VISUAL LITERACY

Analysing Images

MODALITY

How credible (realistic) is the picture?

Moderate modality High modalitye.g. oil portrait e.g. Colour photo

Low modality – e.g. cartoon, caricature

SALIENCE

What part of the image attracts our attention first?

Salience is the visual weight or impact of part of an image.Salience is influenced by: Size Focus Colour Distance Placement

What is the most salient part of this image?How is this achieved?

READING PATH

The reading path begins with the most salient element of the image and moves through to other, less salient elements.

VECTORS

Vectors are visible or invisible lines of sight which lead the responder from one element to another, creating a reading path They may take the from of:• A gaze,• Pointing fingers or extended arms,• An object held in a set direction,• Lines appearing in the image.

What effect does the barbed wire have?

What effect does the line of the microphone have?

FRAMING

Establishing shot / Extreme Long Shot Sets the scene: gives an impression, not specific detail

Full shot

Head to toeFocus is on characters, but shown in context of the background.

Medium ShotHead to waist: shows relationship, body language, facial expression

Close up

• Concentrates on a face or a specific detail of a scene

• Little background shown

• Highlights importance• Shows facial

expression

Extreme close upShows detail, used for dramatic effect, adds impact

GAZE

Images demand our attention if the person appears to be looking directly at us.

Offers and Demands

OfferImages with an indirect gaze address the responder indirectly. They are offered to responders look at, rather than demanding attention.

PERSPECTIVE

Low Angle shotLooking up at a character increases their power and importance

High-angle shotLooking down at a character makes then seem smaller and less significant

FOCUS

Soft focusCan show emotion / confusion / romance

Sharp focus Draws our eyes to details

Blurred focus Shows rapid movement / anxiety

4. LIGHTING

Harsh lightingIncreases the senseof reality

Soft lightingCan be beautiful/ dream-like

BacklightingCan create a halo for romantic effect

COLOUR

What are the predominant colours of the image? Are they bright/dull, warm/cold? What emotion/ mood does the colour help to create?

Red for passion/ romance/ danger Purple for royalty/ mystery Brown for nature/ homeliness/ earthiness Orange/ yellow for a cheerful mood Blue as cold or emotionally distant Green for growth, fertility, health

Mise-en-scène

Mise-en-scene French for ‘placing on stage’: the design and

arrangement of elements in the image. Every element in an image contributes to its meaning. A responder will focus first on a character in the

foreground (or the most salient part of the image), but then he/she will look at the background for clues to meaning.