Photographer Submission Guidelines

To ensure the most efficient and cost-effective processing of image submissions, the following guidelines should be carefully observed when submitting images to Munson Photographic. We will return submissions packets without comment if they do not closely follow these guidelines.

Each submission must be accompanied by a cover letter stating the exact number of images being submitted. The cover letter should also include your return address, phone number, and email address. Please ensure the submission has sufficient pre-paid postage.
A separate spreadsheet should list the following information about each image in the submission. We prefer Microsoft Excel, but will accept other spreadsheets where a suitable conversion is available. We have an available template Excel spreadsheet that you can complete as part of your submission. Click here to download it.

A unique image number – this can be your unique image ID number, or a number in a simple numeric sequence beginning with the number one.
The copyright owner
The location where the image was taken – being as specific as possible (e.g. “South Tufa, Mono Lake, CA”)
A caption for the image that is 80 characters or less in length. Captions should conform to the caption guidelines listed below
The type of film used (e.g. Fuji Provia). If you are unsure, please indicate if it was professional or consumer film.
A separate “Releases” column should contain “MR” if a signed model release exists for the image, “PR” if a signed property release exists, and “NR” if no release is available. If you have both a Model release and property release, then you can indicate this by placing MRPR in the appropriate cell. Please do not indicate "MR" if a model release does not exist for all recognizable people in an image.
Image Orientation (“H” for horizontal, “V” for vertical)
A separate “Notes” column can be used to provide any additional background or details you wish to convey.

We accept only original transparencies for film images. Transparencies must be mounted in glass-less mounts and submitted in quality clear slide sheets. Do not use tape to hold images in the sheets. Images should be marked with a number corresponding to the number in the submissions spreadsheet to facilitate our data entry for each image – but please do not write directly onto the transparency mount.
We accept only CDs containing TIFF files for digital images. Digital images must be scanned on a high quality scanner (4,000 DPI or better), be cropped to remove any film edges, be carefully scrutinized to remove any dust or scratches, and must be at least 40MB in size. CDs should be submitted in a standard jewel case that is appropriately labeled with your contact information and containing your copyright.
Include a stamped self-addressed envelope suitable for returning your submission materials to you.

Please do not write or place anything on the slide mounts that you submit. Feel free to stamp or otherwise neatly imprint a small copyright on your images, but otherwise the slide mounts should be free of any labels or other markings, especially anything handwritten as this looks unprofessional and will limit the marketability of your images. Also avoid writing or marking on the thin sides of the transparency mount. We will return any images with such markings to you without comment. We place two ½” x 1 ¾” labels (which contain your copyright) over the two wide sides of each 35mm slide mount (or the top and bottom of other-sized transparencies). It is important that these two labels cover anything already present or marked on the slide mount so that our customers see a uniform and professional appearance to the slides.

Captioning Guidelines

Captions should be as complete and detailed as possible in the space allowed (80 characters). In general, captions do not need to describe the location since that is taken from the location information included elsewhere in your submission spreadsheet. The caption should specify the following types of information for those who are considering your image for publication.

Who is in the image and what are they doing?
What am I looking at? – The name of relevant mountains, rivers, buildings, bridges, highways, etc. or an explanation of what is presented in the image.
When was this taken? – Including season, time of day (e.g. sunrise, sunset, dusk), or calendar event (e.g. Fourth of July). Avoid placing a date in the caption.
For wildlife and flora include the scientific or Latin name in parenthesis.
For industries or businesses, indicate the general nature of the enterprise

Sample Captions

First daylight warms a snow-covered barn and corral on a brisk winter morning
A man and his grandson enjoy fishing on the banks of the Snake River at sunset
A service manager listens intently to the concerns of a long-time customer

What we do with your images?

Once we receive your submission we will acknowledge receipt via email. If we have a valid contract we will then review the images and select any images we wish to market to our customers. We will return any images that we do not wish to maintain in our files within two weeks. Your clear slide archival sheets will also be returned at this time. The stamped self-addressed envelope that you supplied will be utilized for this purpose.

Images we decide to market will then be entered into our database. A side benefit of this data entry is generation of two image labels that collectively contain your copyright, our company contact information, the location and caption information that you supplied, and a unique image file number so we can quickly locate this image. We then place these two labels on the wide edges of the transparency mounts (top and bottom of a horizontal slide). This provides a clean and professional presentation of your image to our customers. Images are then placed into clear protective sleeves, mounted into clear archival sheets and placed in our files for safe-keeping until we have the opportunity to present them to a customer.

The image will also be scanned to provide digital versions of the image for our customers to license. Lower resolution versions of the image are also prepared for inclusion on our web site. These allow customers to review and select low resolution images via our online facilities. We will then send high resolution images or transparencies to customers who express an interest in possible publication of related images.

If we do not yet have a contract with you we will review your images for content, composition and quality. If we feel your images are marketable we will then submit a contract for your review. Once we have a signed contract we will process your images as described above. If we do not reach agreement on a contract then we will promptly return all of your images to you in your prepaid SASE.