Why It's Important To Use Alt-Text With Your Images

When posting images, try to add alt-text.

What is alt-text?

"Alt-text" or "Alt text" or "ALT text" or "Alternative (Alt) Text" is a brief text description of images and graphics, and helps make content accessible. Alt-text is read by screen readers or other assistive technology to provide information about the image to the reader.

How can I remember to use alt-text on Bluesky?

I turn on my alt-text reminders in Accessibility Settings so I don't forget. When I do forget or am unable to for some reason, I try to add a useful description in a reply to my first post.

Here are just some of the ways alt-text is useful:

Helps visually impaired people who use screen readers.

Can help the neurodivergent.

Helps your post get discovered re: search, custom feeds.

When Internet is super-slow, people will see the alt-text in place of unloaded images.

Alt-text can be translated.

If text in images is hard to read, alt-text can help.

Alt-text helps clarify the intent of the image.

Advice from the alt-text community

I asked the Bluesky community for links to useful threads and posts about using alt-text. You can browse the thread here.

"I'm afraid of doing alt-text wrong! Maybe it's better for me to just NOT use it..."

As Gregory J. Rosmaita aka @oedipusnj.bsky.social said on Bluesky, "Any description no matter how delivered is better than none."

I also suggest following Accessibility Awareness aka @a11yawareness.bsky.social for tips.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/i4lnV4__rlc?rel=0

How to add alt text in your image on Bluesky.

After uploading an image to your post, before pressing "Post," click on the ALT button on your image. That will open up a window where you can type in your alt text.

As Celia Lake points out in "Alt-Text and the Author", good alt-text is based on context. "You generally want to describe what would matter to someone looking at the image, in the context you’re writing in."

Don't start with all the details. Start with a summary of what's most important, the basic details. After that, you can add any complicated details later; this way people have the option to skip the details after they get the info they want.

Don't go overboard with keywords, hashtags etc.

Tip for those more interested in having their image get discovered than conveying useful information for the visually impaired: DON'T just cram in a bunch of keywords and hashtags. Not only does this defeat the original intent of using alt-text, but it might get you flagged as a spammer.

Alt-text tips for artists.

I love Nick Tankard's aka @nicktankard.bsky.social alt-text for his (amazing) art. Nick was kind enough to answer my questions about his process for coming up with alt-text; you can see the thread here. Nick: "I’m never sure if my alt-text is any good or of use but I have it set up where I can’t send the post until I’ve done alt-text so that I don’t forget, that helps. I write new text every time, that way it keeps it fresh and maybe I’ll see something new too."

Nick says he tries to describe the colours he uses ("it's usually black & white with me"), what equipment/technique he used, a loose description of the image, and "perhaps what the mood is." He says he also tries to be "humorous and inclusive" so that his alt-text descriptions aren't "too dry."

Some tips from An Attempted Guide To Writing Effective Alt and Descriptive Text For Art by @mannequinrentals.help and How To Write Alt Text For Amateur Art by Veroniiica:

Alt-text for amateur art has space for artistic freedom BUT the only "rule" is that alt-text needs to be written with visually impaired audiences in mind, aiming to provide additional description for those who may have trouble seeing it. (Veroniiica uses the phrase "amateur art" to describe art that is shared primarily on social media platforms)

Pretend you're describing your piece to an art gallery over the phone. What essential info do they need to hear to understand the image and context?

Helpful info to include: artwork medium, "first impression," interesting details. See article links above for more suggestions.

Alt-text tips for book people.

Looking for examples of book covers and alt-text? See this community-sourced thread. For a book cover, include:

Title

Book credits

Short description of the cover illustration/graphic elements/"first impression."

Thanks to @paulvinelli.bsky.social / Paul Vinelli for providing the following example:

Thanks to @taliskimberley.bsky.social / Talis Kimberley for providing another example of book cover alt-text:

ALT text reads: "A weathered Puffin imprint paperback copy of Dodie Smith’s ‘The Starlight Barking’; on a blue-grey background, the words are chased round by a charming parade of assorted dogs in a slightly cartoonish style. There are stars. Two Dalmatians feature - they’re looking at each other affectionately."

Read Celia Lake's excellent blog post with alt-text tips for authors. For cover descriptions, Celia aims for a 2-3 sentence cover description. Her pro tip: when writing the blurb and other marketing material for her books, she also writes up the alt-text for the cover. This way, she can just copy and paste it whenever she uses an image of the cover.

If you see someone neglect to add alt-text, don't be a jerk.

Instead of scolding them, add a useful image description in a reply. "If you want to actually help visually-impaired people, just HELP. Don't be an asshole," says @adrienneleigh.bsky.social. Adrienne points out that some people cannot easily do it because of bad device access, neurodivergence, or other reasons.

Some people may have physical reasons they find it difficult to add alt-text.

Another great suggestion from Adrienne: If you are going to share something and you see it contains an un-described image, you can quote-share it instead, and add a description yourself in the post.

Blog posts about using alt-text on Bluesky

Alt text 101 for Bluesky by @manningkrull.bsky.social

Alt text on Bluesky by @alexaheinrich.bsky.social

Adding alt-text on Bluesky - by @blueskyfeedcreator.com

Bluesky threads about using alt-text

A Simple Guide To Providing Useful ALT on Bluesky - by @oedipusnj.bsky.social

Thread about writing effective alt and descriptive text for art on Bluesky - by @mannequinrentals.help

Alt text resources

How to write alt text and image descriptions for the visually impaired - Perkins School For The Blind
Write helpful Alt Text to describe images - Digital Accessibility, Harvard University
Alt-Text and the Author - by Celia Lake
Writing Effective alt text and descriptive text for art - A Feral Mannequin Production
How to write alt text for amateur art - Veroniiiica: Veronica With Four Eyes, who has many excellent posts about Alt Text, including how to write alt text for digital comics.
Tips for Writing Alt Text (HTML & Accessibility) - by Homer Gaines
Accessible Social Media - APLN (Accessible Publishing Learning Network)

Do you have any other useful resources or tips to suggest? Feel free to post in the comments!