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Photo Captions |
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Photo Captions > Captioned Photos • About Us |
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You may have heard the expression, "A picture is worth a thousand
words." While this is true for a complex picture with many colors
or visual elements, most pictures can be fairly well described in a
hundred words or less. These descriptions, also called cutlines,
can be used as captions, displayed near a picture, to describe or explain its
composition, components, colors, and emotive values.
The simplest form of photo caption is the title attribute of the HTML img tag. Although some web browsers display alt attribute text as a pop-up caption when the mouse hovers over the photo, it is better to use the title attribute for captions. Here is an example of alt text and title text used together:
![]() Within an HTML table, a caption can be included above or below a photograph by specifying the caption element along with the img element, like so:
A caption can also be added to a photo by placing a descriptive title above it or below it, or by floating the photo to the right or left and flowing descriptive text around it, like so:
The Pinterest social media site has captured the imagination of many users, with its ability to categorize and caption digital images that people find while browsing the Internet. Here are links to three sample Pinterest accounts that highlight the use of descriptive captions:
For more info about writing photo captions, see this Writing Photo Captions and Cutlines article by University of Kansas Professor Malcolm Gibson. Photo Captions - Photograph Titles and Descriptions |
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