You could also consider just opting out of everything on your Shutterstock profile page.  That will remove them from the searches and give you a quick way back if you change your mind.

And the neccesary question... are you sure you wan't to go iStock exclusive??

Things move so fast in micro that who knows what might happen to/in either agency in three, six months time.
Nowadays, it seems to be sensible for newbies to spread their files across agencies to see how they perform. Some people here report great things of SS, but non-standard portfolios don't seem to do very well there (from off-forum conversations), because the low prices rely on bulk sales.
If you are already on iS and doing well there, it might be that your port would benefit from exclusivity. But they are totally rudderless, switching from pillar to post desperately trying to find some way of maintaining their sales/profits.

The real trouble is in the first paragraph: Things move so fast in micro that who knows what might happen to/in either agency in three, six months time. so it is really impossible to plan for the future. Some would therefore say that spreading the risk is the only sensible strategy.

Essentially, we all have to work out our own way through the morass, but it's only a guess and we can never know for sure whether or not we made the right decision - without even the possibility of eschatological verification.

But you might want to surf around here under the istock category and read some threads about their business practices before jumping into exclusivity. They are a very unethical company.

I have deleted a few editorial pictures from SS and BigStock (last week) which went off a few days after

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Quote from: luissantos84 on May 16, 2013, 07:08

Quote from: tickstock on May 16, 2013, 06:52

Dreamstime is the one to avoid they make you wait 6 months.

actually I have deleted (disabled) some from 02/10/2013, so just 3 months

It's not relevant if you can delete some it's only relevant if you can delete all.   AFAIK they always let you delete some but you had to keep some percentage on for 6 months, even one image on Dreamstime means the OP can't apply for exclusivity.

That's right, from the time someone decides they want to go exclusive elsewhere, they would have to wait at least half a year if they have images on DT. You can only disable a certain percentage of your port immediately. Nice.

You can just opt all your files out. I've just done the same. I have been independent only a few months, but have closed all accounts except for iStock, Alamy, GL, and Getty. My main site for new work is Stocksy, which I look forward to being my uber-agency. Even as an independent iStock continues to make me far more than all the other sites including SS or Fotolia combined. I realize I had less files up than on iStock, but watching files go out for pennies was brutal. the ROI just isn't worth it IMO.

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You can just opt all your files out. I've just done the same. I have been independent only a few months, but have closed all accounts except for iStock, Alamy, GL, and Getty. My main site for new work is Stocksy, which I look forward to being my uber-agency. Even as an independent iStock continues to make me far more than all the other sites including SS or Fotolia combined. I realize I had less files up than on iStock, but watching files go out for pennies was brutal. the ROI just isn't worth it IMO.

Sorry but you're very green on how to get the most as an independent contributor. If you want good ROI, but are hedging your bets with just a few sites and ignoring a site like Shutterstock, then I believe that you will eventually find that going independent may not have been worthwhile (assuming you did it to earn more money). Go and get the most out of your port, I'm not saying you have to submit to every site, but certainly a considerable amount. Looking at what individual sales can get you is not nearly as important as looking at what a site can earn for you.