Situation
I am blind. The schedule of the concert I want to attend is inside an image. The textual alternative could have helped me if it had been provided. But since she's not, I'm going to have to figure out when to come.
Information
An image placed in a document can be informative: it conveys useful information. This is typically the case for images carrying text. Conversely, it can be purely decorative and provide nothing from an informative point of view.
For each image carrying information, a textual alternative must be provided. This alternative is read by the voice synthesis of visually impaired or blind people. It is displayed to everyone only if the image is unavailable.
Our recommendations
The only question to ask to know if we should provide an alternative to the image or leave it empty is this: if I delete the image, will its disappearance result in a loss of information?
- If yes, then I must provide the alternative to the image
- If not, then I leave it blank.
Explore more!
- Fingerprint Company Blog: good practices for image alternatives ;
- Editorial web visibility: definition of the textual alternative of images.
Status
Sent to staff: April 2, 2024