Photographer FTP Upload Guide

Last updated: 10/21/2026.

For photographers submitting photos via FTP, please follow this guide. Your FTP credentials and upload folders will be sent to you before each event.

Deadline: All photos must be uploaded by 11:59 PM on the day of the event, in the event's local time zone.

Installing FTP software

You'll need an FTP program (called an "FTP client") to upload your photos. Any of the following free programs will work. If you've never used FTP before, we recommend FileZilla.

• FileZilla (Windows, Mac, Linux) — download from filezilla-project.org. Be sure to choose FileZilla Client, not FileZilla Server. During installation, decline any extra bundled software offers.
• Cyberduck (Mac, Windows) — download from cyberduck.io.
• WinSCP (Windows only) — download from winscp.net.

Download the installer, open it and follow the on-screen steps. The default options are fine.

Tip: Install and test your FTP software before the event, not the night of.

Connection settings

• Host: Sent to you before the event
• Username: Sent to you before the event
• Password: Sent to you before the event
• Port: 21

Where to upload

Put your images inside the folder for your event and shooting location. For example, finish line photos might go in /event_name/finish_line and mile 3 photos in /event_name/mile_3.

Your exact folders will be included with your credentials.

First time using FTP? Step-by-step

These steps use FileZilla. Cyberduck and WinSCP work the same way — see the notes below.

1. Open FileZilla and go to File → Site Manager, then click New site.
2. Set Protocol to FTP - File Transfer Protocol.
3. Enter the Host and Port (21) from your credentials.
4. Set Logon Type to Normal, then enter your Username and Password.
5. Click Connect. If asked about an unknown certificate, click OK.
6. Once connected, the left side shows your computer and the right side shows our server.
7. On the right side, open your event folder, then the folder for your shooting location.
8. On the left side, open the folder on your computer containing your images.
9. Click one image in the bottom-left file list, press Ctrl+A (Cmd+A on Mac) to select all images, then drag them to the right side.
10. Watch the transfer queue at the bottom of the window. When it's empty, check the Failed transfers tab. If anything failed, right-click it and choose Reset and requeue all files, then process the queue again.

Cyberduck: click Open Connection, choose FTP (File Transfer Protocol) from the dropdown, enter your credentials and click Connect. Browse to your folder, then drag your images into the window.

WinSCP: on the login screen, set File protocol to FTP, enter your credentials and click Login. Your computer is on the left and the server is on the right — drag your images across just like FileZilla.

Remember: upload the images themselves, not the folder they're in. Your images will disappear from the server after uploading — this is normal (see below).

Important notes

If you get errors uploading, please read the following:

• You cannot delete or move anything once uploaded. The system will not let you delete anything you or anyone else has uploaded. If you make a mistake, no problem, just let us know and we'll correct it.
• Upload images only, not folders. You may select all the images inside a folder and upload them into the folder on the server, but you won't be able to upload a folder of images.
• Your images will disappear after uploading. This is normal. Images automatically start moving after you upload them. They are moved to a hidden folder called .imported/ inside each folder you uploaded to (unless they were rejected).

Required emails

The following two emails are required after your event.

1. When your upload starts

Email [email protected] that the upload has started, and include:

• Total number of images in each directory
• Estimated time until completion

2. When your upload is complete

Email [email protected] again, and include:

• Confirmation that all images have uploaded
• The total number of images that should be in each directory
• Any errors. If there were none, write "no errors"