When you insert an image into your essay or visual presentation, you need to provide a caption.
MLA guidelines for illustrative visual material other than tables (photos, maps, graph, chart, line drawing, etc.):
example:
Fig.1. Dorothea Lange. Toward Los Angeles, California. 1937. Library of Congress: Farm Security Administration.
example:
Table 1 Title of Table, Capitalized.
Year | Option 1 | Option 2 |
2001 | 20,001 | 120,001 |
2002 | 20,002 | 120,002 |
2003 | 20,003 | 120,003 |
Source information for the table. If the caption provides complete bibliographic information about the source and the source is not otherwise cited in the text, no entry is needed for the source in the works cited list
a. Any notes about the information presented in the table.
If you refer to information from an image, chart, table or graph, but do not insert it in your essay or presentation, create a citation both in-text and on your Works Cited list.
If the information is part of another format, for example a book, magazine article, encyclopedia, etc., cite the work it came from.
If you are only making a passing reference to a well known image, you would not have to cite it, e.g. describing someone as having a Mona Lisa smile.