It is not trivial to assure the correct order, but is easy to make it an error to use wrong order. This what I implemented. If \bibliography{...} is used before \begin{imagecredits}, the following error message is printed:
! Class snapshotmfo Error: \bibliography must not be used before imagecredits environment.
In contrast to warnings, TeX errors cannot be easily overlooked by the authors or editors during compilation and should therefore be sufficient to detect the problem in any case.
It is not trivial to assure the correct order, but is easy to make it an error to use wrong order. This what I implemented. If
\bibliography{...}is used before\begin{imagecredits}, the following error message is printed:In contrast to warnings, TeX errors cannot be easily overlooked by the authors or editors during compilation and should therefore be sufficient to detect the problem in any case.