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Re: Alt Text For Collages

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From: chagnon
Date: Aug 13, 2018 9:36AM

Carlos wrote:
" By "artifact all but one," what do you mean by that? "

That refers to how the collage was created. There are 2 construction methods to create a collage and it depends upon which software the designer uses, which software gives them the tools they need to achieve the visual effect they want, and their level of skill.

Method 1. The designer uses a program like Adobe Photoshop (which is an image-editing program with many design tools for the visual effects used in collages) and brings all the individual photographic pieces into one Photoshop file. When done, one composite file is exported and brought into the authoring program (such as HTML, Word, PowerPoint, and Adobe InDesign).

The end result is one graphic file, so it can have only one Alt-text.

Method 2. The designer brings two or more graphics into their source program (such as Word, PowerPoint, and Adobe InDesign) and arranges the different pieces into a collage effect. The pieces are never combined together, even though they may visually overlap and merge together. The individual graphic pieces are still separate from each other. In this case, artifact all but one and write a single Alt-text for the group.

This method is frequently used by high-end designers who use Adobe InDesign, which has many design and effects tools for this type of graphic / collage.

It's also used in more simple documents like Word and PowerPoint where the designer wants a series of graphics as a decorative frieze or grouping on the page. An example: the cover of a Word report with 3 small photos along the top edge that show generic campus scenes. Artifact 2 of them and write a group Alt-text on one.

Note: Don't confuse a collage with an info-graphic. Although they can share a similar visual appearance, the intent and purpose is completely different.

In most info-graphics, each individual graphic piece carries its own unique visual information and sometimes, each piece (or many of them) needs Alt-text to fully convey its concept. A flow-chart is an example where you might take this tactic.

But other times an info-graphic can have one Alt-text for the entire group. An example is a graphic that shows the cycle of water in the environment: although there are separate graphic pieces in the graphic, a single group Alt-text might be "Info-graphic shows the cycle of water. Water evaporates from a lake, rises up to form clouds, which then produce rain. The rain drains into rivers that return the water to the lake."

The deciding factor for all of these collages, info-graphics, flow charts, etc. is how much detail should be conveyed to the user. Does the user need to know the detail of each individual piece? Or does the user only need a single Alt-text of the overall concept for the entire group?

Hope this helps.
—Bevi

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