I discovered by accident that if submitted as commercial, SS now automatically marks editorial items as editorial if they have a byline! no longer need to mark as editorial separately.  and some items that previously would have required editorial now get accepted as commercial

even better, if they decide an image should be editorial, you can edit the description immediately, rather than have to re-submit

I use https://www.visualmind.ai/  to add meta & i always add byline to my images anyway

Review times have changed drastically lately. There's been a lot of rejections. I have photos that have been waiting in the review queue for two months. This never used to happen.

nice one, SS!

but still i had video files reject as if the files were corrupted. but they got accepted on other agencies

What is SS review time for stills? I submitted a pic and it's been sitting there for about a week. They used to be very quick?!?

Quote from: wds on December 10, 2025, 19:04
What is SS review time for stills? I submitted a pic and it's been sitting there for about a week. They used to be very quick?!?

i'm getting most images accepted within a few days - only rejections have been for some  illustrations and those that need editorial bylines (easily fixed w/o re-uploading)

about 10-20% are sent to datasets catalog. formerly these would have been rejected - last month these brought in a hefty sum for dataset training

Quote from: sinandogan on December 10, 2025, 12:52
Review times have changed drastically lately. There's been a lot of rejections. I have photos that have been waiting in the review queue for two months. This never used to happen.

are you participating in the data catalog?

I have a large number pending - but ALL of them are marked either 'illustration' of 'data marketplace' -- a few of these have been waiting exactly 2 months (and changes each day) which is much better than AS where they can sit for 8 months or more and support just says -'be patient, some review times can be 8 weeks' 

Quote from: cascoly on December 10, 2025, 19:45

Quote from: sinandogan on December 10, 2025, 12:52
Review times have changed drastically lately. There's been a lot of rejections. I have photos that have been waiting in the review queue for two months. This never used to happen.

are you participating in the data catalog?

I have a large number pending - but ALL of them are marked either 'illustration' of 'data marketplace' -- a few of these have been waiting exactly 2 months (and changes each day) which is much better than AS where they can sit for 8 months or more and support just says -'be patient, some review times can be 8 weeks'

Actually I have two batches that have been approved while part of the first, which is photos, are sitting. "Pending Data marketplace" whatever that means. Last week I uploaded a single image and it passed in a day.

Can you go over that Editorial Caption thing again? If I have a dateline, in the description, it will automatically become Editorial? What's an example of your Byline, I'm not using one. Maybe I should?

Quote from: Uncle Pete on December 10, 2025, 21:45

Actually I have two batches that have been approved while part of the first, which is photos, are sitting. "Pending Data marketplace" whatever that means. Last week I uploaded a single image and it passed in a day.

Can you go over that Editorial Caption thing again? If I have a dateline, in the description, it will automatically become Editorial? What's an example of your Byline, I'm not using one. Maybe I should?

i asked support what that means but their reply ignored that part of my question about review time - as they get reviewed i'll watch  whether they go into the data catalog

with my automated captioning I can include text to prepend so i use the bylines SS used to require strictly (eg reject if lwr case!)

ORGOSOLO, SARDINIA - OCT 15, 2004 -
or
SEATTLE - OCT 15, 2004 -  if country is obvious

i've used lower case several times, but now stllaccepted - i add same byline when review says edit for editorial & they always pass

Quote from: cascoly on December 10, 2025, 22:28

Quote from: Uncle Pete on December 10, 2025, 21:45

Actually I have two batches that have been approved while part of the first, which is photos, are sitting. "Pending Data marketplace" whatever that means. Last week I uploaded a single image and it passed in a day.

Can you go over that Editorial Caption thing again? If I have a dateline, in the description, it will automatically become Editorial? What's an example of your Byline, I'm not using one. Maybe I should?

i asked support what that means but their reply ignored that part of my question about review time - as they get reviewed i'll watch  whether they go into the data catalog

with my automated captioning I can include text to prepend so i use the bylines SS used to require strictly (eg reject if lwr case!)

ORGOSOLO, SARDINIA - OCT 15, 2004 -
or
SEATTLE - OCT 15, 2004 -  if country is obvious

i've used lower case several times, but now stllaccepted - i add same byline when review says edit for editorial & they always pass

As per their article here:

https://submit.shutterstock.com/help/en/articles/12133775-why-is-my-content-still-pending-review

"How long does the review process take?

All content is funneled into separate queues by media type and marketplace designation, so review times vary by asset. Some assets, like those identified as a potential match for the data marketplace, may require further review and will remain in your Pending tab longer"

Quote from: cascoly on December 10, 2025, 22:28

Quote from: Uncle Pete on December 10, 2025, 21:45

Actually I have two batches that have been approved while part of the first, which is photos, are sitting. "Pending Data marketplace" whatever that means. Last week I uploaded a single image and it passed in a day.

Can you go over that Editorial Caption thing again? If I have a dateline, in the description, it will automatically become Editorial? What's an example of your Byline, I'm not using one. Maybe I should?

i asked support what that means but their reply ignored that part of my question about review time - as they get reviewed i'll watch  whether they go into the data catalog

with my automated captioning I can include text to prepend so i use the bylines SS used to require strictly (eg reject if lwr case!)

ORGOSOLO, SARDINIA - OCT 15, 2004 -
or
SEATTLE - OCT 15, 2004 -  if country is obvious

i've used lower case several times, but now stllaccepted - i add same byline when review says edit for editorial & they always pass

That's a Dateline, not a byline. Yes I've been using mixed case ever since they started. That whole all upper case thing was bogus and never required. It's part part of the AP Style book and how newspapers format their stories. The all caps is for the location. I don't know why.

Here's a simple definition:  A byline is a line of text in an article that identifies the author or creator of the content. In its simplest form, it's typically placed beneath the headline and includes the writer's name, sometimes followed by their title or affiliation. The byline serves as an essential element in both traditional newspapers and online publications, acting as a formal attribution of authorship.

Here's a dateline:  The dateline appears at the beginning of the first paragraph in a press release or news story. It provides information about the location and date of the news announcement. This format helps journalists and readers immediately understand where and when the news originates.

Waubedonia, WI - December 11, 2025:

Can you please explain "edit for editorial"? I'm wondering is what you are saying is, say I take a photo of a bird, down on the lakefront, I can start the description with (see above) and then continue with, seagulls, circle around the marina in Waubedonia. Is that what you mean? And it's supposed to help get images reviewed faster? If so, I'm all for it. 

Quote from: Uncle Pete on December 11, 2025, 16:20...
That's a Dateline, not a byline. Yes I've been using mixed case ever since they started. That whole all upper case thing was bogus and never required. It's part part of the AP Style book and how newspapers format their stories. The all caps is for the location. I don't know why.



Waubedonia, WI - December 11, 2025:

Can you please explain "edit for editorial"? I'm wondering is what you are saying is, say I take a photo of a bird, down on the lakefront, I can start the description with (see above) and then continue with, seagulls, circle around the marina in Waubedonia. Is that what you mean? And it's supposed to help get images reviewed faster? If so, I'm all for it. 

sorry, yes, it's dateline - SS earlier requirements required all caps (& they wouldn't accept 9 MAY rather then MAY 9!).  but that no longer applies.

before images would be rejected if they needed editorial dateline - now when you look at review results it just says 'needs attention' & lets you edit desc right there & submit - same for items missing tags, desc, etc