How to Submit an Article or Photograph

Thanks for thinking about submitting an article for the web site! We need all the stories and photos we can get!

There are two easy ways to submit an article or photo:

• You can click the "Submit an article" link on the user menu (you must be logged-in) or. . .
• You can e-mail your article or content to the webmaster at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
  

Choose whichever method works best for you. Articles usually work best if they include a photograph or two. Many times photographers will want to submit a photo to "This week at St. Stephen's" and will want to e-mail only the photo - that's fine. Please remember to include a caption or description for your photo!

If you click on "submit an article" you can cut & paste from most word processors like Microsoft Word. At the very bottom of the edit screen is also an icon to use to upload and submit photos. The article won't appear right away; it will be checked, edited if needed, and then published on the web site a day or two later.

All articles submitted become the property of St. Stephen's UMC and may be altered as needed for practical considerations or for content.

What to include with your article

Don't forget to answer the questions every good reporter asks: who, what, where, when, why, how, how many, and how much. This saves time because you'll probably get an e-mail or phone call asking for more details if you don't answer all the basic questions. Don't assume that everyone knows what you're talking about: the web site is very public and the entire world can see and view the content. Moreover, thanks to our translation tools, your article will appear in dozens of languages. Try to use simple English at a low reading grade-level. It helps the computer translate the article.

Special Rules for Photographs

The St. Stephen's web site will publish most photos that are submitted. Photos must be intelectual property of the submitter (i.e., you took the photo.) Photographs of children whose parents are members of the church are permitted, provided you have the parent's permission. You must include contact information for the parents as well as the names of children in the photograph. As a practical matter, we won't usually publish the names of children below teenage years as a way to help protect them from predators. Legal considerations place limits on the photos we will publish.

Every photo submitted must include the names of those included in the foreground of the photo. Photos should also include a suggested caption, "Members of the choir practice a hymn" or something similar.

Photos of members of the church are always permissable provided the person(s) pictures give their consent. St. Stephen's has a blanket consent policy with an opt-out provision for members; that is, unless a member has already identified themselves as not authorizing photographs, they are considered to have given consent by attendance at St. Stephen's functions. Obviously, we want to be as considerate as possible. Please get consent before you take a picture. Crowd photos are almost always permissable.

Please do not use flash photography during worship services. If your camera makes any sound while taking photos, please turn the sound off. If you need help with either task, please consult your owner's manual, and if you still can't figure it out, bring your owner's manual to church and find Roger Baker, who has volunteered to help (he's usually at the 11 AM service or spot him by looking for a smiling man using black forearm crutches.)

Photo submissions become the property of St. Stephen's and may be altered as needed for artistic or practical considerations or for content.