Contents
Keep in mind that figures provide a snapshot view of information. For more information, explore the following pages:
Figures include graphs, equations, photographs, line art, drawings, maps and other visuals. Keep in mind that Figures provide a snapshot view of information. For more information, explore the following pages:
By using Bar Graphs, you can provide a highly visual presentation of data. Use Bar Graphs when you want to present data to numerically challenged readers.
Guidelines
Keep in mind that Bar Graphs often work well for more general audiences. When preparing Bar Graphs, use bars for discrete categories, and follow these guidelines:
Line Graphs exist in scientific, technical, and business publications showing trends in data, such as growth or changes.
Guidelines
For simple Line Graphs,
A pie chart effectively displays the proportion of the parts of a whole. For instance, a pie chart can visually display the percentage of men and women in Congress during a particular session.
Guidelines
Keep in mind that Pie Charts often work well for more general audiences. When preparing Pie Charts follow these guidelines:
Scatter plots show correlations between raw data, but they are relatively difficult to see and understand. Use scatter plots only with specialized audiences. Otherwise, you may confuse your audience.
Typically, a point on a scatter plot represents thousands of cases. A scatter plot is useful to show how citizens vote during an election.
If you own a 35mm camera, you can easily shoot quality Photographs to illustrate your articles, publications, and presentations without knowing many technical details of photography. As one professional photography suggested, they are Ph.D. cameras--"Push Here Dummy."
You simply point and shoot--the camera focuses on the subject, makes the needed adjustments, and exposes the film. To learn more explore the following links:
To shoot good Photographs:
When shooting Photographs:
Good Photographs don't just happen--photographers must plan Photographs to show the desired content. Having good content begins by planning what you'll show in your Photographs. To improve content of your Photographs:
To improve composition, you need to learn to see good Photographs and then use a camera's technical capabilities to create visually pleasing scenes.
To improve Photographs:
For more information on basic photography, check your local library for books or your local camera store.
Line Art consists of simple illustrations, usually in black and white, that outline key elements of the visual being shown. Chances are you are not skilled at drawing Line Art, so you will need to use a professional illustrator or use some of the software designed for preparing Line Art. To learn more, explore the following:
Use line drawings to illustrate key components or parts. You'll find Line Art used to show the key parts of such things as:
When you turn to illustrators to help you prepare Line Art, consider the following guidelines. Provide plenty of lead time for the artist to complete the job. Below are some more suggestions when working with illustrators to make the process easier and less time consuming:
If you have access to a computer with drawing software, you can produce simple Line Art. You'll find two kinds of software:
Using software you can create Line Art, save it as a graphics file, and import it into word processing, desktop publishing, presentation, or online documents, such as a home page on the World Wide Web.
Use flow charts to show how a process works. Such processes might be how a computer operators, how oxygen flows through your body, how photosyntheses works, or a multitude of other scientific or technical processes.
If you are in a scientific or technical field, you will find the need to provide Maps for technical reports, articles, program announcements, and other publications. Explore the following links for more information on Maps:
When preparing Orientation Maps, consider the following
When preparing Direction Maps for meetings, conferences, or other gatherings, consider the following:
Unlike tables, style guides do provide detailed guidelines for the parts of Figures. Instead, the Figure contains the primary visual component and the caption describes the Figure.
When you consider each kind of Figure, consider whether the Figure you plan to use is the best to communicate to your readers.
Ask the following questions:
Keep in mind that readers' backgrounds, and whether they read and interpret Figures in the same way you do.
The following lists provides general guidelines for developing Figures. When developing Figures, follow the general and specific guidelines:
Researchers suggest the following:
If you aren't accustomed to working with figures, you may feel uncertain about how to incorporate them into your writing. A good place to learn about figures is in journals and other publications. You should also investigate the style guides used in your field. Many organizations produce these guides to help you properly include figures into your documents. To read answers to some common questions, choose any of the items below:
It's typically easier to look at a graph or chart than to read through a paragraph or two that describes information in great detail. This does not mean, however, that graphs and charts should take the place of your text. You should not simply say, "Our results are shown in Figures 1 through 9." Instead, the primary role of figures isn't to replace, but rather to enhance your narrative.
The role of figures is to reinforce what your text states and to make some of the text easier to understand. Stating information in words gives readers the general idea, but seeing it in graphical form makes it clearer. At the same time, the information you convey in your text also supports your graphic. Don’t just write that the information can be seen in the graphic. Tell your readers what the graphic depicts.
Generally, having more rather than fewer figures is desirable. If the graphics aren’t adding anything, don’t put them in, but you can always find opportunities where figures will help. Remember, you can always place less important figures in an Appendix.
Ideally, figures should appear on the same page, immediately following or adjacent to the first instance when you mention them in your text. When you write, "See Figure One," your readers should be able to easily locate the graphic. Also, your readers will appreciate not having to turn pages and hunt for a graphic. Advances in word processing and desktop publishing software make it relatively easy to insert figures within the text itself. If it isn't possible to fit a graphic onto the page immediately following or adjacent to its first mention in the text, then you should place the graphic on the next page.
Figures should be clear and captions should be large enough to be read. Many readers prefer that bold symbols be used to represent data. Also, all lettering and number ing should be large enough to easily read and you should use a mix of bold and lighter lines.
Unless they are extremely complex, figures should not take up an entire page. They should be of a size that allows them to be inserted on the page where either the graph or chart is first mentioned. However, they should not be so small that they are difficult to read.
Don Zimmerman and Gregory Thayer. (1994-2024). Designing Documents: Using Figures. The WAC Clearinghouse. Colorado State University. Available at https://wac.colostate.edu/repository/writing/guides/.
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