Evidence: Visual Evidence

Visual Evidence

By the very nature of the documents it encompasses — reports, web sites, brochures, user documents — professional writing is visual in nature, and that visual element must be designed with the reader in mind. Clearly, on the most basic level, “visual” refers to design: creating a document that’s pleasing to the eye, easy to read through, and uses headings and white space to provide “breaks” in the reading, among other things, as will be discussed in Chapters 3 and 4. We can extend the idea of visual, though, to evidence.

Think about the two examples introduced in Figure 2.10. What kinds of visual evidence could you provide for each? 
For a report on the Duck Pond cleanup, visual evidence might include:

photographs of the more polluted areas of the pond,
photographs of the duck pond in less polluted days,
a chart or graph that plots the kinds of pollution that are found in the pond, and
drawings of what the duck pond might look like should revitalization occur.
For a proposal on revamping the Town Centre, visual evidence might include:

photographs of selected areas of the town prior to revitalization efforts,
photographs of Blacksburg through the years, with a focus on design alterations,
drawings of your projected design, focusing on particular phases, and
a chart that plots the design preferences of those who have businesses in the downtown.

Visual elements become a crucial part of evidence for many documents, particularly reports and user documents. With any document, though, you should be on the lookout for places where visual evidence could enhance your written evidence. Consider Figure 2.11, which does use a goodly amount of written or concrete evidence, but also incorporates a visual.

In this passage, the numbers alone should be impressive to readers. Additionally, the use of an authority figure who knows about the situation and a quotation by that figure add to the sense that the content is credible. 

Yet, in terms of impact, something is missing. Since the subject is pollution of the lake, consider the addition of a visual that would illustrate and complement what is being said. A simple photograph lends dramatic impact.

This example indicates an important rule about using visuals: they should be used to enhance the written evidence, not replace it.

Chapter 5, which focuses on visuals, including the ethics of manipulating them, provides you with several more concrete rules that you must follow when incorporating illustrations of any sort into your document.

Hopefully, this chapter has taught you that because professional  writing is persuasive, it is rhetorical in nature. Because it is rhetorical in nature, it relies for its success on its ability to connect with its audience:  it must have a clearly stated and achievable purpose, include evidence that will speak convincingly to your readers, and use a tone that is adapted to the particular context. If you can grasp the importance of these principles, you will have accomplished some of the most vital goals involved in successful professional  writing.