The combination may cause eyestrain. Color should be used discriminately in graphs and charts as it can affect interpretation of the data, even if correctly presented. For example, darker colored bars make them appear more important than those in lighter colors. Use brighter colors to highlight the most important element in a chart. Place labels of graphs and charts horizontally rather than vertically to relieve the audience from tilting their heads while reading.
Place footnotes in graphs and charts in the lower left corner using the smallest legible font size.
Do not use bright colors in a footnote or secondary data as they will make the footnote appear to overpower the primary foreground information. End your presentation gracefully with one or two closing titles. Start and end your presentation with a black frame. Reprinted with permission from the September 1994 edition of Tech Trends . Copyright 1994, Association for Educational Communications and Technology.