How to Submit Photos to a Magazine, Step by Step

A magazine publication is the strongest line a creative CV can hold: a printed page, an issue number, your name in the credits, and official tear sheets that agencies and visa officers recognise. The five magazines on Artells Media take submissions all month, the editors answer within 7 days, and publication on the inside pages costs nothing.

The form itself takes about ten minutes. Preparing the series takes a little longer, so let's start there.

Before you start: prepare the series

One story, 2 to 16 photos from the same shoot: same idea, same styling, same light. Magazines print stories, and a folder of greatest hits rarely gets past the first look. Our editors' guide to getting published goes deeper.
Print-size files. JPG in sRGB, at least 2200 px on the long side. Ideally 2550×3300 px for portrait or 5100×3300 px for landscape, up to 40 MB each. The form refuses web-size copies, because a magazine can't print them anyway.
Credits and rights. Names and Instagram handles of everyone on the team, and model releases from anyone recognisable.

Step 1. Choose your magazine

Five magazines, five characters (1). The banner counts down to the next issue (2).

Open Magazines in the top menu. Five titles, five characters (1). The banner (2) counts down the days left to make the next issue: a series sent this month is planned for next month's issue.

Step 2. Open the magazine and press Submit

Submit your series (1) opens the form. Further down, the genres the editors collect (2).

Open the magazine whose character suits your series. Submit your series (1) opens the form. Further down the page you'll find its genres (2), from portrait and beauty to street and fine art, along with the paid options and their prices. In our example a street series goes to Quadro, the magazine of form and geometry.

Step 3. The form at a glance

The deadline for the next issue (1), the key facts (2) and the six steps of the form (3).

The top of the form repeats the deadline (1) and the key facts (2): when the editors decide, which month the issue comes out, when the tear sheets arrive, and that exclusivity isn't required. The list on the left (3) shows the six steps of the form. A step you've completed gets a green tick, and a tap on any step takes you there. On a phone the list sits above the form.

Step 4. Your photos

Drop the files into the box (1). Each photo gets a number (2), and you can drag them into a new order.

Drop 2 to 16 photos into the box (1) or click it to choose them. Each one gets a number (2): that's the order the editors see, and the numbers on the files they download. Drag a photo to change the order. If a photo is too small for print, it gets a red “Too small” label; swap it for the full-size original before sending. iPhone HEIC photos are turned into JPG for you.

Step 5. The series: genre, title and description

The genre (1), the title the magazine prints (2) and a few lines for the editors (3).

Genre (1). Pick the one that fits the series.
Title of the series (2). This is the title the magazine prints, so give it some thought.
About the series (3). For the editors only, it isn't printed. Concept, location, anything they should know; wardrobe and brand credits if you like. Three honest sentences work better than a press release.

Step 6. Credits, and who is on which photo

Your credit (1), your email and phone (2), a team member with their role (3), the photos they're on (4), and Add a person (5).

Your credit (1) comes first, filled in from your profile: your role, your name as it will be printed, your Instagram. Below it (2) your email and, if you like, a phone with Telegram: they're only for the editors, who can reach you there about this series.

Then add everyone else on the team (3): pick the role from the list (model, makeup artist, hair stylist, stylist, retoucher and more, or type your own), add the name and Instagram. The email is optional: we use it once, to send that person a link to claim their credit when the series is published.

The numbers under each person (4) say which photos they're on. All is the default. Two models in one series? Tap the photos each one appears in. The editors get the same numbers in the download, so every credit lands under the right picture. Add a person (5) adds another line.

Step 7. A story for the Community (optional)

Write the story here (1). Leave the title empty (2) to skip it.

Want to tell the story behind the series: the idea, the process, the backstage disaster that turned into the best frame? Write it here (1). After a quick editorial check it can run in the Community under your name, with the photos the editors choose, and a published story adds +50 to your Creator Score. It isn't printed in the magazine. Leave the title (2) empty to skip.

Step 8. Publication type

The free submission on the inside pages (1) and the optional paid options (2).

The first option (1) is the standard submission: inside pages, selected by the editors, at no cost. Most series go in this way. Below it are the optional extras (2): Priority Review for a decision within 24 hours, Instagram placements, a webitorial, an interview, a cover. Each card shows the price, what's included and the refund terms. Extras change reach and speed. The editors' yes still depends on the work, and Creator Score points come from the publication itself, never from a payment. A promo code goes in the field under the options.

Step 9. Confirm and send

One tap on how you found us (1), the agreements (2) and Submit series (3).

Tell us how you found us (1), one tap. Tick the publication agreement, the submission rules and the privacy policy (2); the Telegram and digest boxes are optional. Then press Submit series (3). The photos upload together with the form, and if the connection drops, the form keeps everything you typed.

What happens next: the review queue

Your series in My magazine submissions with its status (1). + New submission (2) starts the next one.

Your series now appears in My account, under My magazine submissions, with a status (1). It moves through these stages:

Submitted, awaiting review. The series is in the editors' queue.
In review. An editor has opened it.
Accepted or Declined, within 7 days. With Priority Review, within 24 hours.
Scheduled for the issue. The series has an issue number and a month.
Published. The issue is out, and you get a letter with a link to order a printed or digital copy.
Tear sheets sent. About 30 days after release your official pages arrive on the series page.

You get an email each time the status changes. Each magazine accepts one series per author per month (two with PRO) and takes up to three submissions a month (six with PRO); a decline counts as one of them. Until the publication month begins, you can withdraw a submission yourself from its page.

The series page: status (1), publication month (2) and, once you're published, Share to the Open Feed (3).

Click a series to open its page. You see the status (1), the publication month (2) and your photos. Once the series is published, Share to the Open Feed (3) shows it to the community with a “Published in …” caption, and the publication adds +200 to your Creator Score.

Talk to the editors

Every series has its own chat with the magazine's editors (1), only about that series (2). Their replies also arrive by email, and you answer in the box below (3).

Every series has its own chat, named after the magazine, for example Chat with the Marika editors (1). The line under it (2) reminds you that this chat is only about this series; for anything else, use Messages. The editors write here when they need full-size originals, one more vertical frame, or an answer about the extras you picked. Their messages also arrive by email, and you reply in the box below (3).

The chat sits at the bottom of the series page. To jump there, click Chat with the editors at the top, next to the publication month. The number in brackets shows how many messages it holds.

If the answer is a decline, read it as “this series, this issue”. Shoot the next story with the magazine in mind and send it in. The authors the editors publish most often are usually the ones who came back.

Frequently asked questions

Does submitting a series cost anything? No. Publication on the inside pages is free in all five magazines and selected purely on the work. Paid extras like Priority Review or a cover are optional, never required.

How many series can I submit in a month? Up to three tries per magazine (six with PRO), with one accepted series per magazine a month (two with PRO). A decline counts toward the three tries.

Can I withdraw a submission after sending it? Yes, from the series page, any time before the publication month begins.

How long after publication do tear sheets arrive? About 30 days after the issue is released. They land on the page of your series, ready to download.

What next

Every publication, selection and Awards place adds to one number on your profile. Here is how it works and how to grow it: What the Creator Score is and how to raise it.