What Is Considered Visual Language

***Images have a strong and immediate impact on readers and audiences in various ways. They;***

* *visually transport the reader to the story's location*
* *give a sense of the appearance and personality of key individuals*
* *Illustrate the central elements of a story, enabling them to be quickly understood*
* *For these reasons, photographs, illustrations and cartoons are widely used in the print and electronic media in order to further a persuasive argument.*

***Often, the real meaning and persuasive effects of images come from their association with an accompanying text, or are a representation of the issue through exaggeration or metaphor.***

***Images can reinforce or add to the viewpoint presented in the accompanying text, or they can suggest a contradicting viewpoint, perhaps encouraging a more critical evaluation.***

***Colour is an important element of visual texts, and contributes significantly to their impact on readers. The interpretation of the meaning behind the colour can often be uncovered by reflecting on the various connotations that we associate with particular colours.***

***For example -***

* WHITE - is often used to suggest purity or innocence. It can be used to identify a person or object who is good, perhaps deserving of our admiration and approval.
* GREEN- is often used to suggest nature, or imply that something is a natural product. It can be used to identify/highlight something as being healthy, or good for the environment
* RED - is often used to suggest passion, danger, anger, or other strong emotions. It can often be seen in pictures associated with a threat, to which we need to respond to or act upon.
* BLACK - is often used to suggest seriousness, logic, or when used as shadow, sadness, loss or even death

***they can highlight an extreme aspect of the issue; for example, a photograph of the injured victim in a war zone can highlight the impact on civilians, or the extremely high human cost***

***expressions on people's faces can convey an emotion (happiness, anger, concern) and therefore have a strong impact on the reader***

***a landscape - a natural or built environment - can be presented in a way that emphasises the beauty or ugliness of that setting***

***light, colour, focus, angle and framing can be used to show a key individual in a positive or negative light. This can position a reader to like/sympathise with the person, or to dislike/mistrust them***

***The following photograph accompanied an opinion article on the Conversation website titled "Melbourne, the world's most liveable city? Not exactly". The article argued that although the Economist Intelligence Unit Survey named Melbourne the world's most liveable city for three years in a row, the city actually has a serious problem with climate and sustainability.***

### Analyse The Photograph

1. **what emotions does this photograph encourage the reader to feel?**
2. **how does it evoke these responses?**
3. **does the photograph suggest or imply a point of view on Melbourne's liveability? If so, state what you think that viewpoint may be.**
4. **The caption for the photograph was; "On sustainability measures such as urban footprint, Melbourne ranks as badly as London and worse than New York". How does the caption influence your response to the photograph?**
5. **Write an alternate caption that works with the photograph to present a contrasting viewpoint of Melbourne.**
6. **Find a photograph that captures your view of Melbourne and write a suitable caption. Explain how your caption and the photograph work together to present your POV**

## Graphs Charts and Tables

Visual presentations of information, especially numerical information, allow us to 'see' and understand it much more easily than if it was described to us in words and numbers. They can appear to present information in a fairly objective fashion, which can have a persuasive effect by indicating the fact- or evidence-based nature of the accompanying article.

* Maps or diagrams when there is a spatial element to the argument, can show locations, journeys, accidents, industrial processes etc.
* A chart or info-graphic can combine visual elements (such as a map) with text and numerical information.
* Graphs presenting numerical information are quicker to 'take in' than lists or tables of numbers; they can emphasise scientific elements or make supporting evidence more compelling.

### Analyse A Chart

1. **what visual elements of the chart above help to convey the message that the autumn was much warmer than usual? Consider elements such as font size, and selection, layout and colour.**
2. **To what extent does the chart position the reader to feel concerned or alarmed by the abnormally warm autumn? What features of the chart might make the reader feel this way?**
3. **Is there any relevant information omitted from the chart? Why might this be omitted?**
4. **What do you think the Climate Council's point of view is on climate change, based on the evidence presented in this chart? Explain your answer.**