Mississippi Administrative Code
Title 16 - History, Humanities and Arts
Part 3 - Historic Preservation Division
Chapter 12 - Mississippi Standards and Guidelines for Archaeological Investigations
Rule 16-3-12.10.2 - Photographing

Minimum megapixels for photographing artifacts should be no less than 20 and taken at 300 dpi minimum resolution. Photos should be taken with a camera (not cell phones) and should be focused with notable features able to be seen clearly. Ideally, cameras should have a macro lense for detailed close ups of anomalies. Any photos submitted with blurry images, no scale, or on backgrounds which render important details invisible will not be accepted. A good example of why this is important can be found here: http://catdir.loc.gov/catdir/samples/cam031/93046903.pdf

A neutral gray background is preferable to black or white backgrounds for artifact photos because it gives a uniform appearance for color variations within artifacts, i.e. glaze colors, chert colors, raw material colors, etc. Photos should be taken with a scale in the photograph (professional quality scale preferred, in mm/cm increments). Photo descriptions should be included in a photo log with clear descriptions using analysis information below. Photographs should have the following information listed on each print: Photographer, Photograph number, site number, brief description, and date.