How to prepare figures for submission

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This page is intended to help authors prepare the highest-quality figures for publication and applies to all manuscript categories (Research, Clinical Medicine, Resource and Technical Advance). For details on preparing figure legends and on data reporting, go to How to prepare your revised manuscript for submission.

 

Figure specifications: brief overview (details and requirements provided below)

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  • Resolution: 600 dpi
  • Maximum width, entire figure: 9–18 cm (3.5–7.1 in.)
  • Maximum height, entire figure: 17.25 cm (6.8 in.)
  • Typeface: 8 pt Helvetica or Arial
  • File type: TIFF (preferred)
  • File format: PowerPoint, high-resolution PDF, EPS, Illustrator 
  • Mode for color images: RGB
 

Example of a high-quality JCI Insight figure

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The figure below is representative of the quality the Journal strives to achieve.

 

 

Presentation of figures in the submitted PDF

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In preparing the PDF, ensure the following:

  • Compressed figure files are included in the manuscript. If a manuscript is invited for resubmission, authors must also submit high-resolution figures prepared according to the instructions below.
  • Figures appear sharp and crisp
  • Each figure starts on a new page
  • Each page is set to portrait orientation
  • Figure legends appear on the same page as the corresponding figures

When preparing a Word or RTF document for a revised submission:

  • Do not include the figures in this document
  • Include all figure legends keyed in as text (not pasted in as objects from another application)
 

Figure preparation

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Note:

  • Do not manipulate your figures: no specific feature within an image may be enhanced, obscured, moved, removed, or introduced 
     
  • If figures do not adhere to Journal guidelines, staff may request revised figures, which could delay the decision on a manuscript

Figure specifications

  • Dimensions
    • Width of complete figure: 9–18 cm (3.5–7.1 in.) when printed (i.e., in a PDF) at the appropriate resolution (see Figure files, below)
    • Figures may appear large enough on a monitor, but this may not correspond to a sufficiently large size for print
       
       
       
    • Maximum height of complete figure along with its legend: ¾ page (17.25 cm, or 6.8 in.). If this size is exceeded, it may be necessary to separate the parts into two or more figures.
    • The original proportions must be maintained when figures are resized; ensure that the height and width by the same percentage; for example: 
       
  • Designations and labels
    • Figure designations
      • Figures are numbered sequentially with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.)
      • Figure parts are labeled with uppercase letters in roman type (A, B, C, etc.) and may contain one or more panels, which do not have designations (no numbers or letters)
      • Lanes within a figure may be designated with Arabic numerals, Roman numerals, or lowercase letters
    • Labels
      • Font: 8 pt Helvetica or Arial; Regular or Roman
      • Use italics only for gene symbols; genus and species nomenclature; or other terms that are normally italicized (P, cis, etc.); but not for emphasis
      • Specify units for all axes
      • Capitalize the initial letter of each label; thereafter, use capitalization only as applicable (e.g., for proper names, acronyms)
     
     
  • Provide a key to any symbols used, in either the figure or the legend

Figure types

  • Graphs
    • Graphs of quantitative data must be presented as:
      • Dot plots, with the average and appropriate error bars indicated; OR
      • Box-and-whisker plots, with values defined in the legend (bounds of the boxes, lines within the boxes, whiskers, and any outlying values)
    • Columns with error bars (dynamite plunger plots) are not permitted 
       
  • Photographic panels
    • Minimum width: 3 cm
    • Inset photos: Borders must be used to clearly distinguish images of stained cells composited from more than one field of view 
  • Blots
    • For information regarding unedited blots, see Required files for submitting a revised manuscript
    • Width: 0.5 cm per lane
    • Spliced-together lanes must be separated by a thin line (black on a gray background, white on a black background), and the legend must note that the lanes were run on the same gel but were noncontiguous
       
  • Elements to avoid (see list following): 
     
    • Drop shadows
    • Gratuitous boxes
    • Bold text
    • Labels embedded in photograph panels
    • Pairing red and green in graphs: Negatively affects legibility for many readers with color blindness
    • Patterns and textures: Use solids instead, so that data points are readable
    • Lettered or numbered subparts within individual figure parts: Each figure panel must be identified by a sequential capital letter
    • Scale bars defined within figures: Definitions may be illegible in the final figure; define in the legend instead
    • Do not call out panels by location (e.g., “Figure 1, left panel”), as figure layout is subject to change
 

Figure files

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Requirements

  • Your figures should look sharp and crisp when viewed at 100% magnification in Photoshop.
  • To ensure high image quality, export images from the program that was originally used to create them.
  • Resolution (all images): 600 pixels per inch (ppi)
    • Reduce file size by cropping out unnecessary white space around the borders of figures
  • File formats
    • TIFF (tagged image file format) is preferred; PowerPoint, high-resolution PDF, EPS, and Illustrator files are acceptable
    • Do not submit JPEG files. Although your figures may be set at the correct resolution, creating or saving files as JPEGs will compress them and decrease their quality. If you have already saved the figure as a low-quality file, use a version created prior to compression.
  • Software settings
    • Flatten all layers in TIFF files
    • Grayscale images: Set these the program’s Grayscale mode. Use of the RGB or CMYK color scheme will unnecessarily increase the size of the file.
    • To reduce file size, use LZW compression in Photoshop when saving figures as TIFF files. Alternatively, ZIP the figures using a freely available software program.
    • Bit depth: 8 bits/channel. 16- or 24-bit figures unnecessarily increase file size.
  • Common file problems
    • Do not enlarge small figures; this causes them to become pixelated or blurry
    • If your figure file is too small to meet our size and ppi requirements, do not simply increase the size or ppi. Use a version created before the size/ppi were adjusted. With the software that was used to generate the original figure, save/export the image in the TIFF format at 600 ppi.

Specific software programs

  • PowerPoint
    • Creating PowerPoint files
      • Before inserting panels into PowerPoint, make sure each is at the appropriate ppi and width
      • Do not resize the images in PowerPoint; this causes them to become pixelated
    • Converting to TIFFs
      • Macintosh: Print to PDF file
      • PC: Save as high-resolution PDF file
      • Open file using Photoshop according to the instructions below
  • Photoshop
    • Changing file size or resolution (ppi)
      • Resampling: Make sure this box is unchecked. This will ensure the pixel
        count remains unchanged; and will lock the link icon to constrain
        the width-to-height ratio so the image dimensions remain proportional.
         
         
  • Converting from PDF to a Photoshop TIFF file
    • Resolution: Set at 600 ppi
    • Mode: Set at RGB for images with color and "Grayscale" for other images
    • Anti-aliasing: Make sure this box is checked
    • Save this new file in TIFF format 
       
       
  • Illustrator
    • Creating Illustrator files
      • Before inserting panels into Illustrator, make sure each panel is at the appropriate ppi and width
      • Do not resize the images in Illustrator; this causes them to become pixelated
    • Converting to TIFFs
      • Save file in EPS format
      • Open file in Photoshop (see instructions above)
 

Revision history

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