How to Create a Photo Contest

Getting There

All contests and promotions are created in the Form Designer. There are two different ways to get there:

• In ShortStack's Main Menu, select Forms/Entries. Once there, click the New button. 

OR

• When creating a Campaign in the Campaign Builder, add a Form Widget, and click the Create New Form button in the Edit Widget window.

The Create New Form dialog box will pop up with a field to name the Form. This name is for internal-use only, so you don't have to worry about visitors seeing it. After you've named the Form, click the Create button and take the following steps to create a photo contest. 

1. The Facebook ID and Email Address fields are added by default. To add additional fields, click on the available fields at the left.
   
   
2. Add the Photo field to your form.
   
   
3. Hover over the Photo field in the form preview, and click the pencil icon to edit the field.
   
   
4. Customize the Label.
   
   
5. There are two photo submission options: From Computer and via Instagram. From Computer is the default submission option. To enable Instagram submission, check the via Instagram box. Take the following steps to configure each set up option:
   
   
   • From Computer
     
     
     • Customize the labels and messages.
       
       
   • via Instagram
     
     
     • Once you check the box to allow submissions via Instagram, Instagram.com will open in a new window. Log in and click the green Authorize button. The window will close automatically.
       
       
     • Optional: Enter a hashtag. If you enter a required hashtag, entrants can only submit photos containing the hashtag. Separate multiple hashtags with commas. 
       
       
     • Optional: Enter a search start date. Photos users submit before the date you enter here will be excluded. 
       
       Note: Users with private Instagram profiles will not be able to submit. 
       
       
6. Choose whether or not the photo field is Required.
   
   
7. Use the Extra Points field to reward entrants for filling out this field in their entry. See the Form Field Entry Points help doc for more information. 
   
   
8. When you’re finished configuring the fields, click the Form Settings tab at the top-left of the page to make changes to the Approval Settings, Email Notices, Rules and Disclaimers, and more.
   
   
9. Click Save Form.
   
   

Notes about the Photo Field

• The field accepts jpg, gif, and png files. 
  
  
• The maximum file size is 3MB (3145728 bytes).
  
  
• Images larger than 1000 pixels in either width or height will be resized, while keeping the original aspect ratio. When exporting entries, the photo URL will point to this resized image.
  
  
• ShortStack automatically creates Thumbnail (100x100), Medium (200x200), and Large (400x400) versions of each image for use in the Voting widget.
  
  
• At this time, users can only upload a single image per submission.
  
  

Creating a Photo Vote Contest

After you've followed the steps above to create a photo contest, add a Voting Widget and follow the instructions in the  How to Set Up Voting doc to create a photo vote contest.