1. Context is Key: The context of the image should determine what is mentioned in the description.
2. Consider Your Audience: Use language appropriate for your audience's age, background knowledge, and purpose in viewing the image.
3. Be Concise: Keep most image descriptions below 250 characters.
4. Be Objective: Describe only what you see, not your interpretation of the image.
5. General to Specific: Start with the big picture, then add specifics.
6. Tone & Language: Use active verbs in the present tense. Use correct spelling and punctuation.

Extended guidelines for alternate text from DIAGRAM Center.

To add alt text to a picture

1. Click on the picture you want to add alt text for. Navigate to the "Format" tab and click on "Alt Text".
   
2. The Alt Text pane will appear on the right-hand side of the screen. Write the brief description of the image in the box provided. Or if the image is only decoration, check the box to indicate that the image is decorative.
   
3. Note: If you choose to use the "Generate a description for me" option, be sure to review and edit the description as the auto-generated descriptions are frequently incorrect or insufficient.

To add alt text to a picture

1. Right-click on a picture or object and choose "Format Picture".
2. In the Format Picture panel, choose "Layout & Properties", and then choose "Alt Text".
3. Fill in the Description box, you can leave the Title box empty. 

Watch a video about creating alternative text.

To add alternative text in Blackboard

1. From the Text Editor, navigate to the "Insert/Edit Image" Page.
2. Enter your alternative text in the "Image Description" field.
   
3. Click "Insert".

When writing long descriptions for complex images be sure to include all the information included in the image. This may take several paragraphs but is necessary for the user to fully understand the image. In some cases, a table can be used in a long description to convey data from a chart or graph.

A link to the description, or the description itself, should be placed somewhere directly above or below the complex image. If linking, the long description could be placed at the bottom of the page, on its own separate page, or in an appendix. Any of these is fine as long as the link is descriptive and easy to find. In these cases, the alternative text for the image should also indicate where the long description of the image can be found.