Poster Samples & Sharing
Search these sites to get ideas on how posters are presented within your discipline.
Also, if you upload your poster to one of these sites you can provide handouts or bookmarks with links to the electronic version of your poster at the conference, and keep your work accessible long after the conference.
- Faculty of 1000 Research PostersOpen access repository for posters and slide presentations across biology and medicine.
- epostersOpen-access journal that provides free access to over 1,800 scientific and medical posters presented at conferences from around the world.
- FigShare This link opens in a new windowfigshare allows users to upload any file format so that scholarly information can be disseminated electronically.
Designing a Research Poster
The following resources provide guidance on the poster creation process.
- ACP American College of Physicians - Preparing a Poster PresentationThis article addresses poster planning, production, and presentation.
Designing Science Presentations: A visual guide to figures, papers, slides, posters, and morePublication Date: 2013Matt Carter provides a visual guide designed specifically to aid scientists in the creation of compelling tables and figures, slides, posters, and web site material.
- Makesigns Scientific Poster TutorialStep-by-step guide to poster design and creation.
Images
These resources can be used to obtain copyright compliant images. Image resolution will vary.
- USC Academic Unit LogotypesUniversity approved logos.
- Open-i - Open Access Biomedical Image Search Engine This link opens in a new windowOpen-i searches for images in all Open Access articles indexed in PubMed Central. Search over 600,000 copyright compliant images by keyword, topic, or image to find relevant or visually similar images.
- Pixabay This link opens in a new windowRepository of free, high quality, copyright compliant images. Begin typing "medical" into the search box. Click dropdown menu to filter by image type. Sign up for free account to download images.
- Wikimedia Commons This link opens in a new windowA database of freely usable, high resolution image files.
- Google Images This link opens in a new windowFor copyright compliant images: type in keywords, click "Search tools", click on "Usage rights" dropdown menu, select from the "Labeled for reuse" options.
- Multimedia Resources (in the Health Sciences) GuideFind videos, audio clips, images, and cases to use in education.
Working with images
- Tips for working with images in PublisherVendor tips for working with images in Publisher. Includes content about image size, resolution, file formats, and refining.
- Photoshop isn’t the only solution: 5 best programs for resizing imagesThis article provides step-by-step instructions on how to upsample images using Photoshop, GIMP, Windows Live Photo Gallery, Preview, and Pixlr.
Image Manipulation Guidelines
Low resolution images may be manipulated to improve print quality, however you want to proceed with caution when it comes to images that represent research data.
- Rossner, M., & Yamada, K. (2004). What's in a picture? The temptation of image manipulation. The Journal of Cell Biology, 11-15. PMID: 15240566This article provides specific guidelines on the do's and dont's of image manipulation in scientific publishing in order to ensure the integrity of your data.
Poster Sample / Tips
Diagram image citation: Blausen.com staff. "Blausen gallery 2014". Wikiversity Journal of Medicine. DOI:10.15347/wjm/2014.010. ISSN 20018762. (Own work) [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
- Scientific Conference Posters - WebinarThis video provides an overview of some tools, resources and key elements to creating a conference poster. Content covers software, general content, design tips, provides image resources, and tips for improved print quality. ~35 min.
- Conference PosterClick here to download a pdf copy of the poster above.
- Scientific Posters PPT slidesClick here to download video PPT slides.
Fonts
Click on chart to access online.
Color
- Psychology of ColorThis site provides information on the meaning of color and how it is perceived.
- The Art of Color CoordinationHow to combine colors in order to have a positive effect on your audience.
Upsampling images in Photoshop
Through a process called upsampling, you can add pixels to low resolution images, and thereby improve the print quality. The short video below demonstrates how to upsample images in Photoshop.
Universal Design
Universal Design is the design and composition of an environment so that it can be accessed, understood and used to the greatest extent possible by all people, regardless of their age, size or disability.
- Equal Access: Universal Design of Conference Exhibits and PresentationsA checklist for making conference exhibits and presentations welcoming and accessible
to everyone.
Microsoft Publisher Tutorials
The following resources provide guidance on how to use Microsoft Publisher. Resources at the top provide step-by-step guidance about poster creation. Links at the bottom provide general guidance on using Publisher.
- Microsoft Publisher: Conference Poster SessionsUniversity of Liverpool's Microsoft Publisher software video tutorial. Step-by-step demonstration of the key features used to create a poster. Applicable to Publisher 2010, 2013, and 2016. Run time ~12 min.
- Publisher 2016 Essential TrainingTraining videos via Lynda.com that offer in-depth instruction to Publisher 2016.
- Text wrapping in PublisherGuide on how to wrap text around images in Publisher.
PowerPoint Templates & Tutorials
Links to freely available PowerPoint conference poster templates, and guidance for specific software features relevant to poster creation.
- PhD Posters - Power Point Template FilesPPT templates in a variety of sizes. Packed with helpful tips and easy to customize.
- Mega Print Inc - Free Powerpoint Scientific Research Poster TemplatesPowerPoint® 2007-2013 templates in a variety of sizes.
- Colin Purrington's PPT Poster TemplatesFree PPT templates and poster making tips.
- Using grids in PowerPointGuide on how to set up grids in PPT for better content alignment.
- Creating a Poster in PowerPoint 2010Eastern Michigan University's detailed guide to creating a poster in PowerPoint.
Other Software
Graphics, such as charts and tables can easily be created in Excel.
- Creating Excel charts with the Recommended Charts featureLynda.com video tutorial that demonstrates how to create charts in Excel 2013. Requires login.
Print Vendors
The following list is provided as a convenience, and is not meant to endorse or promote any particular vendor.
- PhD PostersFabric or paper options. Also offers free PPT templates and many poster creation tips.
- PosterSmithFabric posters.
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