Handbook

Image Submission Protocol

Images should be uploaded to BOLD to complete a specimen record. Specimen images are critical in the validation process. Before uploading images, specimen data records must first be uploaded to a BOLD project - please view the Specimen Data Submission Protocol for details. The ability to upload images is available to project managers and project users with editing specimen access.

In this section: Submitting Images to BOLD and Field Definitions for Excel Spreadsheet Example of Image Spreadsheet Tips and Troubleshooting for Image Uploads Photography Guide

Submission of Images to BOLD

1. Collect Images
   • Group high-quality specimen images in .jpg format into a folder. BOLD accepts high resolution images of up to 20 megapixels, but only displays a greatly reduced thumbnail. The high resolution image is archived but will not be distributed without the submitter’s explicit consent. Please refer to the Photography Guide for details on picture orientation and quality.
2. Assemble Excel File for Image Submission
   • BOLD provides a template for image submissions below. This spreadsheet associates the image files with the records on BOLD as well as uploads additional data such as captions, measurements, licensing, and attribution. All the images must be accounted for in the spreadsheet to be uploaded. Additional images that are not referenced in the Excel file will be ignored. A maximum of 10 images may be uploaded per specimen. The submission spreadsheet must be named ImageData.xls and contain the columns described below. See Tips and Troubleshooting for details on how to retrieve BOLD Process IDs and Image File names.
   • The minimum data required for each image submitted to BOLD are:
     • Image File name
     • Original Specimen
     • View Metadata
     • Sample ID
     • License
     • License Year
     • License Holder Institution
     • License Contact Details
3. Zip Package of Images and Excel File
   • The two components (image files and spreadsheet) need to be placed in a single folder. Select all the images and the spreadsheet and compress them all into a single zipped file before submitting. The free tools listed below are available to provide this functionality, however most modern operating systems have built-in functionality for zipping:
     • WinZip: http://www.winzip.com
     • WinRar: http://www.rarsoft.com
     • MacZipIt: http://www.maczipit.com
   • BOLD will accept a maximum zipped file size of 190 MB. Please confirm the file size before moving to the submission step. If the file is too large break it into more than one upload, each with its own spreadsheet.
4. Submit file to BOLD
   1. Login to BOLD and click on Images in the Data Uploads section of the User Console .
   2. In the form, select the Zip file to submit, users can include a brief description if desired.
   3. Click on Submit. Do not close the pop-up window until the successful upload message is displayed. The images will be immediately uploaded to the records and available to view.

ImageData.xls
Please click here to download the BOLD image submission template

Field definitions for ImageData spreadsheet. (*Required Fields)

Image File*	Complete name, including extension, and identical to the image file. See Tips and Troubleshooting below for details on how to retrieve Image File names directly from a folder.
Original Specimen*	Enter yes if the image shows the actual specimen for this record. Enter no for a photograph of representative specimen of the same species, photograph of the collection site, etc.
View Metadata*	Standardized term to group images depicting a specific set of features of the organisms or related environment. Such as: Dorsal, Ventral, Lateral, etc.
Caption	Free text description of the subject with a max of 400 characters. Short descriptions are recommended, such as: part of organism photographed, life stage, sex, etc.
Measurement	Any single relevant measurement that was taken in metric units.
Measurement Type	Item or feature that was measured.
Sample ID*	Sample ID for record, must match Sample ID on BOLD.
Process ID	Process ID for record, must match Process ID on BOLD.
License Holder	The primary individual holder of the license. This is less critical when using creative commons licenses. (64 Characters)
License*	License for use of the image. Pick one of the following types (short-forms are accepted): Copyright (c) No Rights Reserved (nrr) CreativeCommons – Attribution (by) CreativeCommons – Attribution Share-Alike (by-sa) CreativeCommons – Attribution No Derivatives (by-nd) CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial (by-nc) CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike (by-nc-sa) CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives (by-nc-nd)
License Year*	The year of license declaration (not the year of submission to BOLD). (4 Characters)
License Holder Institution*	The primary license holder’s institutional or organizational affiliation. Decisions regarding use of material fall to the institution when the individual is unreachable or unresponsive. (300 Characters)
License Contact*	Contact information for the license holder. Can be an email address, mailing address, phone number, or all of the above. (128 Characters)
Photographer	The individual or team responsible for photographing and editing the media prior to submission. (128 Characters)

Example Image Submission Spreadsheet:

Image Submission Spreadsheet (ImageData.xls) completed with sample data.

Image File	Original Specimen	View Metadata	Caption	Measurement	Measurement Type	Sample ID	Process ID	...
ROM912-D.jpg	yes	Dorsal skull		15 mm	Skull length	ROM 10912	BM272-03
ROM912-L.jpg	yes	Lateral lower jaw		7 mm	jaw length	ROM 10912	BM273-03
ROM913-L2.jpg	yes	Lateral skull		15 mm	Skull length	ROM 10913	BM274-03
ROMsiteA4-CS.jpg	no	Collection Site	Tide Pool Habitat			ROM 10913	BM274-03
ROM919-D2.jpg	no	Dorsal	representative Specimen	17 mm	Skull length	ROM 10914	BM275-03

.....	License Holder	License	License Year	License Institution	License Contact	Photographer
	Joe Smith	CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike	2010	Biodiversity Institute of Ontario	photo@bio.org	Joe Smith
	Sarah Johnson	CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike	2010	Biodiversity Institute of Ontario	photo@bio.org	Sarah Johnson
		CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike	2010	Biodiversity Institute of Ontario	photo@bio.org	BIO Photo Group
		CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike	2010	Biodiversity Institute of Ontario	photo@bio.org	BIO Photo Group
		CreativeCommons – Attribution Non-Commercial Share-Alike	2010	Biodiversity Institute of Ontario	photo@bio.org	BIO Photo Group

Image Submission - Tips and Troubleshooting

This section describes the most commonly encountered image upload problems.

• Zipped file must be under 190MB in size. If the upload fails to initialize, the zipped file may be too large. Break it into more than one upload, each with its own spreadsheet.
• Zipped file should not contain any sub folders - select the images and spreadsheet to zip, not the folder that contains them.
• The spreadsheet cannot contain any formulas.
• If the upload program cannot find the image files, it is possible that it cannot read the names. Make sure that the spreadsheet contains text values only.
• Full filenames must be used in excel sheet. The extension (.jpg) must be included in the image file name. The file extension is case sensitive (i.e., .JPG images will not be found in the zipped package if they are listed as .jpg in the spreadsheet).
• The spreadsheet must be named ImageData.xls. If the upload program cannot find the spreadsheet, confirm that it is named correctly (case sensitive).
• Verify the length of characters used in the free text fields and make adjustments if necessary.
• Data must start on the second line of the spreadsheet. There is only one line for the column headers.
• Adding extra columns to the sheet will cause errors.
• Image names cannot contain the characters "&" or "-". Please rename the images so that they do not have these characters.
• Images can not be uploaded to BOLD until the specimen data is uploaded.
• Only project managers and users with editing specimen access may upload images. If the user does not have permission to upload images, they must contact the project manager.

Users can upload more images in separate batches to any record at any time. To delete images for a record, please contact the BOLD Support Team through support@boldsystems.org. Notes that all images associated to a record will be deleted upon a request.

Photography Guide

This guide has been developed with assistance from the Canadian Centre for DNA Barcoding in an effort to provide best practices for taking voucher photographs. The BOLD database can accept up to ten images per specimen, so besides photos of a mounted or live organism, users can photograph and submit photos of distinguishing features or habitat.

To provide the best specimen image for viewing on the web, the following guidelines should be adhered:

• Please take pictures using the high quality mode on the camera, BOLD can accept photos up to 20MP.
• The specimen should be centered in the frame.
• Photos should be taken as close-up to the specimen as possible, leaving very little gap around the edges.
• It is often beneficial to include a measurement scale in the image to provide a size reference, or a colour scale to provide colour reference.
• Background should be a contrasting colour where possible
• Standardizing the aspect ratio during specimen photography will make images easier to compare
• Standardizing the position/orientation of each specimen will make it much easier to compare specimens across a project or BOLD. See below for common standardized orientations for animals, plants, and fungi.

Dorsal Oriented Images

• The anterior of the specimen should be facing the top of the image frame.
• The specimen should be face-down, with the dorsal aspect of the head visible

Lateral Oriented Images

• The anterior of the specimen should be facing the left side of the image frame.
• The specimen should be oriented with the feet towards the bottom of the image.

Ventral Oriented Images

• The anterior of the specimen should be facing the top of the image frame.
• The specimen should be face-up, with the ventral aspect of the head visible.

Herbarium Specimen Images

• The full sheet should be included in the frame
• The sheet should be oriented so that text is legible in photo

"Close Up" Images: Leaf, Fruit, Branch, Flower, Buds, Bark, Seeds, etc

• These are often live photographs with focus on distinguishing characteristics
• For plants, these may include opened fruit, adaxial veins, and male and female components.
• Macro focus is recommended, if available.

"Full Specimen" Images: Plant, Tree, In situ, etc

• These are often live photographs of the organism in its natural location.
• The specimen should be centered in the frame and provide information such as shape of plant, etc.
• If shooting outside, ideal environment has no wind and is slightly overcast (to avoid overexposure).

When entering a new orientation, capitalize only the first letter and do not add any words (e.g.: "view") to the end. If the specimen does not fit into any of these categories below, users may create a new category of view.

Larva Eggs Branch Flower Leaf Stem Habitat Collection Site Fruit Genitalia Wing Pupal Casing Blind Side Eyed Side Herbarium Specimen

Fruit Branch Flower Leaf Stem Buds Spines Inflorescence Infrutescence Bark Petiole Pollen Stem Roots Seeds Tree

Whole specimen Fruiting body Spores Spore print Microscopic Structures Colonies Stern Cap Gills Universal veil Volva Habitat Collection Site Sketch Illustration In situ

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