10 Image #CaptionTips from a transcriptionist:
1. Any words are better than nothing.
2. You don't need to say it's "a picture of…" screen readers will already say it's an image.
3. Start with the framing or format (i.e. close up, landscape, meme, text).
4. Think about the reason you're posting the pic and describe that first, add background details if you have time.
5. Pretend you're talking to someone on the phone and want to tell them about this cool thing you're looking at.
6. Transcribe any and all text in the image, even if it's the only thing you do.
7. If you've described the image in your post, you don't need to copy and paste it again in the caption. But again, don't leave it blank, just put something like "as described."
8. You can add small subjective notes, but don't give too much interpretation of the image in your own opinion.
9. Caption jokes are fun, as long as they still describe the image objectively.
10. Use punctuation, and capitalize words properly. A lot of us have interacted with this tech when calling customer service or talking to Siri, so keep in mind that you're writing for a computer to read, and it needs all the help it can get.
@Cat_LeFey Some interesting information there, thank you. But... I have some questions. Not everybody with VI uses a screen reader. Some are using their own rather faulty eyes with huge fonts etc. In those circumstances some of this advice seems misplaced? Saying something like "it's a picture of" would be helpful there and does no harm for anyone else, maybe? Also, putting the text in all available places surely helps *all* VI people, whatever method they're using? If I'm posting a photo of my own, I'm pretty sure posting my opinion about it is okay. If I think a tree is beautiful, I feel like I can say so? Also, non-VI people are also going to be reading the text I would hope. The more inclusive the better, surely? Genuine questions - by making things more inclusive, and trying to make things work better for a wider audience, am I making it harder for a specific group? And if so, how do I balance those needs?
