Accessible Image Descriptions: Ensuring Contextual Clarity in WCAG 2.2 Compliance

Introduction to Accessible Images

Images play a crucial role in web content, conveying information and enhancing user engagement. However, for users who rely on assistive technologies, such as screen readers, properly described images are essential for an inclusive web experience. WCAG 2.2 provides explicit guidelines on how to make images accessible through appropriate text alternatives.

Understanding Text Alternatives

According to WCAG 2.2, all non-text content (like images) must have a text alternative that serves the same function or conveys the same information. This is articulated in Success Criterion 1.1.1 – Non-text Content. There are two primary types of text alternatives:

• Informative Images: These images convey information that is critical to understanding the content.
• Decorative Images: These images do not provide essential information and can be ignored by assistive technologies.

Using alt Attributes Effectively

The alt attribute is the primary method for providing text alternatives for images. Here’s how to use it correctly:

<img src="example.jpg" alt="A beautiful sunset over the mountains">

In this example, the alt text accurately describes the image. This description enables users who cannot see the image to grasp the context it provides.

Handling Decorative Images

For images that are purely decorative, the alt attribute should be left empty:

<img src="decorative-image.jpg" alt="">

This practice instructs assistive technologies to ignore the image, preventing unnecessary distraction for users.

Complex Images and Charts

When dealing with complex images, such as graphs or charts, a simple alt text might not suffice. In these cases, it’s recommended to provide a longer description. This can be done using the longdesc attribute or via a nearby text description:

<img src="chart.jpg" alt="Sales chart for 2023" longdesc="This chart shows monthly sales growth from January to December 2023, highlighting a peak in December.">

Providing a detailed description ensures that all users understand the context and significance of the image.

How to Remediate Images with WP ADA Compliance Check

Manually tracking down images lacking proper alt attributes across a large website can be a time-consuming task. Utilizing the WP ADA Compliance Check Plugin automates the auditing process. It identifies images missing appropriate text alternatives, saving developers countless hours of effort.

Automated Remediation

The plugin evaluates your database content against 83 thorough accessibility checks and automatically corrects 42 distinct error types. During deep site scans, it uncovers hidden errors and highlights the exact location of the issue, saving developers from manually hunting through the raw HTML editor.

Enforcing Pre-Publishing Safeguards

To ensure that new content modifications don’t break compliance, the plugin features robust Pre-Publishing Controls. If an editor tries to publish a page containing web accessibility errors, the plugin alerts the user or restricts publication. This content safeguard forces correction at the workflow source before the page goes live.

Getting Started

If you are not sure where to begin with web accessibility, start by using the WP ADA Compliance Check Free Web Accessibility Scanner to run a scan of your website. For a more integrated solution, WordPress website owners should also try the free WP ADA Compliance Check Basic plugin to automatically audit posts and pages for common compliance issues right from their dashboard.