What Are Visual Techniques?

When artists, photographers and movie makers create images, they use special techniques to tell their story. These techniques guide our eyes, create moods and evoke particular responses within us, the viewers.

This comprehensive 24-slide teaching presentation has been designed by our team to help your students recognize and interpret the ways images convey meaning through visual elements. It breaks down ten key visual text techniques, with each technique being clearly explained using student-friendly language and with accompanying visual examples that demonstrate its effect.

The visual text techniques addressed in this presentation are:

• Layout
• Texture
• Color
• Modality
• Gaze
• Shot
• Vector
• Angle 
• Salience
• Symbolism

The slideshow includes a discussion-based review activity to help your students share their understanding at the end of the lesson. A paper-based review activity is also available in PDF format via the Download button.

Teachers will love this resource for its clarity, curriculum alignment and ability to spark classroom conversations about visual literacy.

Take a Deep Dive Into Visual Text Techniques

This teaching presentation serves as a great starting point for introducing visual text techniques to your students. Once armed with the knowledge presented in this resource, they will be able to apply these techniques when creating and interpreting all kinds of images.

Here are a few ideas on how you could extend your students’ learning about visual text techniques:

• Create a Class Book – After learning about each technique, have students take photos around the school that show one or more of the concepts in action (like salience or vector). These can then be compiled into a digital or printed book.
• Authentic Image Hunt – Encourage students to be on the lookout for each visual technique in use when exploring texts such as picture books, nonfiction texts or graphic novels.
• Draw Your Own – Incorporate teaching of visual text techniques into your visual arts lessons by having students create artworks that feature a particular element (like color or layout).

Download to Explore Visual Techniques

This visual text techniques slideshow downloads as a Microsoft PowerPoint or Google Slides file. Use the dropdown menu on the Download button to access your preferred file. (Note: You will be prompted to make a copy of the Google Slides presentation before accessing it.)

This resource makes it easy to show your students real-world examples of how images communicate meaning, without you needing to hunt for or create your own teaching materials!

This resource was created by Samantha Rose, a teacher in Florida and a Teach Starter collaborator.

More Resources for Teaching Visual Imagery Techniques

Click below to browse more teacher-created, curriculum-aligned resources to use when teaching your students about visual imagery techniques.

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Visual Literacy Techniques Poster Pack

Teach your students how to uncover hidden meanings in images with this vibrant set of Visual Literacy Technique Posters!

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Visual Narrative Worksheets

Download these visual narrative worksheets that help students create and analyze their own stories using sets of images.