Quote from: Tror on May 24, 2015, 16:16
Nope. Edges are too blurry, unsharp depending on focal length, etc. generally not a good choice. There are better ones for the same or less money out there.

Could you please enumerate them? I am looking also to buy this lens just because I've heard that is sharp. Or if this lens is sharp then which range?

Hi guys,
thank you a lot for your replies. I will try to buy this lens.
Cheers!

Hi,
for the past 5 years I've been using Canon 450D with Canon 17-85 mm f3.5-5.6
Last year I purchased a Canon 60D and now is time for a new lens.
My types of photography are: travel(city/mountains/landscapes); group photos(so events...)

I would like to continue on on stock, for the moment, on travel photography category.

I would like to change my lens because I often get rejected for 'image is not sharp/focused'. So I suppose that my lens aren't working anymore properly.

I have been looking at next lenses:

• Canon EF 24-70mm f/4L IS USM
• Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM
• Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 IF EX DG HSM - Canon EF 

I have never worked with Sigma so I don't know how reliable they are.

Could you please help? In case you use one of these lenses maybe write a short feedback. Also if you have another choice.

Thanks a lot for your help.

All right. Thank you

Excuse-me ShadySue, do you suggest that is not worth to isolate it or not? You confused me a little though I understood that there are many so don't submit other image. Is that right?

Hi there,
I have an image I took in summer of Big Ben. I have thought to make an object selection of it so then designers could use it for all kind of uses like posters, and so on.

Now: I started from bottom to top where I realize is very difficult to make a clean selection. Please see the images.

Do you believe that I could get a clean selection? - please look top of the tower.

Good advices indeed. As I promised I will post here the way I have chosen to manage my images. But it might take a while. Some improvements may come on the way.
For the moment I prefer not to change image's name, only when I am reviewing them. So, I might see an image that should be rotated, cropped, set BW - in such a case for me to be sure I will not forget I add short description to image's name.
Besides, for the moment I will not overpass the 99999 images in an year

All right guys, I will try tonight. Hope will have time.
So, as I understand I must define non exporting keywords for each kind of category: SS_accepted, SS_rejected, DT_accepted, DT_rejected and so on. I thought that a hierarchical keyword will work(it would  have been too nice).
Then also the label coloring in Green for images selected to submit is one think I will use it too.
Well I am submitting for almost an year now. For ~ last 2 months I participate to other 2. So I knew I will face this organizing issues. I hope I will manage till the end and then all will be a lot more easier.
I will come up with workflows I choose.

@LesHoward: I am in fact a developer so I know pretty well SQL databases. And indeed the comparing you said: 'smart collection is like an sql query' is very good to understand it better.

Regards.

uhm... well I found out that this wasn't working as I expected. I wasn't testing case when one image has been approved to SS and rejected to DS. In that case it would have been _accepted, _shutterstock, _rejected, _dreamstime. So filter would not be effective.
Then I tried to do hierarchical keywords. Like in image.
Now I face another issue: I can not apply filter for a smart collection in order to take only a hierarchical keyword.
Could anybody help me on this?
I tried like this: keword contains: _dreamstime < _accepted but this returns also those that have _shutterstock < _accepted.
:-?

Wow. In the meaning time I searched and found out that you can really have non exporting keywords. I found out how to create such as keywords.
Now I did as followed:
created a collection - Entire Collection Stock - which I set it as target collection.
Then I press B on all photos that I have uploaded for at least one stock agency, so it means is a stock photo. After that I created 2 smart collections(for the moment) ShutterStock Accepted and ShutterStock Rejected. For both I set as criteria: source->collection is from collection above, and keyword _shutterstock. Then for first I added extra filter condition: keyword _accepted, respectively 'rejected' for second smart collection. Will repeat for all agencies.
In this way I can now which are rejected/accepted for all agencies and I might have all kind of results.
What do you say about my approach?

I am sorry, did I understood well? You say that there are non exporting keywords. How? That would mean that in the moment I upload to SS(for ex) they will not take into consideration keywords that starts with '_'? Is this what you said?
A functionality like this would be great especially because then I could have smart collections, easily.

Hi, I am coming again with one more question regarding how to organize my images with Lightroom.
I want to take benefit of its smart collections or simple collections. Do you use them and how?
First method that might work is use simple collections and just drag them into each collection. For the moment I participate into 4 stock agencies. If the number will increase I want to be prepared. So I have there is a Label property for images. Would there be a chance to set certain categories and automatically be added in smart collections? Or do you use colors and stars?
Please help me get on the right way from the very beginning. 
Best regards,
Adrian.

Thank you very much for you reply. It helped me a lot. In the last days I have watched some tutorials on adobe site. I might say that now I have a better idea.
For the moment I didn't took care very much about backups. I know I have to do it. But I have some albums which I want to finish processing and after I decide my file structure/organization I can make  a proper backup.

This is what I thought for the moment. I will use only one catalog in LR, where I will import all my raws. At this point I am not sure how to structure on drive. I suppose I should put all folders in one main folder. But I am very sure I want to group them by destinations. So: Firenze, Pisa, Rome, Rome by summer of 2013,... But then the jpg's generates will get into each folder and 'Untitled Export' folder. Would that be OK?

Then I think that in order to keep record of images that I uploaded to a certain agency I will have to create Collections. Smart collections would be perfect if I could set for each photo a category. But I don't see such an option. In this way I wont need to copy jpgs in folders for each agency as you said you do.

After all if I learn how to backup a catalog and restore it I am done and will stay relax

Hi there,
I am looking for methods of organizing my images and how to backup. For this please tell me what methods did you chosen?
How to you know which images you upload on agency X, Y, ... if they were accepted or not.
Then when you back up images do you keen raws too? Regarding raws: i understood and have seen that is not so easy to backup a raw file. The changes are saved by lightroom in a separate folder. So in case you want to move a raw on a backup disk what do you do? I found out that is complicated.
I am sure that these questions are somewhere on forum but please be patient with me.

As thinks I have tried this is one: there is AcdSee software that lets you create categories and then I created ShutterStock -> Accepted; ShutterStock - Rejected and so on. The tags are also saved by AcdSee in another folder on Windows. When you reinstall windows - that is another challenge to restore tags :| I am curious how do you proceed. For those that produce thousands of files you must have very good methods

one more thing: as ratio for an image. When I resize an image should I maintain the ratio or I can change it? With some of them i did not kept the ratio. Could that be the reason I got: "Composition--Image is poorly composed and/or poorly cropped."? [i know this could be also because of main subject not in correct position, ...]

I came up with few images. Just to make an idea.

Sorry, in Romania Black Friday started last night. So I was kept by the event. I just bought a nice Manfrotto tripod 190xprob with 496Rc2. Hope I will not have any longer the problem with blurs and focus.

I will try tonight as now I am working.
Though, I upload a printscreen just to make an idea. 

Hi,
i uploaded about 50 images with Florence city. I upload some even before - 4 accepted out of 7. Now they were all rejected. Reasons?

Poor Lighting--Image has exposure issues and/or incorrect white balance.
Composition--Image is poorly composed and/or poorly cropped.

for mostly all of them. There are some similar to what already had been accepted. I suspect that depending by number of photos in batch the reviewer is selected. So lot of images - more experienced/strict reviewer. What do you say? Did it happened to you too?

[I cannot include now images - only tonight]

oh really? they don't accept editorial images???

Well, as I was supposing: they rejected again. 7 more days to wait.

Well, i have chosen again 3 of my best sold images on SS and uploaded. They are 2 of Pisa and one abstract. They might reject again because of diversity as ' Spray and Pray' says. If they do I will try again. But: is it allowed to resubmit from old submitted images?

Status: Rejected
Admin Note:
At this time we regret to inform you that we did not feel the overall composition of your photography or subject matter is at the minimum level of standard for iStockphoto. Please take some time to review training materials, resources and articles provided through iStockphoto. The photographs provided in your application should be diverse in subject matter, technical ability and should be your best work. Think conceptual, creative and most important think Stock photography. Try to avoid the average eye level push the button perspective of a common subject. Try and impress us, we want to see how you stand out from the crowd.

We welcome you to return after the number of days specified and upload 3 fresh samples of your work and we will re-process your application. Please note that you will not be able to upload new samples until this waiting period has passed.

I applied on 5th of March this year.
I think I will try again. In the above three images instead of second image of Pisa in fact I used another one.(I missuploaded it)
It was this:

All right.








It seems I can not post links. Only after 5 posts. As most of my images are images taken of Pisa, Firenze, Oradea i don't have a vast portfolio of different categories. So will I have success with city images?

Hi there,
For the moment I have applied and I am accepted at ShutterStock, DreamsTime, Fotolia and 123rf. But I want also to get accepted at Istock. I applied once with 3 of my accepted images on SS + DS but they did not accepted.
I can show you links to my portfolios on SS and DS. Would that be all right to post on forum so you may help me decide taking 3 of my best images in order to post on IStock?