Visual literacy

Visual Techniques

Terms for analysis

Salience Salience refers

to the feature in a composition that most grabs your attention.

An image can be made salient through: Placement: usually an image becomes

“heavier” if placed towards the top or left.

Colour Size Focus Distance A combination of these things.

What is most salient?

What part of this image is most salient?

Why is it most salient?

Reading paths

A reading path is the path you take through a visual text. The path moves from the most salient to the least salient elements.

Describing the reading path.

In this image, what path/s does/do your eyes follow?

What is the reading path here?

Vectors A vector is a line that leads your eye

from one element to another. A vector may be a visible line or an

invisible one. It can be created by such things as a

gaze, pointing fingers or extended arms.

Explain how vectors work in the following

images.

The Last Supper

Compositional axisThe vertical

axis:

The left, is known or given;

The right is new or unknown.

The horizontal axis:

The upper section is ideal;

The lower elements are real.

Does the theory work?

The centre

Images here are the nucleus information.

The margin images are subservient.

Framing

Elements in a layout can be disconnected and marked off from each other or connected. If elements are cut off from one another they are strongly framed.

Framing.

Framing can be achieved by borders, discontinuities of colour and shape, or by white space.

Connectedness can be achieved by vectors and devices such as overlapping or superimposition of images.

GazeDemands and offers.

Demand: subject looks out of the image at the responder.

This establishes a connection between subject and viewer.

Gaze

Offer: The figure looks away.

The viewer is a detached onlooker.

Subjective and objective viewpoints

The viewpoints come from the vertical and horizontal angles.

Subjective viewpoints encourage the viewer to adopt a certain stance

A high angle gives the viewer a sense of power

Subjective images continued

A low angle makes the viewer feel powerless

Subjective images.

A straight on eye level view creates no power difference.

Objective images

The viewer is not drawn into involvement with the image. Meaning comes from the symbolic connection made by the reader.

Social Distance.

A close up is intimate

A medium shot is close

A whole figure framed is close.

A long shot is far social distance

Lighting and Colour Lighting creates mood -Shadows may suggest concealment or

fear and despair -Light, hope and inspiration. -Soft light, romance. Colour can be symbolic

How is mood created here?

What effect does colour have here?

What is the effect of the use of light?

How is light used here?

Modality/credibility

Lowest modality graphics are the least real.

Highest modality is most real.

Influences on modality

Idealisation: the image is better than real.

Decontextualisation: Components are

removed from the expected context and used elsewhere.

Influences on modality cont.

Modality can be affected by tricks with perspective.

The End