picture or whatever object that is on your screen you can use the eyedropper.

Use a colour from a picture in your slide to fill a shape.

In the following slide I would like to fill the rectangle with the orange colour on the photo.

Select the shape you want to fill. Click the Format shape tab under Drawing tools, in the Shapes style group click Shape Fill and select the eyedropper.

Move the eyedropper to the picture and click where you want to use the colour. Repeat if necessary till you've got the correct colour.

Use any colour of an object on your screen to fill a shape

Select the shape you want to fill. Click the Format shape tab under Drawing tools, in the Shapes style group click Shape Fill and select the eyedropper.

Press and hold the left mouse button starting from the PPT screen and move to the area that you want to use for your fill. Only release the button if you got the correct colour. Below you can see an example of a colour coming from a website. But you can use another slide if you want, in that case it is recommended to increase the width of the thumbnail section on the left of the screen.

Different ways to add a picture to a shape in PPT 2013

1 Using the ribbon and the Shape fill option

Select your shape and choose the Format tab under Drawing tools. Click on the Shape fill button. Choose picture and browse to your picture on the hard disk (From a file) or search the internet (Bing image search) or select your OneDrive. 

Alternative: right-click the shape and choose Format Shape. In the task pane Format Shape choose Fill and click the radio button Picture or texture fill.

Click on the File button to select and insert your picture. In that case the picture is on your hard drive, use the Online button to search for an internet picture.

2 Using the crop function

Select your picture and click the crop button under Picture tools, in the size group, select Crop to shape and choose the shape.

3 Using a placeholder or SmartArt object

SmartArt graphic

Add a SmartArt graphic eg. 'Picture with accents' and click on the picture icon inside the shape. Insert your picture.

You can change the shape under SmartArt tools, Format tab, click the Change shape button and choose your shape.

Placeholder

If you use a placeholder then select it and go to Drawing tools, Format tab and click the Edit shape button and Change shape.

You can consult my previous article on the subject it is still valid for current versions:

Change shape placeholder

In the example below the shape of the placeholder has been changed to a diamond shape.

4 Using the merge shapes function

Finally you can use the Merge Shapes function. This very useful option has often been the subject in this blog. Insert your picture, then draw your shape on top of it. Below I changed the shape by adding points and moving them.

    

First select the picture then the shape. Under Drawing Tools, click Format tab and select Merge shapes button, go for the Intersect option.

End result: