Contents
Key concepts—images and alt-text .................................................................. 1
Alternave text is needed for images, links, controls and form elements ............................2
General guidance ...................................................................................................................2
When to add alternate text to Images ...................................................................................3
How this guide is organized ...................................................................................................4
Secon 1. Reference samples and guidance ..................................................... 7
Pictures ..................................................................................................................................8
Portraits (head-shots) ............................................................................................................9
Charts, diagrams and illustraons .......................................................................................10
Logos ....................................................................................................................................12
Controls and form elements ................................................................................................13
Links ....................................................................................................................................13
Image maps .........................................................................................................................13
Text contained in an image ..................................................................................................14
Text rendered as an image ...................................................................................................15
Bullets ..................................................................................................................................16
Spacers (structural images) .................................................................................................17
Lines, horizontal rules, and separators ................................................................................18
Decorave images ...............................................................................................................19
Background images..............................................................................................................20
Watermarks .........................................................................................................................21
Signatures ............................................................................................................................22
Complex / ungrouped / led / layered images ....................................................................23
Secon 2. Common mistakes ..........................................................................25
Purpose and funcon—missing the point ...........................................................................26
Text that is too long, verbose, wordy, replete in longness, just too much etc. ....................28
Redundant alt-text (now hear this… twice) .........................................................................30
Not enough, or too much detail ..........................................................................................32
Erroneous alt-text ................................................................................................................33
Filenames and paths in place of alt-text ..............................................................................34
Extraneous informaon (‘image of…’, ‘picture of…’ etc.) ....................................................35
Tool-ps on images ..............................................................................................................36
Color meaning embedded in alt-text ...................................................................................37
(Un)grouped images ............................................................................................................38
Visual language and alt-text language mismatches .............................................................40
Secon 3. Implementaon (technical details) .................................................43
Web / HTML implementaon ..............................................................................................44
Electronic documents implementaon ...............................................................................47
Agency-specic informaon ...........................................................................51
i