Digital photo shooter's guide.

At Field Artillery, we prefer high-resolution digital photographs. Submissions should be no smaller than 2 megapixels, which is approximately 4-by-6 inches at 300 pixels per inch (ppi) or 16-by-24 inches at 75 ppi. For cover and feature photos, we prefer 6 megapixels or more, which is approximately 6.5-by-10 inches at 300 ppi or 26-by-40 inches at 75 ppi. Depending on the compression ratio when the photo is saved, the closed file size of the photo will be 150 kilobytes (KB) or more. To find out the closed file size, right click on the photo file thumbnail, scroll to the bottom of the menu and select "Properties."

When shooting digital photos for publication, there are some technical steps you should follow.

1. Shoot the picture at the highest resolution possible. When taking a photo, set your digital camera on the largest image size and the highest quality resolution the camera will allow. The highest resolution settings usually are called "High," "Super Fine" or "Ultra-High." Cameras set at "Standard" or "Basic" quality can sometimes produce images only good enough for websites or PowerPoint presentations, not publication in the magazine. Just because a photo looks good on your computer screen does not mean it is printable in the magazine.

You will be able to take fewer photos with your camera on the highest setting, but those you take most likely will be usable in the magazine. The cost of photo storage cards, or memory cards, as drastically decreased in the past few years, so invest in a larger storage card that will allow you to take more photos at the higher quality settings.

We prefer files saved as a JPEG. When saving a file as a JPEG, choose a "Quality" setting of "Maximum" or "10" and the "Format Option" of "Baseline (Standard)."

One piece of shooter's advice is to get close to the subject--the closer, the better. Even if you shoot the photo on a high-resolution setting, if the subject doesn't fill the frame, by the time we crop the photo, we may not be able to use it.

2. Do not manipulate the photo. Do not crop, resize or try to edit the image in any way. This includes adjusting the brightness and contrast.

We know what settings work best according to the specifications of our printer. We also have the latest professional digital image manipulation software. Let us take care of that.

And, please, don't try to "beef up" the resolution of the small, low-resolution photo you've shot. Shooting a one megapixel image and increasing the ppi after you've shot it will not make the image clearer or more usable--it only will make the image larger. You are bound by the resolution setting at the time the photo is taken.

Important: Do not place the photos in Microsoft PowerPoint or Word and send them to us. They are unusable in those formats.

3. Send us the digital photo. By following the first two steps, you may have a large file for each photo.

Our magazine's email will accept up to 20 megabytes (MBs) per message. Do not try to send us larger files via email. You can send us several photos by breaking them up into multiple emails. Be sure to include caption information (who's doing what, when and where) for each photo attached and the title/name of the associated article/author. Also include the photographer's full name, rank and unit for credit in the magazine and information to contact the photographer, if possible. This information can be embedded in the photo properties or sent as a separate text document. To embed information in the photo properties: right click on the photo's icon; scroll down and select "Properties"; click on the "Summary" tab; type in the information; click "Apply" and close the properties window.

A file transfer protocol (FTP) site is available at Fort Sill for uploading photos. No special software is required to upload your images. Simply send us an email requesting instructions for uploading your photos on our FTP site.

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You also can mail your photos. We accept photos saved on either a Zip disk or CD.

All submissions become the property of the magazine and cannot be returned.

If you have questions about shooting digital photos, call the Art Director at DSN 639-5121/6806 or Commercial [phone]/6806. Our email is [e-mail]. Our mailing address is Field Artillery, P.O. Box 33311, Fort Sill, Oklahoma 73503-0311. If you want to over-night your photos to us, the address is Building 758, Room 7, McNair Road, Fort Sill, Oklahoma 73503-5600.

We know the majority of our digital shooters are not professional photographers. You are authors/photographers who are Soldiers and Marines--even better, mostly Field Artillerymen--telling the story of the best branch and best Army and Marine Corps in the world.

Help us do justice to your articles by following these instructions for taking digital photos. Good Shooting!