PLAY IT SAFE

It's always scary at first to send out your precious, one-of-a-kind, original slides to a magazine or newspaper. Will they get lost in the mail? Will the photobuyer misplace them? Will the night cleaner toss them into the garbage?

Rarely, if at all, will you experience any of those events in your career. However, to ease your mind you can take four safeguards: 1.) Send your photos by registered or certified mail. 2.) Include a self-addressed, stamped postcard for the editor to return to you upon receipt of the slides. On it, note the subject matter and number of B&W's or slides enclosed, and leave space for the date of receipt of the submission and the photobuyer's name. 3.) Never send unsolicited original slides to an unknown photo editor. If a buyer hasn't requested the photos, they don't want the responsibility of safeguarding your originals. 4.) Even when responding to requests, save yourself and photobuyers the worry by sending duplicate slides or photocopies in cases of special or particularly valuable images.

NOTE: Duplicate slides that depict scenics, wildlife, etc. are usually acceptable by newspaper travel editors. If your images depict people, photobuyers (especially book and magazine editors) will request original color slides.