Visual Communication

Visual Communication  - How to Create/Locate It What It Can Do

 

Writers use visual content, such as photographs, illustrations, charts, graphs, and design ele- ments, to inform and persuade read-

 

PHOTOGRAPHS

• Take photographs yourself that express the information or argument

• Search for photographs in image archives

ILLUSTRATIONS

• Draw or paint original art, digitally or by hand

• Search for illustrations in image archives

• Use a map to show a route

• Create a timeline that shows key events graphically

CHARTS AND GRAPHS

• Collect data through original research or at data repositories

• Use a spreadsheet program to create charts and graphs

DESIGN AND LAYOUT ELEMENTS

• Learn design conventions in the particular discipline, as described in style guides

• Study examples of effective design

• Use the layout and style features of a word-processing or desktop publishing program

 

• Convey information and content

• May (like illustrations) be touchstones for analysis in the text

• Help your reader see what you mean

• Allow you to focus on discussing the meaning and significance of a photograph’s content rather than merely describing it

• Act as visual interpretations of textual content

• Explain complex tasks, equipment, or objects

• Clarify concepts or processes

• Prove a point by showing an example as evidence

• Add aesthetic appeal

• Represent data visually

• Show trends and relationships among variables

• Draw attention to the most important conclusions to be drawn from an analysis of data

• Direct the reader’s eye to the most important information

• Express hierarchies of value

and categories across information

• Convey tone and mood (professionalism, artistry, playfulness)

• Express form as visual content (patterns, lines, etc.)

• Add aesthetic appeal