Sherry,
In PPT 2003/choose blank presentation from the slide layout pane.
From there you can insert your graphics/backgrounds/etc...
To edit these you will need to use a photo editing program to lighten/crop/resize/etc...
You can also use a provided template to do the same with your edited graphics.
Find training courses for PPT here: http://office.microsoft.com/training/default.aspx?CTT=6&Origin=EC790020111033
