We welcome any contributions Awesome images are always needed We can scan and put on file for future We always credit the photographer We send contributors a copy of The Mag Additional copies available on request

FRONT COVER IMAGES - Stunning shots with impact -	GREAT PHOTOS – Always –	GOOD ARTICLES - See our Guidelines -

If you jump in the UK and want to make sure we include your news, contact your club rep, they are the link between each UK club and The Mag. If you are a current skydiver with some good stuff for club news, contact them at your drop zone. If you have never jumped but would like to, contact your local centre directly click here

	Only the best: tDo send us your most stunning shots
	Label photos: With a sticky label on the back, show photographer, date, place, caption.
	Include names: From left to right, please spell correctly.
	Negatives: Please don't send these.
	Front covers: We need transparencies or A4 prints, vertical images only. We look for absolute clarity, bright colours, happy faces and an image which has a message.
	Digital cameras: Use the highest possible resolution setting when taking photos. Buy the best you can afford. Email a couple of sample images from the highest couple of settings to editor@skydivemag.com and we will let you know what size we could use them and what format we would recommend with your particular set-up.
	Digital images: (eg, jpeg) Email to editor@skydivemag.com Not more than 3MB in total please! Any more than this, telephone or email us first.
	Digital images: If possible, send us the originals We prefer you to send us the original print or slide rather than sending your own scanned image. We will use different settings to optimise the result for glossy magazine printing. Only send digital images if they were taken on a digital camera.
	Digital images: Do not enhance Send the RAW image. Making the image look better on screen will probably make it look worse in print, the two media require different settings. Trust us to get the most out of your original.
	Digital images: Any questions? Email a sample jpeg to editor@skydivemag.com and we will let you know what size we could use that sort of image
	CD: If you want to send a CD, email us first to find out what settings we prefer. Or see below for photo CD guidelines

Photoguidelines as a Word rtf file (20k) Photo CD guidelines as a Word rtf file (26k) We will always return your photos with a magazine and we will credit the photographer. Thanks for your trouble!

	Save the image as a tiff.
	Use a CMYK (Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black) setting if you have one, not RGB (Red, Green, Blue) - although this is not vital, we can convert.
	Please burn the RAW image, ie, as scanned. The worst thing for us is when photographers play with their images in Photoshop, Paintshop Pro or similar. Adjusting levels to look good on screen can cause horrendous colours or marks when printing with the process that we use. Understand that there is a huge difference between the RGB screen image and the CMYK print image.
	It makes sense to only send your top shots! Filter out the average and below average.
	If possible, include a low resolution ( 72 dpi, jpg) version of each image too - which is easy to slide show or flick through.
	Include as much information as you can about the images: who, when, where, why, include dates and people’s names, spelt properly and ordered from left to right, if possible.

Guidelines for contributors to the Mag

If you would like to write something for Skydive Mag, please try to follow these guidelines which will help to make sure your efforts will be rewarded by seeing your piece in print. Remember that the remit of the Mag is to inform, educate and entertain, so your article should achieve one of these aims.

1. Telephone first. This will make sure you are not duplicating other material

2. Stick to copy deadlines. If the article arrives too late and we have not allowed space for it, the piece may be too old for the next issue.

3. Plan a purpose. Is it educational, informative, a review, a report, a discussion? Adjust your approach accordingly.

4. Be informative. Include facts - dates, names, places, aircraft, jump numbers, team names, team members, scores, organisers, new techniques, new equipment. Answer the questions - Who, Why, What, Where, When, How?

5. Be Brief. Remember that the subject is more interesting to you than the reader. Don't waffle! We will ruthlessly delete unnecessary flannel. Word count - approx 600 per page. A good article length is 1200 words, anything over 1800 is probably way too long.

6. Avoid 'in' jokes and thank-yous. Once you start thanking people, you have to thank everyone and it becomes boring. The best thanks most of these people can have is to see their DZ, equipment or event written up in the Mag.

7. Break it up! Use sub-headings. Write an introductory paragraph or sentence. Include snippets of information, quotes, fact-files, boxes, scoresheets, examples. Anything which will break up the text. This is probably the most important thing to work at, as it turns your article from an essay into a magazine piece.

8. Suggest illustrations, photos, pictures. Send photos with the article or suggest where we could get some. Sketch out illustrations roughly and send your contribution early if drawings are required.

9. Do it NOW! Especially if it is a write-up of an event. We do not publish out of date material.

10. Send in on disc or email. If emailing, include two copies, one as an attached file and also cut and paste the text into the body of the email. If sending a disc, save two copies of the file, one in the format it was created in (eg, Word 7 is ideal) and one as a text file (txt), rich text file (rtf) or ASCII file. Send a printed copy too, double line spaced is nice.

Send contributions to:

Editor
The Mag
Station Road
Ailsworth
PE5 7AH
United Kingdom

Tel/fax : +44 (0) 1733 380 568

E-mail : editor@skydivemag.com