Proper naming of email competition photos

By Rex Dolby

I asked Wassenberg Camera Club President Chris Wilson why it is so important to rename pictures emailed for competition in the following manner: Theme/Category.Name/Title of the picture. photographer’s name.jpg. It seemed to me that as long as the information was supplied, sequence was not important.

He responded promptly with the following answer: “One, it’s consistent with any other camera club guidelines I have looked at: meaning if you ever want to submit a digital image elsewhere, standard naming practices apply. Two, using the “dot” (period) makes it easier to read the file name. Three, the Wassenberg Art Center requires this format so the website software can read the code to display the photo properly.”

Some readers may decide to use this sequence, but are not sure how to do it. Once your pictures are in the computer, you will notice each one starts with a series of letters, then numbers, then jpg. The series of letters will vary with the make of the camera, the numbers give the order in which the pictures were taken, and jpg is short for jpeg, which means Joint Photographic Experts Group. JPEG is a format that all computers understand and must be part of the name in order for most computers to open the picture.

To give the picture its correct name, right click on the picture.  This will produce a menu.  Left click on the word “Rename,” probably near the bottom of the list.  You will notice that the original name for the picture is highlighted.  Type the sequence listed at the top of the article. That’s all it takes.

However, resizing pictures to be sent by Email is also important. We’ll cover that topic on a later date.

For information about the Wassenberg Camera Club, contact the Art Center. The Wassenberg Art Center is located at 214 S. Washington St. (former Van Wert Armory). For information, call 419.238.6837, e-mail info@wassenbergartcenter.org, or visit the website at wassenbergartcenter.org.  Hours during exhibits are Tuesday through Sunday, 1-5 p.m.