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Hello Nancy,

Both 'figcaption' and 'alt' attributes serve different purposes, and they are both essential for accessibility. 'alt' is used to describe the content to users who are visually impaired or who use screen readers to navigate the web. When an image fails to load, the 'alt' attribute is also displayed in its place, providing users with context about what the image should have been. It is essential to keep 'alt' text short, descriptive, and relevant to the image.

On the other hand, 'figcaption' provides a caption or description of an image, which may include more detailed information than the 'alt' text, such as the author or source of the image. It is beneficial for complex images, such as graphs or charts.

Therefore, using both 'alt' text and 'figcaption' for images is recommended. 'alt' text should be used to describe the image's content. In contrast, 'figcaption' can provide additional information or context.

When using 'figcaption', it is essential to associate it with the corresponding image using the 'figure' element. This helps assistive technologies understand the relationship between the image and the caption.

I referred to WCAG 2.1 Success Criteria 1.1.1 Non-text Content and 1.4.5 Images of Text, which guide providing text alternatives for non-text content and providing descriptive text for images.

Using empty 'alt' attributes with decorative images is generally not recommended, as this can confuse users of assistive technologies like screen readers. Instead, it is best to use a null 'alt' attribute (i.e., alt = "", like you just said) to indicate to screen readers that the image is decorative and does not convey any information.

Regarding using 'figcaption' with decorative images, it is generally acceptable to provide attributions or captions for these images.

I hope I could help!