Quote from: mike123 on February 06, 2026, 16:39
I had to buy the photo subscription recently because my codes ran out. After all the write offs (VAT and income tax) it will be around 10-12 € per month, which is not so bad. But still, we never know when the next price hike hits, so I will start reducing my dependence on Adobe software: for example I use a few automation scripts/plugins for PS and LR to render images for my website - will move that part to Photopea soon.

Give Krita a try - it's a free open-source image editor similar to Photoshop in some ways.

Quote from: Konstantin Sutyagin on February 08, 2026, 07:46
Give Krita a try - it's a free open-source image editor similar to Photoshop in some ways.

Thanks, will look into Krita  . Haven't tried Photopea yet - it's supposed to support layers, smart objects and most importantly (automation) scripts - so in theory exactly what I need to automatically edit PS template files.

Quote from: Madede on February 07, 2026, 22:01
This makes me wonder what they will give as a bonus to Ai garbage "creators" ?
Illustrator and photoshop is useless fort hem considering that they have ZERO skills in those apps. 

Maybe those spammers will receive midjourney subscription from Adobe  ?   

Sure! those mediocre unskilled lazy (but sooo proud) people should experiment regrets... I hope the future will decide for justice.

I havent had to pay for Adobe since the offers started so this is going to hurt, especially as the only tier available now has ridiculous things like storage i dont need, wont use and still need to pay for.

Im looking at DxO Photolab (i already use PureRAW to get around Adobes dated, poor RAW engine) but i cant find anything that replicates the catalogue handling of Lightroom which is pretty essential for my image library.  Im also tied in with various plugins such as LRTimelapse that wont work elsewhere.

Video i switched to Resolve a few years ago and have never looked back but images is a bigger issue.

Quote from: DiscreetDuck on February 08, 2026, 16:48

Quote from: Madede on February 07, 2026, 22:01
This makes me wonder what they will give as a bonus to Ai garbage "creators" ?
Illustrator and photoshop is useless fort hem considering that they have ZERO skills in those apps. 

Maybe those spammers will receive midjourney subscription from Adobe  ?   

Sure! those mediocre unskilled lazy (but sooo proud) people should experiment regrets... I hope the future will decide for justice.

So proud that those pathetic Ai creative "persons" even add studio in their contributor nick       

Special level of pitifulness is that if you look what is accepted in a collection - you realize that is almost identical content is submitted / accepted because some of those "creators" posted metadata keywords for ai generated image on a discord channel or facebook group and all of them copy it and send to Adobe. 
Of course that Adobe isn't aware of that  (     ) because thay are too busy by prioritizing ai garbage.

Quote from: Madede on February 09, 2026, 11:51

Quote from: DiscreetDuck on February 08, 2026, 16:48

Quote from: Madede on February 07, 2026, 22:01
This makes me wonder what they will give as a bonus to Ai garbage "creators" ?
Illustrator and photoshop is useless fort hem considering that they have ZERO skills in those apps. 

Maybe those spammers will receive midjourney subscription from Adobe  ?   

Sure! those mediocre unskilled lazy (but sooo proud) people should experiment regrets... I hope the future will decide for justice.

So proud that those pathetic Ai creative "persons" even add studio in their contributor nick       

Special level of pitifulness is that if you look what is accepted in a collection - you realize that is almost identical content is submitted / accepted because some of those "creators" posted metadata keywords for ai generated image on a discord channel or facebook group and all of them copy it and send to Adobe. 
Of course that Adobe isn't aware of that  (     ) because thay are too busy by prioritizing ai garbage.

Yes, this is enlightening. But I'm certain that one day, Adobe will be forced to do a major cleanup of its collection (and contributors)... and then there will be some serious grumbling. That time is not really far, I think

Maybe they were waiting to announce the CC Standard vs Pro program.

Quote from: DiscreetDuck on February 09, 2026, 12:06

Yes, this is enlightening. But I'm certain that one day, Adobe will be forced to do a major cleanup of its collection (and contributors)... and then there will be some serious grumbling. That time is not really far, I think

On any of them I'd be happy if they do that. I won't be grumbling. Get rid of the trash and spammers.

Hello! Where is Matt?

Quote from: Uncle Pete on February 10, 2026, 23:56

Quote from: DiscreetDuck on February 09, 2026, 12:06

Yes, this is enlightening. But I'm certain that one day, Adobe will be forced to do a major cleanup of its collection (and contributors)... and then there will be some serious grumbling. That time is not really far, I think

On any of them I'd be happy if they do that. I won't be grumbling. Get rid of the trash and spammers.

+1 to " Get rid of the AI trash and spammers "

Quote from: Uncle Pete on February 10, 2026, 23:56
Get rid of the trash and spammers.

What will be interesting is what happens afterward. Many stock contributors are unlikely to return; by then they will have already moved on with their lives or businesses. To attract them back, Adobe would have to raise royalties or prices, which is difficult under the current pressure from free or very cheap AI-generated content.

However, AI content is unlikely to remain free or inexpensive indefinitely. At some point, most AI companies will need to increase their pricing to sustain their operations. The sooner the current AI bubble pops, the sooner price increases are likely to follow.

This may be part of Adobe's long-term strategy with its AI collection: once the cost of generating AI images rises, buyers may prefer sourcing AI content from a large, curated library where they can quickly find exactly what they need, rather than generating it themselves. Which is why I don't think Adobe will ever prune their AI trash.

Not sure where all this leaves the microstock contributors though 

From my experience and what I see with clients - yes, it probably would compensate at least partially. When there's a clear target, people push harder: upload more strategically, refresh keywords, focus on seasonal content. I've seen sales grow when there's a defined goal. But Adobe likely thinks in terms of risk control, not motivation. They probably don't want a scenario where too many contributors hit the target at once. So it's safer for them to calculate everything after the year ends and set the threshold to match their budget. From a business standpoint, it makes sense. From a contributor standpoint, it feels like moving goalposts.

Quote from: cobalt on February 07, 2026, 16:21
My code runs out 19th February, I hope we get codes soon.

If not, they should at least tell us, so we can make arrangements.

Oh, I've made my arrangements already. At least you're on the high end (IE Stocky) thus won't kill you financially where it will hurt a lot of other folks in the pocket book.

Quote from: Sean Locke Photography on February 10, 2026, 00:32
Maybe they were waiting to announce the CC Standard vs Pro program.

Good point Sean!

FYI on the plans for those wondering the difference.

Adobe Photoshop CC (Standard Plan - Individual)

    Best For: Individual creators, photographers, and freelancers.
    AI Access: Includes limited generative AI credits per month.
    Features: Access to all 20+ desktop apps.
    Limitations: No premium access to mobile/web apps; reduced AI capability.
    Price: ~$54.99/month (varies by plan).

Adobe Creative Cloud Pro (Plan)

    Best For: Medium to large businesses, teams, and heavy users of Generative Fill/Firefly.
    AI Access: Unlimited standard AI generation (like Photoshop Generative Fill) and 4,000 premium monthly credits.
    Asset Access: Unlimited downloads from Adobe Stock's Standard collection.
    Extra Benefits: Includes Frame.io for Creative Cloud, advanced Creative Cloud Libraries, and 24x7 support.
    Price: Higher monthly cost (e.g., $69.99/mo

Adobe should just burn in hell. crappy company that is just disrupted through AI and enjoys its own kodak moment.

I just saw that if you go through the cancel process, Adobe will most likely give you a discount for one year to keep you.  I just tried myself and got the Pro suite for $34 per month for 1 year.

Quote from: Stockhome Syndrome on February 14, 2026, 22:55
I just saw that if you go through the cancel process, Adobe will most likely give you a discount for one year to keep you.  I just tried myself and got the Pro suite for $34 per month for 1 year.

Yes, they always do that, it doesn't have to happen instantly, sometimes you may wait a few days after cancelation then you'll get that promo

It would sure be nice if Adobe let us know what their plans are regarding the Contributor Bonus program. I fear that if they are not planning on continuing it, they will not explicitly let us know.

Quote from: zebra007 on February 11, 2026, 07:30
Hello! Where is Matt?

Who?

Quote from: Big Money on February 15, 2026, 14:38

Quote from: zebra007 on February 11, 2026, 07:30
Hello! Where is Matt?

Who?

I think Matt for promoted to a new position.
There were new members who took lead and were active here. But it seems they too are not responding / less active from a couple of months.

Quote from: Big Money on February 15, 2026, 14:38

Quote from: zebra007 on February 11, 2026, 07:30
Hello! Where is Matt?

Who?

The welcome mat at the Adobe house now!

Entry reserved for photographers, You can feel welcomed like a prince there. 


Entry reserved for AI prompters:

Quote from: wds on February 15, 2026, 14:10
It would sure be nice if Adobe let us know what their plans are regarding the Contributor Bonus program. I fear that if they are not planning on continuing it, they will not explicitly let us know.

Exactly, a corporate decision would have been made by now either way and people deserve to know one way or the other to make plans.  All it takes is a simple statement.

...or cynically they'll delay it a month or 2 knowing that most people on the free will just pay the monthly fee "hoping" it'll be announced soon as a stop-gap.

My code runs out in 2 days. I still have photoshop elements 2023 and for video I use final cut.

Mostly I hope the code comes at some point. If they have cancelled the program, would be great if they told us.

Quote from: cobalt on February 17, 2026, 14:17
My code runs out in 2 days. I still have photoshop elements 2023 and for video I use final cut.

Mostly I hope the code comes at some point. If they have cancelled the program, would be great if they told us.

In Germany (and I guess in the whole of EU) you can cancel Adobe's plan within 2 weeks after ordering. Just in case the bonus arrives soon, you might be able to cancel the paid plan in time .

Yes, you are right, I have been thinking about that. I will probably try elements for a month and see how it goes. I was going to focus on video, 2 hours every morning, until we know if we get the code.

Good suggestion!