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Good image description is best understood by example. This page brings together samples of my work, the clients I've worked with, what they say, and the research that underpins the methodology.
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SAMPLES
textBOX specialise in providing high-quality, meaningful alt-text + image descriptions for every type of image, from graphs to graffiti.
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​I use my unique focus|LOCUS methodology to tell the whole story of your images. Please find some samples below and a wider range of examples in the textGALLERY.
THE ARNOLFINI PORTRAIT
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The Arnolfini Portrait, an oil on oak panel painting by Jan van Eyck, 1434.
LONG DESCRIPTION
The description of the painting is presented in 3 main sections as follows.
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Section 1. Context.
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A formal double portrait depicting a wealthy couple in a domestic interior. The painting is renowned for its intricate symbolism, masterful detail, and the artist's signature inscription above a central mirror. It is one of the most analysed works in Western art history.
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Section 2. Structure.
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The composition is symmetrical, with the two finely dressed figures standing side by side in the centre of the frame, their joined hands forming the focal point. A convex mirror on the back wall anchors the central axis. The room extends around them: windows to the left, a canopied bed to the right, a chandelier above, and a small dog at their feet. The painting is rich with objects, including oranges, sandals, a rug, carved furniture, each rendered in meticulous detail.
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Section 3. Walkthrough.
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The man stands on the left. He wears a dark plum-brown tabard with wide sleeves, trimmed with brown fur, over a black doublet. A large black hat with a wide brim sits atop his head. His face is pale and solemn, eyes downcast. His right hand is raised, palm outward, in a gesture of oath or greeting. His left hand extends to hold the woman's right hand, palm upward, in a formal clasp.
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The woman stands on the right. She wears a vivid green gown with elaborate gathered fabric at the skirt, trimmed with white fur at the hem and cuffs. Beneath it, blue sleeves are visible. A white linen headdress frames her face, her hair hidden. Her expression is composed, gaze lowered. Her left hand rests on her stomach. She wears a delicate gold necklace and two gold rings grace the fingers of her left hand.
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Between them, a small brown dog, a Brussels griffon, stands alert, staring directly at the viewer.
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The room is a wealthy Flemish interior. To the left, a window with open wooden shutters lets in light; oranges rest on the sill and sideboard below. A cherry tree is glimpsed through the open window shutters, and the top of the window is adorned with stained-glass of circular design. To the right, a four-poster bed with deep red curtains and bedding dominates the corner. A red upholstered chair with carved finials sits behind the couple. An ornate rug with red, blue, and gold patterns covers part of the wooden floor. Two pairs of discarded shoes, wooden pattens near the man, red leather slippers near the woman, lie in the foreground.
Above, a brass chandelier with six branches holds a single lit candle.
On the back wall, a convex mirror reflects the entire room in miniature, including the backs of the couple and two additional figures, one in blue, one in red, standing in a doorway facing into the scene. The mirror's ornate frame contains 10 small roundels depicting scenes from the Passion of Christ.
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Above the mirror, in elegant script, the artist has written: Johannes de eyck fuit hic 1434. This translates from the Latin as Jan van Eyck was here, 1434.
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Description ends.
NAPOLEON's INVASION OF RUSSIA IN 1812
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A figurative map of the successive losses in men of the French Army in the Russian campaign 1812–1813, drawn by Charles Joseph Minard in 1869.
LONG DESCRIPTION
The description of the infographic is presented in 3 main sections as follows.
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Section 1. Context.
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The infographic, often cited as one of the greatest statistical graphics ever created, visualises the catastrophic losses suffered by Napoleon's army during the 1812 invasion of Russia. It combines geography, troop numbers, temperature, and time into a single image, telling the story of an army of over 400,000 men reduced to fewer than 10,000 survivors. The graphic was created by Charles Joseph Minard, a retired French civil engineer, and published in Paris on 20 November 1869.
Section 2. Structure.
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The infographic consists of 2 main elements arranged vertically.
The upper section is a flow map showing the army's route across the western Russian landscape, from the Neman River in the west to Moscow in the east, and back again. Two coloured bands represent the army: a red band for the eastward invasion, a black band for the westward retreat. The width of each band is proportional to troop numbers, with one millimetre representing 10,000 soldiers. Place names and troop figures are annotated along the route. Rivers are marked where crossings occurred.
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The lower section is a temperature graph aligned with the retreat route. It shows the temperature in degrees below zero on the Réaumur scale, with dates marked. A conversion scale on the right provides equivalents in Réaumur, Celsius, and Fahrenheit.
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The 2 sections are linked spatially: locations on the retreat path in the upper map align vertically with their corresponding temperatures and dates below.
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Section 3. Walkthrough.
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The Invasion of Russia (red band, left to right).
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The French army crosses the River Neman at Kaunas with 422,000 men. A label at the records that the Cossacks crossed the frozen Neman at a gallop. The band flows eastward, narrowing as losses mount. At Vilnius, troop strength is 400,000; a secondary band branches south, representing Prince Jérôme's detachment. The main army continues through Hlybokaye and Polotsk. At Vitebsk, numbers have fallen to 175,000. The band continues to Smolensk at 145,000, then to Dorogobuzh, across the River Moskva at Gagarin with 127,100, through Vyazma and Mozhaysk, arriving at Moscow with 100,000 men. The band terminates at Moscow on the right side of the map.
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The Retreat from Moscow (black band, right to left).
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The black band begins at Moscow and traces the retreat westward. Initial figures show 96,000 at Maloyaroslavets, then 87,000 at Mozhaysk. The band narrows sharply as winter sets in: 55,000 at Vyazma, 37,000 at Smolensk, 24,000 at Orsha after crossing the River Dnieper. A slight widening to 50,000 at Studzionka marks where Prince Jérôme's remnants rejoin after crossing the River Berezina. The band then narrows again through Maladzyechna at 28,000, Smarhon at 12,000, and Vilnius where two figures appear: 14,000 then 8,000. The band ends at Kaunas with approximately 10,000 survivors, having recrossed the Neman.
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The Temperature Graph.
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The lower graph shows temperatures during the retreat, plotted against dates. Key readings include: 0 degrees R on 18 October at Mozhaysk; minus 9 R on 9 November; minus 21 R on 14 November at Smolensk; minus 20 R on 28 November at the Berezina crossing; minus 24 R on 1 December; minus 30 R on 6 December; and minus 26 R on 7 December near Vilnius.
A conversion table on the right shows:
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0 degrees R = 0 degrees C = 32 degrees F
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Minus 10 R = minus 13 C = 10 F.
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Minus 20 R = minus 25 C = minus 13 F.
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Minus 30 R = minus 38 C = minus 36 F.
Description ends.
Components of the Neuron
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An illustrated diagram of a neuron showing the cell body, dendrites, axon, myelin sheath, and terminal buttons, with labels describing the function of each component.
LONG DESCRIPTION
The description of the diagram is presented in 3 main sections as follows.
Section 1. Context.
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The diagram illustrates the structure of a neuron, the basic functional unit of the nervous system. Neurons transmit information through electrical and chemical signals. The diagram shows how a signal travels from one neuron to another, labelling each structural component and its function.
Section 2. Structure.
The diagram shows two neurons arranged horizontally on a white background. The primary neuron on the left is shown in full, with its components labelled. A second neuron on the right is partially visible, demonstrating how neurons connect to one another. Both neurons are illustrated in shades of yellow and orange. Black leader lines connect each label to its corresponding structure. A curved red-brown arrow indicates the direction of signal transmission along the axon.
The primary neuron can be divided into three regions: the cell body on the left, the axon in the centre, and the terminal buttons on the right where it approaches the second neuron.
Section 3. Walkthrough.
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The key components are presented as follows.
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Cell body (soma). On the far left, the cell body appears as an irregular yellow shape with a darker orange circular nucleus at its centre. The cell body, also known as the soma, contains the nucleus and is the metabolic centre of the neuron.
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Dendrites. Extending outward from the cell body are numerous thin, branching projections. These are the dendrites. They receive messages from other cells and conduct signals toward the cell body.
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Axon. Extending from the cell body toward the right is the axon, a long tube-like structure. The axon passes messages away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, or glands.
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Myelin sheath. The axon is covered by a series of segmented yellow sheaths, resembling beads on a string. This is the myelin sheath, which covers the axon of some neurons and helps speed neural impulses.
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Action potential. A curved red-brown arrow beneath the axon indicates the action potential, the electrical signal travelling down the axon from the cell body toward the terminal buttons.
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Terminal buttons. At the far right end of the axon, the structure branches into several small bulb-shaped endings. These are the terminal buttons, which form junctions with other cells.
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Second neuron. To the right of the terminal buttons, a second neuron is partially visible. Its dendrites extend toward the terminal buttons of the first neuron, illustrating how signals pass from one neuron to the next. The label notes these are dendrites from another neuron.
Description ends.
textBOX CLIENTS
textBOX work with a wide range of clients to help them implement accessible publishing practices.
TESTIMONIALS
Client: University of Manchester
Project: Online courses
It has been a pleasure to work with textBOX on image descriptions for several of our online units. Their descriptions are of outstanding quality and are always accurate and comprehensive, whether for simple photographs or complex graphics.
Our collaboration with textBOX has enhanced our learning content and ensured that all of our students have equal access to visual materials. They have provided an invaluable contribution to our courses and we look forward to working with them again in future.
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Stephen Miller | Digital Learning Developer | University of Manchester
Client: The Open University
Project: Stardust by Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess
I must congratulate textBOX for doing such an excellent job. The transcription is accurate and readable, detailed and consistent, and it draws the reader into the story as told by images and words together.
The collaboration with textBOX has been a pleasure and will enable all of our students to enjoy and understand this novel in its entirety.
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Dr Francesca Benatti | Open University
RESEARCH
I write and speak on image description, accessibility, and publishing. I am currently researching AI-augmented image description methodology.
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SELECTED PUBLICATIONS + ARTICLES
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The European Accessibility Act + accessibility statements (Star Wars references) - ASPIRE Paper, 2024
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The ASPIRE reference guide to writing accessibility statements - ASPIRE Paper, 2024
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Are we there yet? The state of accessible publishing — Learned Publishing / Wiley, 2022
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Ebook Aggregators (book chapter) - Clark's Publishing Agreements / Bloomsbury, 2022
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The power of accessible knowledge — Future Directions in Digital Information / Elsevier, 2020
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Thinking about the art and science of image description — Scholarly Kitchen, 2019
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How to write accessible descriptions for interactive charts — Highcharts, 2019
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Alice's adventures in alt-text land — BookMachine, 2020
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The silence of the image - Typefi, 2020
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Aspirational thinking: creating ASPIRE - Inclusive Publishing, 2020
SELECTED PRESENTATIONS + CONFERENCES
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Keeping up with Evolving Accessibility Standards - VitalSource Spring Forum 2025
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The European Accessibility Act + Higher Education - Westminster Conversations: Accessibility Symposium 2024
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Image Descriptions + AI — PAAG-Con, University of Oxford, 2024
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Implementing alt text in the era of the EAA — BIC Brunch, 2024
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The Focus Locus Hocus Pocus — Digital Publishing Podcast, 2024
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Organisational alt text - UCL Digital Accessibility Conference 2022
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How do we go from talking about accessibility to being accessible? - ALPSP + Cambridge University Press, 2022
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The Art and Science of Describing Images — DAISY Consortium webinar series, 2020-21
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Telling Your Accessibility Story - UKSG, 2020
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Telling Images - City University Publishing Masters, 2020
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Telling Images: Writing Complex Image Descriptions — CSUN, 2019
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