GSA Today
Figures, Photos, and Illustrations
For review purposes, you can upload low-resolution figure files or use PDFs. Get started.
Once your paper has been accepted, please send two electronic versions of each figure: one in the program in which it was created and an .eps file.
The following native formats work best: Adobe Illustrator = .ai; Photoshop = .psd. We can also work with Corel Draw = .cdr and Canvas = .cvs files. Figures created in any other application should be saved as .tif or .eps files.
If you create either .tif or .eps files, they must be 300 dpi for photos and 600–800 dpi for figures that include any text or captions. To avoid accidental changes in your figure's text or symbols, please make all text "outline," which changes it from a font to an image. All images that have been placed or imported into your figure file must accompany this file (i.e., if you import a photograph into Illustrator called "photo.tif" you must supply this photo.tif electronic file along with your Illustrator file). Figure labels (A, B, C, etc.) should be upper case with no periods or parentheses.
Some 72 dpi photos are acceptable if they are at least ~3000 × 3200 pixels; please do not send low-resolution .jpg images [less than 1,000 x 1,000 pixels or fewer]). A simple way to tell if your figure can be used in print is to view it at 200% zoom; if it looks pixelated, blurry, or the text becomes difficult to read, it's not high enough in resolution.
There is no charge for color figures. If possible, please send your color for your figures as CMYK (not RGB). Print uses four colors of ink (cyan, magenta, yellow and black), whereas the Web uses just red, green, and blue. It's also a good idea to create your figures with color vision deficiency in mind.
Cover: If your article is accepted, please send a color photograph or illustration for the issue's cover. Resolution: ~3000 × 3200 pixels, preferably 300 dots per inch (dpi) to 600 dpi at full size. The image should be representative of your topic or study area but should not be a figure already used in the article.
To learn more, please download the GSA publications figure guidelines (PDF). The International Society for Managing and Technical Editors (ISMTE) also has some great information and examples on their website (PDF).