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Last Updated: June 25th, 2026
SimPictures is a flight simulator screenshot repository. Unlike real-life photo repositories, which focus on consistent airframe documentation, SimPictures showcases the flight simulation experience: scenery, weather, addons, and immersion. This means more flexibility in angles and lighting, but still with strict quality and consistency requirements.
These guidelines cover two areas: community conduct and screenshot submissions. The community guidelines apply to all members across all interactions on the platform. The submission guidelines define what is and isn't acceptable in screenshots, so screeners and authors have a shared reference and submissions are handled consistently.
The official language of SimPictures is English. Use English in all communication so moderators can properly manage the platform. Avoid explicit language and maintain a tone appropriate for a general audience.
Treat everyone with respect. Harassment, bullying, and personal attacks are not tolerated.
Do not engage in hate speech or discrimination against individuals or groups based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or other personal characteristics.
Respect others' privacy. Do not share personal information publicly without consent, especially with intent to cause harm.
Spamming is prohibited. This includes repeatedly posting the same content, excessive self-promotion, and sharing irrelevant links or advertisements.
Avoid discussing sensitive topics such as politics or religion, as they can lead to unnecessary conflict.
Do not spread false or misleading information. Any claims you make should be accurate and verifiable.
Do not impersonate other users, moderators, or public figures.
Resolve personal disputes privately. Publicly airing grievances disrupts the community.
Contribute positively to discussions. Offer constructive feedback and support fellow community members.
Posting or sharing NSFW content, including explicit images, suggestive language, or links to inappropriate material, is strictly prohibited. All content must be appropriate for a general audience.
As of version 1.3.0, every submission must be assigned a category. When multiple categories could apply, select the one that best represents the primary subject of the image. The list of categories is sorted by priority.
Multiple aircraft engaged in a coordinated aerial or multiplayer activity, such as formation flying, airshows, aerial refueling, or multiplayer events (e.g. VATSIM, IVAO). Can be offline or online. The aircraft must be airborne and the activity must be the primary subject.
Close-up or partial views focused on a specific component or interior, rather than the whole airframe. Pilot's perspective, cockpit, avionics, passenger cabin, cargo hold, engines, landing gear, wing view etc.
Exterior shots where the aircraft is the main subject and clear, either in flight or on the ground. Serves as documentation of aircraft addons, airframes and liveries.
Views of airport environments, including terminals, control towers, runways, taxiways, aprons, ground operations, and overall airport layouts. The airport itself is the primary subject rather than any specific aircraft.
Landscapes, terrain, cities, scenery add-ons, or atmospheric and mood-driven conditions where the environment is a significant part of the composition. Aircraft may be present but is not the primary subject. Dramatic or unconventional lighting, including backlit conditions, is acceptable and often intentional here.
Screenshots are rejected when they fall under any of the following reasons. Screeners use these reason names when issuing a rejection.
Submission is not a screenshot of a flight simulator, or does not relate to flight simulation.
An identical or near-identical screenshot has already been accepted by this author.
Screenshot may not have been taken by the author, or may have been uploaded without permission from the original creator. Requires further investigation or clarification from the author.
Required metadata fields are missing, incomplete, or inaccurate.
Screenshot appears deliberately low quality or is intended to portray an addon negatively.
Screenshot contains addons obtained through piracy, addons with pirated elements, or illegally modified addons.
Screenshot contains overlays, windows, or other user interface elements, including aircraft labels, or a custom watermark added by author outside of SimPictures UI. Exception: product-related licensing marks (e.g., Prepar3D License mark).
Watermark is too prominent or distracting. Adjust the watermark's size or transparency in settings.
Screenshot does not accurately represent real-life aviation.
Screenshot was overprocessed or manipulated, producing an unnatural or heavily altered result.
Screenshot was generated using AI or is noticeably AI-enhanced.
Screenshot or submission metadata violates the community guidelines (section 2), including but not limited to political statements, offensive imagery, hate speech, or other inappropriate content.
Screenshots depicting politically sensitive or war-affected regions are not allowed, unless the screenshot represents current or historical civil flight operations conducted in real life. Each situation is evaluated individually.
The assigned category does not match the content of the screenshot.
The screenshot does not fit any available category and cannot be accepted as submitted.
Specified addon cannot be added to the database. This can be due to bad addon quality, copyright or other reasons.
Framing requirements are strictest for Aircraft category shots. Other categories, particularly Environment, Scenery & Atmosphere and Airport & Infrastructure, have more lenient standards.
Not centered, or spacing around the aircraft is unequal or excessive.
Aircraft is cut off by the image boundary.
Aircraft is too small or distant in the frame, making it difficult to appreciate as the subject.
Field of view is too wide, causing visible distortion of the aircraft's proportions.
Horizon is not level. Picture must be leveled by the horizon, not the aircraft's pitch.
Subject is partially or fully obstructed by another object, making the screenshot unsuitable.
Sharpness requirements apply to all categories, but the threshold is strictest for Aircraft. Other categories allow more flexibility depending on the context of the shot.
Screenshot is blurry or lacks sufficient sharpness.
Screenshot has been oversharpened, producing harsh or unnatural edges.
Lighting requirements are strictest for Aircraft. Dramatic or unconventional lighting may be intentional in Environment, Scenery & Atmosphere shots and should be judged accordingly.
Light source (sun) is positioned behind the aircraft, causing the subject to appear dark or silhouetted against a bright background.
Lighting conditions make the subject unclear or the shot unacceptable.
Screenshot is overexposed or too bright, washing out detail in the subject.
Screenshot is underexposed or too dark to clearly show the subject.
Screenshot has insufficient contrast, making the subject difficult to distinguish from the background.
Screenshot does not meet the minimum visual or technical quality standard.
Screenshot was taken with low simulator graphics settings, resulting in visibly poor texture quality, shadows, or level of detail.
Scenery or airport addon quality is too low, with visibly poor textures or models that detract from the screenshot.
Accept - make a submission public, because it follows the guidelines.
Author - member who submitted the screenshot in question.
Backlit - screenshot where the light source (sun) is positioned behind the aircraft, causing the subject to appear dark or silhouetted against a bright background.
Cropping - trimming the image boundaries to adjust what is included in the frame.
Decision - decision made by a screener during handling of a submission in the queue, which is either a rejection or an acceptance.
Lighting - illumination conditions in the screenshot, determined by time of day, sun angle, and weather. Affects how clearly the subject and scene are visible.
Member, user - member of SimPictures, having an account on the website.
Metadata - data associated with the image, entered by the author on the upload form.
Picture - same as screenshot. This term is used on SimPictures because the naming of the website is built around it.
Quality - overall visual and technical standard of a screenshot, including sharpness, resolution, compression artifacts, and absence of unwanted UI elements or overlays.
Reject - decline a submission, preventing it from going public.
Rejection reason - a message from the screener explaining why the submission was rejected.
Screener - member of SimPictures who voluntarily handles the queue by making decisions on submissions.
Screenshot - flight simulator screenshot.
Submission - a screenshot submitted by the user, which undergoes a screening.