Visual imagery and scholarly publishing: Reflections from an academic turned editor

Vicki Bennett presents the uses and abuses of visual imagery in scholarly publications. She contends that there are four basic types of images: the raison d'etre of the the manuscript, the crucial element of research findings supported by textual evidence, the insightful supplement to the text, and the decorative addition to the text. Bennett suggests, however, that ail too often authors fail to provide publishers with imagery that is of appropriate quality for reproduction or neglect to secure the necessary permissions to reproduce the material. Imagery must be treated with the same respect that scholars accord to text, and that responsibility falls to the authors.