Uploading Images

Your images are what a jury sees, so this step matters more than any other field on the form. This guide covers what the uploader accepts, what happens to an iPhone photo, how many images you can add, and what to do when an upload fails.

What the uploader accepts

The upload box on the Works & Details step prints its own rules: JPG, JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC, HEIF up to 50 MB each. That size limit is the same on every call and every plan.

TIFF, BMP, PSD, RAW, SVG and PDF are not artwork formats here. Convert those to JPG or PNG before uploading.

How many images

The number of images per submission is set by the organization running the call, so it varies. The upload box tells you how many you can still add, and reminds you that the first image is your primary one. Once you reach the limit, the box stops accepting more.

Uploading

Drag files onto the box, or click it to choose them. You can select several at once. The box changes to Drop your images here while you drag, and to Your images are on their way while they upload. You can add more once the first batch finishes.

The preview shows the whole image, letterboxed inside a square tile rather than cropped to it, so what you see is what the jury will see. Drag the thumbnails to reorder them, or use the arrow buttons. The first image is your primary image, and Set primary promotes any other one.

Uploading a full set of images in one go does not trip a limit. If the platform does ever ask you to slow down, the uploader waits and retries on its own.

Photos from an iPhone

iPhone photos are usually HEIC, and most browsers cannot display that format. Upload them anyway. Crafted Call converts each one after it arrives, and a panel headed HEIC Image Processing shows each file moving through Uploading..., then Converting image..., then Conversion complete. If one fails, a Retry button appears beside it.

You do not need to convert anything yourself before uploading.

Alt text

Every artwork image gets a short screen-reader description generated for it, so visitors using a screen reader can tell what the picture shows. You are not asked to write it. Organizations that have turned this on can review and edit the wording afterwards, and it travels with the gallery's exports.

When an upload does not work

The file is too large. It is over 50 MB. Export again at a smaller size, or reduce the quality slightly. Anything between 2,000 and 3,000 pixels on the long edge is plenty.

The format is not supported. Convert to JPG, PNG or WebP. Preview on a Mac and most photo apps on Windows will do this.

The upload stopped partway. Your connection dropped. Wait a moment and add the file again.

The image looks soft. It was too small to begin with. Re-upload from the original rather than from a version that has already been resized or posted to social media.

The status line says your session expired. Sign in again in the new tab it offers, then retry. Nothing you have typed is lost.

Getting the picture right

Good photography does more for a submission than any file setting. See Photographing your artwork for lighting, color accuracy and framing.

A few things worth doing before you upload:

Export in sRGB. It is what browsers and screens expect.
Aim for at least 1,200 pixels on the long edge, and 2,000 to 3,000 for work a gallery may print.
Name files so you can recognize them later, for example Lastname_Title_Year.jpg.
Include a detail shot if the surface, texture or scale of the work does not read in a single full view.
Do not add watermarks or borders unless the call asks for them.