analysis+of+visual+texts

Visual texts are texts that include graphical features rather than just words. They can be on paper or on screen; they can include animation or still images; they can use photographs or be created by hand. Generally visual texts use a combination of graphical features and words. Some examples of visual texts are: Maps Diagrams Graphs Tables Animation and films Photo-stories Flow charts Storyboards Comics Posters Mind maps Visual texts are used because the creator (writer) considers that visual features will make the text’s purpose clearer to the intended audience. For example, if my purpose was to inform the general public about the water cycle I could write an essay about it using just words. This would mean that my audience would have to create their own mental image of the cycle. If I included a diagram that made a visual summary of the cycle I think that the information would be much clearer to them. Example 2: If I want to inform my company’s shareholders of the annual sales figures it would be time consuming for them to have to read everything in words. People want to understand the information quickly; seeing a summary of figures in a table or graph, rather than paragraphs of words, is generally much more effective and time efficient. On the other hand, if I was creating a text where my purpose was to engage people’s imagination or to tap into their emotions I would probably choose not to include pictures; I’d carefully choose my words to encourage them to develop their own mental images. We sometimes use the phrase “I’ve got the picture” to let others know we have understood them. It makes sense to use this phrase because, when we take in information, our mind often creates a mental image or picture. If you use visual features appropriately in your text you will help your intended audience to “get the picture”. Another phrase you might have heard is “a picture tells one thousand words”. This indicates that sometimes the meaning a person gets from looking at a picture would take many words to explain. This may be because pictures are symbolic of certain meanings. For example the symbol  means male and  means women. There may also be much deeper significance of images which may have cultural significance to the creator and reader of the text. Visual texts have been around much longer than written texts. They have been used by people for thousands of years to illustrate stories and importantly to pass on law and culture without a written script. Look at the film clip on http://dl.screenaustralia.gov.au/module/453/. As you watch can you note down some of the symbols that the artist is using to represent different aspects of his environment. Can you search the internet now and see if you can find an image of an Australian Aboriginal painting that uses some of the same symbols. Think about the paintings that are being created. What is the painter’s purpose, or there might be more than one? Who is his intended audience? Go to http://www.klamathtribes.org/poster.html and read about how different images have been used to represent their tribe. Make a sketch of a poster for your community. Can you think of some symbols to include in your poster that represent your community’s place and its people? VISUAL ELEMENTS Often we create texts that use quite a lot of words but that also use visual elements to enhance their effectiveness. Maybe electricity bill showing graphical comparison Enhance reports Look at the poster “One drink isn’t always one drink”.
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You’ll probably agree that this is a visual text. It has two graphical features – the photographs of drinks and the logos at the bottom of the page. Who do you think created this poster? The West Australian Government, Drug and Alcohol Office What was their purpose? The purpose of this text is to inform people about safe alcohol consumption. Who is the intended audience? The text is created for reasonably well educated people who drink alcohol who are interested in their health. Is the text relevant to you? The text is not really relevant to me because I don’t really drink very much but I am interested to know about health related information. Can you summarise the main points? The text informs us that different alcoholic beverages vary in strength. Even though you might only have one glass of beer or wine it might be the equivalent of more than one standard drink if it has a high percentage of alcohol. It might also be the equivalent of less than one standard drink if the alcohol content is low. The second part of the poster gives the reader information about how many standard drinks it is safe to have each day and each week. The number recommended for women is less than for men. Do you think that the visual elements of the text helped or hindered its effectiveness? I think that the visual elements help to present the information in a way that makes it easier to understand the message that the Drug and Alcohol Office are trying to get across. It would be more difficult, and probably more boring to just read the information. Being able to actually see the amount of alcohol in a glass and comparing it with the other types of drinks makes the message clearer. I think also that the use of logos and link to a government website gives the text credibility; I believe the information because it comes from a government agency. I am more likely to believe that the facts presented are accurate because it has been created by a government department. Thinking about its purpose and intended audience, do you think that the poster is effective? I think that the poster is effective for a reasonably well educated audience who are interested in health. I think that it might be a bit confusing for people who are not sure about what percentages are. I also think that if people do not really care about their health then they probably will not take the time to really understand what the poster is saying. Visual texts are not only useful when creating texts for other people, they can be used to help plan and create other texts; they can help you make your purpose clearer to yourself. One of the useful things about visual texts is that they can help you show a connection between different ideas. For example, you might be considering writing a short story - you could use a flow chart or storyboard to help plan it. Or, you might be planning a collaborative project - you can all use a mind map to help get your ideas on the table. http://k-8visual.info/ Mystery web activity Visual summary Flow chart or story board before writing a narrative/recount Mindmapping Visual thesaurus http://wwwfp.education.tas.gov.au/english/default.htm reading a photograph compare 2 use picture frame http://www.textmapping.org/index.html Scrolls and mapping [|www.readinglady.com] activities, docs etc story mapping activity http://www.addletters.com/restaurant-sign-generator.htm make a sign http://wordle.net/ make a word collage on a theme
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