Lance Ulanoff, a Hofstra alum recently joined the LHSC for a live Youtube session. He works at Lifewire.com writing as a columnist. Mr. Ulanoff discusses how to create and source visuals in one’s content. He explains how different pictures, gifs, and pull quotes act as a sort of ‘visual break’ for the reader.

When talking about the efficiency of using visuals he states, “If you create a graphic/chart you can’t have a ton of data… You have to have the smallest number of data points to quickly convey a powerful idea” (Ulanoff). When a reader is looking at an article or content, the ideas typically have to come fast-paced. Especially in regards to society today, fast news is more desirable. Adding graphics to help further explain one’s story can be very useful in this sense.

He shows how to use simple tools in Photoshop to edit images and add them to stories. Additionally he introduces websites such as GettyImages and Giphy and how those sources would be useful when creating content. Ulanoff explains how to create gifs using online sources as well as from videos someone may already have. He also includes that embedding tweets is a quick and easy way to add a visual element.

This talk emphasized the importance of using visuals to tell a story and how it enhances the affect of a person’s writing. Ulanoff says, “It engages them (the reader) with the content, and makes them more of an active participant. People have a reaction to an image that they don’t always have with just text”. Overall, it was interesting to see just how many options there are when adding visual content. Today, it seems almost automatic to add a visual element in different content. It helps to connect people to the story, and at times can help deliver information in a more feasible way than a lengthy paragraph would.