Alt text is description weightlifting

I spend a lot of time on Bluesky, which has a wonderful culture of putting alt text on most of its images. People sometimes complain that this shouldn't be an expectation for everyone. But those people who complain are missing out on one of the best exercises in concise description available.

Alt text, for those who need a reminder, is a description of an image attached as metadata to that image. It provides context for people unable to see that image. That person may be blind, or partially blind, and using a screen reader. Or, as happens to me everyday on the subway, that person could have unreliable service and not able to load images on their phone. Either way, a written description of the image in the alt text is also a way to provide additional details and/or context to an image.

From a writing perspective, alt text has simple parameters. It should be short-ish, so you don't waste the time of people using screen readers, and describe the image in a way that is interesting and relevant to what the reader needs to know to understand an image.

Consider this image:

How would you describe it?

• A Caucasian woman in a red dress with long brown hair and brown eyes on the left side of the image. She is out of focus in the foreground. In the center of the image is a Caucasian man in a blue plaid short-sleeved shirt with short light brown hair and a short beard. To his right is another Caucasian woman with long brown hair, in a light blue sleeveless shirt. They are on a city street with people passing around them, but that part of the image is out of focus.
• A young couple, a man and woman, are walking on a city street. The man has turned to look back at a woman in a red dress who has just walked past them with a look of appreciation on his face. Unseen behind him his current partner is looking at him in disgust and annoyance.

Those are two very different descriptions of that image, but the second gives context that the first does not. I see this a lot in first descriptions, describing the what without the why. I'm sure I could spend more time refining the second description to give even more information. Or better yet, give it some voice while still keeping the vital information in there. Something like:

• A total hottie in a spectacular red dress has just walked past, like, the chadiest of chads and he's just totally checking her out in just the grossest way. Meanwhile, Chad's girlfriend who is, get this, still holding his hand, looks like she wants to slap him right there in the street.

Well? Could you do better? I'd love to see your "voice" descriptions in the comments below.

Exercise, if you choose to accept it:

On Bluesky there is an option to prevent you from posting an image without attaching alt text. I'm not going to tell you what to do with your life, but if you are a writer and don't have it on you are missing out on one of the best daily description exercises I've come across. Turn it on and never miss describing an image again.

If you're not on BlueSky, or you want an extra challenge. Search a random topic on the media of your choice and pick an image to describe. Do all three descriptions I've done above. Straight description. Add Context. Add Voice. In your current manuscript which one are you using?