Graphics, in the form of words, charts, or designs, may be recorded into videotape through the camera (by aiming the camera at the lettered signs or at other "hard copy" artwork) or directly into the video tape recorder (VTR) from a character generator or effects generator. "Desktop video" add-on circuit boards for microcomputers also allow for electronic output of computer-generated text and images directly to VCR'S.

Whatever the source of the text or graphic designs you may use, remember to keep the edit and the viewer in mind when recording your graphics. This means that you should record the graphics for at least fifteen seconds in order to allow for sufficient edit "pre-roll" room (see above). Plan to leave the graphic on the screen long enough for even the slowest reader to read or examine completely. Since you know what your graphic will say or show (in the case of a chart, for example) before you edit your final tape, try putting it on screen for twice as long as you need to look at it.

In the case of graphics simultaneous with narration or graphics simultaneous with camera-recording images, strive to reinforce one element of each pair with the other. Graphics should not distract from narration or from other images onto which they are superimposed, but should reinforce the same messages, which these other elements communicate. While it may seem redundant to see on the screen the words spoken by a narrator, this redundancy is simply one device to aid comprehension and retention on the part of the listener/viewer. Similarly, viewers may feel better-oriented in a video tour of a complex facility if important details are not only enumerated by a narrator, but also displayed graphically for them to read or examine.