{"id":9437,"date":"2023-03-28T09:30:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-28T08:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/?p=9437"},"modified":"2023-03-24T10:05:31","modified_gmt":"2023-03-24T10:05:31","slug":"say-what-you-see-alternative-text-for-complex-images","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/tel\/2023\/03\/28\/say-what-you-see-alternative-text-for-complex-images\/","title":{"rendered":"Say what you see: alternative text for complex images"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Photo by ALAN DE LA CRUZ<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When making digital content accessible<\/a>, adding alternative text to images is key. But in a presentation on Demystifying alternative text for complex images<\/a> at a recent Future Teacher session<\/a>,  Matthew Deeprose from the University of Southampton showed how not all alternative text is equal, and how, in most cases, ALT text is not enough for more complex images such as graphs and flow charts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is alternative text?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alternative text is the written text that appears in place of an image and conveys the same information as the original image. This is essential for people with visual impairment using a screen reader, or students who use Sussex\u2019s Sensus access service<\/a> to convert content into alternative formats, for example audio files. It\u2019s also useful for students who are reading content using a weak internet connection, as alternative text will appear when images fail to load.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Writing alternative text for complex images<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For some complex images, you may need more than just the ALT text function to add short text to your image. As when composing any alternative text, ask yourself why you included the chart or graph. Deeprose says to consider the purpose and intention of the chart or graph as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n