Insert Media
Interactive Walkthrough
Instructions
Insert an Image
To insert an image:
- In the editor, click "Insert/edit image"
- Click "Choose File"
- Select the image you want to add and click "Choose"
- Add an image description and click "Ok"
Image Descriptions
Alternatively, you may check "This is a decorative image, no description needed" before continuing. However, this should be avoided for informative images.
For more information, see How to Write Image Descriptions
Insert a Video
Before you can insert a video, you first need its embed code. This is not the same as the link to the video, and each platform may have different steps in order to retrieve it.
To retrieve an embed code from YouTube:
- Navigate to the video you want to embed
- Click the "Share" button, then click the "Embed" icon
- (Optional) Check "Start at" and enter the time you want the video to begin playback
- (Recommended) Enable privacy-enhanced mode under "Embed Options"
- Click "Copy" and continue to Cascade
To insert a video:
- In the editor, click "Insert/edit media"
- Click the "Embed" tab
- Paste your embed code and click "Ok"
Best Practices
Write Image Descriptions
Images on the web serve different purposes:
- Informative images convey a concept or information to the reader
- Decorative images do not add information to the website
For all information on a website to be accessible to everyone, informative images must have a text alternative. This text can either be visible on the page, or an image description can be added for use by screen readers.
When writing image descriptions:
- Be short and to the point
- Communicate the same information as the image
- Focus on the content or meaning of the image, not how it looks
- Do not repeat information that is already provided by the text
For more detailed guidance, see Section 508's article on Authoring Meaningful Alternative Text.
Optimize Images
If your image is larger than 1 MB, it's best to convert it to a web-friendly format before uploading. The recommended formats are WebP (preferred) and JPEG. You can choose these formats when exporting in tools like Photoshop, or you can use an online tool to optimize it.
To optimize an image with Squoosh:
- Visit Squoosh and upload an image
- On the right side under "Compress", select "WebP" or "MozJPEG"
- (Optional) Adjust the effort and quality settings as needed
- Click "Download" and continue to Cascade
Additional Resources
Coming up Next
Organize data into rows and columns for better readability. Learn how to insert and format tables, when to avoid using them, and best practices for accessibility.
For more information, see How to Insert a Table