There are only four requirements for uploading your entries:

1. The size of your image should be 1200 pixels in the longest dimension. (For example, 1200x800, 900x1200, etc.)

What about dpi? For our purposes, dpi has no importance. Whether your file is 72 dpi or 300 dpi, as long as the dimension in pixels is 1200 in the longest dimension, that is all that matters.

2. The image must be RGB. Nearly all images produced by a digital camera will be RGB, so you shouldn't need to worry about this requirement.

3. The file must be a jpeg (or jpg). Don't try to upload a file in the "tiff", "raw", or "psd" formats. The upload will fail and you will have to correct the file and try again.

4. The file must not be larger than 1.5 MB in size. This is more than large enough for a 1200x1200 (pixels) file saved as the highest quality jpeg. Larger files will not upload and you will get an error message and have to start over. (NOTE: Don't confuse megabytes - MB - with pixels. One megabyte is one million bytes of computer data and a 1 megabyte jpeg file can have 2 million or more pixels.)

Be sure the "constrain proportions" and "resample image" boxes are checked. (These settings may be named differently depending on your program, but they will always have the same meaning.)

Don't be concerned if your program doesn't offer some of the other settings such as Scale Styles or "Bicubic", etc. When you save the file as a jpeg, you will have the chance to choose the quality. Pick the best quality available.