How do I contribute digital materials?

Digital Camera Images

Members can submit high-resolution photographs taken by a quality digital camera. To ensure the best quality images, consider these guidelines:

  • If possible, use at least a 4 megapixel digital camera
  • Images should be taken at the largest size and best quality setting the camera is able to produce
  • Images MUST be at least 700 pixels on the longest side to be used
  • Very good quality can be obtained in high-resolution JPEG files.
  • We prefer you send the unedited, least compressed jpeg file available. Experienced personnel are on hand to edit your image
  • JPEG uses a compression scheme that degrades the image each time it is saved. It is important you do everything possible to avoid repeatedly saving the file before submission. If you do edit, crop or enhance the JPEG before submitting, be sure to save the image at the highest quality possible and try to do all edits at one time to avoid repeatedly saving the file
  • Retain a copy of the original file from the digital camera in case you need to start the editing process over again

Quantity

Photographers are allowed to submit as many images as like. However, we ask that photographers limit their digital image submission to 10,000. We suggest starting with a small set to learn the process before submitting large quanitities.

Bugwood Image System is supported through grants that provide the resources to operate and expand. Each project has specific objectives that must be addressed, but these projects are highly inter-related and support our overall Center objectives. We believe that it is critical that we have images of as many components of pertinent ecosystems and practices as possible and are happy to include a wide array of images into Bugwood Image Systems. However, we sometimes must prioritize the processing of images to place those that address the objectives of the funded projects first, and images that are not included in those priority areas may take longer to process due to time and resource constraints. Also, large quantities of images take longer to process and therefore they may be delayed in processing.

How to label Digital Camera Images and other Electronic Content

There are several ways members can identify their digital camera images:

  • Identify each image with a unique identifiable number or text-string and send us a written or electronic file (such as Word, Excel, etc) that cross-links to the identified image and provides the descriptive information. We have a downloadable data entry form that we recommed. Entering filenames can be done by hand or we have instructions on how to import these names into Excel using DOS commands. Many image management programs also have the ability to generate a file list that can be imported into Excel.
  • Rename the image file or folder before submitting online with uploader
  • Use online data entry forms after officially posted online
  • Store in EXIF or IPCT

Uploading Digital content

Before you can use the image uploader, you must allow your browser to install the upload plugin. If it is already downloaded continue to Step 1. If it is NOT installed, Internet Explorer will ask to install an ActiveX control. All other browsers will ask you to either install Java or to allow a Java Applet to run.

Typical messages seen when installing the uploader

  • In Internet Explorer Right click the yellow tab at the top of the screen (see example below)

  • Message seen in other browsers (Firefox) telling you that Java is needed

  • Message seen in other browsers (Opera) asking to install a Java Applet

Using the uploader

There are 3 basic windows on the upload page.

  • Your computers folders: A tree with all of the drives and folders that are available on your computer
  • Folder Contents: This window shows the contenct of any folder that is selected on the left
  • Drop Box:This window shows all files that have been added to your batch for upload
  • Fill in the form at the top of the page to let us know about the upload.
  • Using your computer files icons on the left, go to the file that contains the images you want to upload. The images will appear in the folder contents screen.
  • Click on the images you want to upload. You can do this by either clicking Select All or by holding down the Control key and clicking on the images. You can deselect all the images by clicking the Deselect All button
  • Images must be added be added to the drop box. To do this, simply click the Add button with and green down arrow. To remove images from this box, simply click on that image then click the Remove button with the red up arrow. All images in the drop box will be uploaded.
    • To remove all images from this box, click the Remove All button with the two red up arrows.
    • To add all images to this box, click the Add All button with the two green down arrows.
  • After all your images have been added to the drop box, click Send and your images will be uploaded.
  • To upload more images, simply click the Upload More Images button and it will take you back to the Upload Images page. For each upload, you will receive an email to let you know it arrived. This e-mail provides instructions for the next steps in the process.

What Happens Next

After the images are uploaded, they are then judged for quality by Bugwood staff. Most images submitted are approved, but images can be rejected if they are blurry/out of focus, duplicate images, poorly composed, lack of photographer's permission, etc. Once they have all been judged, you will receive an email with the results. Accepted images will be added to the Review Images page where you can add information to the images. Information provided by you, either through adding information to images through the Review Images page or uploading a spreadsheet, will be used by staff to classify and describe the images. If staff has questions about images, they wil contact you by email or they will make comments on the photo and mark those as Needing Information. When all images from the batch are no longer New (either now classified as Awaiting Public Release or Needing Information), you will receive an email that the images are ready for review and it will instructions and links on how to do so. The purpose of the review is to allow the photographer or contact for the images to approve the data associated with the images, or provide additional information, to ensure they are being represented properly. Once you release the images, they are publicly available, can be searched for in the image database, and are available for user request.

Who do I contact?

Please contact us if you have any questions. or if you plan to send something. It helps us to know that we should expect to see something arriving and gives us a way to let you know it arrived.

Thanks

Joe LaForest
The Center for Invasive Species and Ecosystem Health
The University of Georgia

Mail to:
2360 Rainwater Road
Tifton, GA 31793-5766 USA

Ship to:
4601 Research Way CPES
113 Administration Building
Tifton, Georgia 31793 USA

Phone: (229)386-3298
Fax: (229)386-3352
E-mail: bugwood@uga.edu
www.bugwood.org

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