It’s pretty common knowledge now that you can set image descriptions on Twitter, but did you know that you can set them on your Instagram posts too? Here’s a quick tutorial on how to do it.
Let’s say I want to share a photo of my dog, Luna.
The first steps are the same as the usual Instagram process: I select a photo, apply a filter, and write a description. That takes me here:
Before I hit “share”, I have to go into the “Advanced Settings” at the bottom of the app. That takes me to a menu of options, including “Write Alt Text”:
If I select that option, I’ll get a freeform box where I can write my image description:
I wrote a quick snippet for my photo that describes what’s going on and what I’m emphasizing in my post (I’m calling attention that the “stick” is much larger than my dog). Once I save that, I can share my post!
Now that I’ve shared my captioned post, where is that alt-text used? By accessibility tools! Take a look in this video: