We've all been told that a picture is worth a thousand words. However, we are rarely told how certain aspects of these pictures inspire all of these words. Unlike a book which usually has a general theme or meaning, a visual text allows for an infinite number of interpretations because of the many elements that create it. There isn't one mind that thinks exactly like another because we have all been shaped by our past experiences and it is because of these experiences that we interpret things differently. By looking deeper into a visual text and analyzing the many elements that come together to form it, we can see how our vision is guided as well as how our interpretations can be effected. The elements and details that form a visual text allow for unique interpretations.

In any situation, the colors that we see are capable of making us feel a certain way. Because of this, color is one of the most important aspects to look into when analyzing a visual text. For example, the use of bright colors usually creates a happy mood because we usually associate exciting colors with an excited mood. However, a visual text that is predominantly black or grey in nature usually elicits a somber or frightful mood. Colors can also be used to draw attention to a certain areas of the visual. For example, in this picture, the eye is first drawn to the police officer because of his fluorescent jacket which pushes me to the conclusion that the police officer is playing a crucial role in what is captured through this photograph. The second color that grabs my attention is the vivid red present in the wound of the victim in the wheelchair. Obviously the photographer made a point to include both the officer as well as the victims mangled legs in the picture. By doing so, a much more influential image is created. If you were to cover the victim from the waist down, as well as the entire police officer, the image loses that in your face quality it once possessed. Without these two colors the image is much less powerful simply because it is lacking that immediate attraction the officer's jacket forces upon the viewer as well as the deep red color of the flesh that shows both pain as well as warning. Color adds to this visual text, and its presence is crucial. Without it, the feelings that are created, as well as where your view is directed towards, would be lost. Like color, the lines as well as the contrast present in an image, have the ability to direct the reader's direction of sight. 

When looking at a visual text, the most important part of the image usually needing the most scrutiny is where your eye is first drawn. However, this isn't always the case and sometimes some of the most thought provoking aspects are the ones you have to eventually be guided towards as you scan the image. An example of this secondary guidance is seen through the lines and contrast in this image. As you scan up the right side of the image you can see that the side walk, blue curtains, and building roofs create an alley that directs your eye to the back of the image where there is a crowd of people. The contrast created by the dark shades of the building coupled with the white sky enhance the effect of these lines. The lines in conjunction with the contrast, force your eye to examine deeper areas of the visual text after analyzing the main focal point. After my eyes were brought to this part of the image, I began to wonder what was going in this crowd of people by asking questions like what happened in that crowd of people? And How did this man lose most of his leg? Visual texts have the ability to spark further curiosities, which is why they can be so influential. There is usually never one meaning to a given visual text because there is always the possibility of further and differentiating interpretations. Two different elements that both contribute to the possibility of differentiating interpretations are proximity and gaze.

When determining what is going on in an image or in our daily lives, how close we are to what is going on is a crucial factor in our ability to understand what is happening. If we are in close proximity, we are able to analyze what is happening because we can see every detail as it unfolds. However, if we are far from the event, our ability to determine what is happening is greatly diminished because we are unable to see everything, thus creating a sense of uncertainty. If we look at this picture both levels of proximity are displayed. In the front of the image we can clearly see that there is a man who just went through a traumatic experience and is being helped by people who were fortunate enough to avoid this event. Because of our close proximity we can even see that the man in the cowboy hat is actually pinching closed an artery that was exposed from whatever happened to the man, giving us even more detail into the extent of the man's injuries. Another important aspect that can be seen because of the close proximity, is the gaze of each person in this photograph. If we examine the gaze of the woman pushing the wheelchair and the man pinching the artery, they are both looking in the same direction suggesting that there is possibly some form of help in that direction. The eye-line of the police officer is down towards the mans injuries possibly because he is in shock of what happened to this man. Lastly the most influential gaze is that of the man in the wheelchair which seems as if he is looking into nothing, possibly showing that he is in shock and doesn't know what is going on. By looking to the back of the image our distance from what is going on creates a level of uncertainty in this visual text. It makes the reader wonder why people are running towards that area while others are leaving that area with brutal injuries. If you were to just read about this event, you would not get the full effect because you wouldn't be able to see what actually happened. 

Literary works have the ability to be immensely powerful and inspirational, however no matter how much imagery and description is used, the written word has it limits and can only explain so much. Visual texts are so important because it creates an experience unachievable by the written word and although they are a physical image, they still have the ability to create different interpretations in it viewers based on the elements that put it together. 

