Author Topic: The Shutterstock website is a disaster area (Read 13058 times)

Desintegrator · « **on:** December 06, 2016, 08:17 »

Anyone else seeing a heap of problems? Many images from the last two weeks just disappeared from my portfolio. Even the thumbnails. Meanwhile on the contributor page the counter is showing more or less the correct number of files. When I click on images sometimes their page loads, other times not.
Looking my gallery newest firs the first page has only about half the number of photos than other pages.
Some new images appeared, had few sales, then disappeared.

Last week we had this earnings calculation problems, where Shutterstock accidentally told me that I had earned $99000 in a moment. Then it happened 4 more times in 2 days.

It's a total chaos.

I guess they can't handle the number of images they accept.
I was looking at some searches with newest first and i couldn't believe the amount of crap I see. I used to think that on average my photos are on the crappy side compared to other contributors but I had to change my mind. I've seen pile of pictures from barely different angles on the same subject, not processed properly, colorless landscapes with fully blown out clouds. Piles of photos that even a fully amateur vacation photographer should delete. All of them on Shutterstock.

I think no other major site has ever seemed so unprofessional with website falling apart.

It is worrying because Shutterstock is still the biggest earner.

Dodie · « **Reply #1 on:** December 06, 2016, 08:40 »

All that is so true but the most painful is the missing images. I can still see my last approved batch in catalog manager but they vanished from my port and from search too. These images will never see the light in search.

More than that, hundreds of images are missing and I can't track them down.
I always upload the same batch to SS, FT and DT except editorials to FT and similars to DT, still I have the smallest port on SS.

I know this is not the result of rejections, approved images are just vanishing in thin air.

DrC · « **Reply #2 on:** December 06, 2016, 08:53 »

Shutterstock is agonizing. Each week worse than the previous, sales wise. Meanwhile FT/Adobe and DT are steadily rising. This is sad, Jon... very sad...

ShadySue · « **Reply #3 on:** December 06, 2016, 08:53 »

Quote from: Desintegrator on December 06, 2016, 08:17

I think no other major site has ever seemed so unprofessional with website falling apart.

IStock beat them to that particular accolade, but it beggars belief as to why SS decided to go down the same route.

The bigger they come (and, apparently, the more they are liked by contributors), the harder they fall.

Josephine · « **Reply #4 on:** December 06, 2016, 08:59 »

sorry to tell you, no problem on my end...

Shelma1 · « **Reply #5 on:** December 06, 2016, 10:23 »

It's very sad. My stuff is now reviewed more quickly on FT and starts selling there right away, while work in my SS port vanishes and sometimes reappears.

Adobe/FT is the new SS, SS is the new iS, and iS will be history soon enough.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #6 on:** December 06, 2016, 10:30 »

The glitch with funny numbers showing gave your all-time earnings instead of your current earnings, I believe. That's what mine were, anyway.
~~I'm not sure why one temporary error (which even has an obvious explanation of what it is) should cause such angst.~~ D! I missed the beginning of the message.

alno · « **Reply #7 on:** December 06, 2016, 10:51 »

Quote from: Desintegrator on December 06, 2016, 08:17

I guess they can't handle the number of images they accept.

I guess you are right. It looks like fixing brakes on the move in a bus which is going downhill faster and faster. And they are too far from some garage startup project to make any kind of technical break.
Someday they will remember that stupid marketologist race for 100 millions of images...

angelawaye · « **Reply #8 on:** December 06, 2016, 11:03 »

I can't even bring myself to look at the search results ... My sales are falling so fast. I'm doing a lot of Family Photography this month to help with the decrease but I don't know what I will do in Jan. and Feb to make up the income ...

jefftakespics2 · « **Reply #9 on:** December 06, 2016, 11:22 »

I don't contribute much to Shutterstock any more and glad I don't depend on it .... November earnings dropped 43% from October 2016 and 60% from November 2015.

stockastic · « **Reply #10 on:** December 06, 2016, 11:43 »

It's been - I forget - 2 years since they went public? A lot of people have probably left in that time. After an IPO the pressure to deliver short-term profits just builds and builds. The people who stick around tend to be the ones with nice fat stock options; middle and lower level people burn out. They've probably lost all continuity in their IT group and the newer guys don't have the deep knowledge of the site code and infrastructure that would let them avoid, or quickly repair, these sorts of problems.

zorba · « **Reply #11 on:** December 06, 2016, 13:26 »

Quote from: DrC on December 06, 2016, 08:53

Shutterstock is agonizing. ...

I completely disagree.
"agonizing" means something different, for me.
Not the best earner, at least.

gyllens · « **Reply #12 on:** December 06, 2016, 14:10 »

Its not a matter of if they crash just a matter of when? Adobe /Ft is far better handling bugs and glitches but if you are Emerald ranking sales are going downhill.

panicAttack · « **Reply #13 on:** December 06, 2016, 15:31 »

for last several months many experienced almost no sales from new images

few weeks ago something changed and new approved images started selling much more often

and now... this. New images are can't be seen or searched. (file pending or not approved message)

When you think something changed for better, you only need to wait and rethink

Sad time for contributors

Desintegrator · « **Reply #14 on:** December 06, 2016, 17:49 »

I'm still missing 70 images accepted yesterday. They had a few sales right after approval but now they are gone.
It is not the usual "file pending or not approved message" message. This time even the thumbnails disappeared from my portfolio.

spike · « **Reply #15 on:** December 06, 2016, 18:42 »

Same here, a huge amount of images and thumbnails missing... and even if they correct that, the window for the has passed, they'll never be seen when customers search for them.

With the amount of money they have, I'd imagine they could at least keep the site running. Imagine if facebook or google suffered from these problems. Heads would roll!

kuriouskat · « **Reply #16 on:** December 07, 2016, 05:32 »

I took an overnight drop of 30% around the end of June. Now it's recently happened again, and my weekly earnings are down almost 60% from earlier in the year.

I am still uploading in the hope that the next search change will bring me back up again, but I honestly think I'm clutching at straws.

Like many, Shutterstock was my highest earner and my priority site for uploads. So sad to see what it has become in such a short space of time.

Dodie · « **Reply #17 on:** December 07, 2016, 08:11 »

I noticed that for these disappearing images the confirmation email was not sent (receives) at the time the images first showed up in port. For the batch approved on the 5th I received the email on the 6th and today they are back in my port.
Is it possible that the reviewer forgets to push the button to send them to the library once approved?

candidcruiser · « **Reply #18 on:** December 07, 2016, 08:18 »

I don't think that's the problem. I had a batch approved yesterday and I did receive an email of such. They were not in my port for a while and then they showed up only to disappear again. When I went to bed, they were all in my port and in the search results but when I woke this morning they were no longer in the search or my port. If you check your port stats though, they are all there. Something over there is definitely messed up.

BaldricksTrousers · « **Reply #19 on:** December 07, 2016, 09:42 »

Quote from: candidcruiser on December 07, 2016, 08:18

I don't think that's the problem. I had a batch approved yesterday and I did receive an email of such. They were not in my port for a while and then they showed up only to disappear again. When I went to bed, they were all in my port and in the search results but when I woke this morning they were no longer in the search or my port. If you check your port stats though, they are all there. Something over there is definitely messed up.

It sounds to me as if they have a bunch of servers and they don't update simultaneously, so if you connect to one that hasn't updated your new images are missing, if you get one that recently updated then they are there.

candidcruiser · « **Reply #20 on:** December 07, 2016, 13:42 »

That definitely sounds like a logical explanation but it has been too long now. They were on and off yesterday and back again but since this morning, they have disappeared from my port and the searches. The photo still shows in the stats but if you click on the ID number you get the message that they are under review or don't exist. It is all the photos for my last approved batch that were uploaded on the 5th. Is anyone else having this problem still.

Shelma1 · « **Reply #21 on:** December 07, 2016, 13:58 »

My last batch now seems to be visible...a week after submission and two days after approval.

cascoly · « **Reply #22 on:** December 07, 2016, 20:29 »

Quote from: panicAttack on December 06, 2016, 15:31

for last several months many experienced almost no sales from new images

few weeks ago something changed and new approved images started selling much more often

many?? much more???

according to what survey? and even if the results you assume are true that still wouldn't point to 'something changed' as the cause

too many unknowns to provide any clear statement

HalfFull · « **Reply #23 on:** December 08, 2016, 02:48 »

Quote from: panicAttack on December 06, 2016, 15:31

for last several months many experienced almost no sales from new images

few weeks ago something changed and new approved images started selling much more often

and now... this. New images are can't be seen or searched. (file pending or not approved message)

When you think something changed for better, you only need to wait and rethink

Sad time for contributors

Sorry, but for the last 2-3 weeks, any new images I upload have started selling within minutes, literally. Out of a batch of 200, 75% had sold once or more within the 1st 3 days of being live.

About a month 1.5 months ago I noticed an improvement with new sales but the last few weeks have been excellent. Hope sales of new images continue.

The likelihood is there has been a change in the algorithm a while back and that they've continued to tweak it. They'll have seen the slowdown of new images as much as we feel it so these tweaks are bound to happen. Will it last, how knows with SS, they change like the wind but hopefully it does stay. I've been uploading like a crazed man to make the most of it

panicAttack · « **Reply #24 on:** December 08, 2016, 03:49 »

Quote from: HalfFull on December 08, 2016, 02:48

Quote from: panicAttack on December 06, 2016, 15:31
for last several months many experienced almost no sales from new images

few weeks ago something changed and new approved images started selling much more often

and now... this. New images are can't be seen or searched. (file pending or not approved message)

When you think something changed for better, you only need to wait and rethink

Sad time for contributors

Sorry, but for the last 2-3 weeks, any new images I upload have started selling within minutes, literally. Out of a batch of 200, 75% had sold once or more within the 1st 3 days of being live.

About a month 1.5 months ago I noticed an improvement with new sales but the last few weeks have been excellent. Hope sales of new images continue.

The likelihood is there has been a change in the algorithm a while back and that they've continued to tweak it. They'll have seen the slowdown of new images as much as we feel it so these tweaks are bound to happen. Will it last, how knows with SS, they change like the wind but hopefully it does stay. I've been uploading like a crazed man to make the most of it

did you read my post or just part that you bold?

MicrostockGroup Sponsors

Author Topic: The Shutterstock website is a disaster area (Read 13058 times)

Desintegrator

Dodie

DrC

ShadySue

Josephine

Shelma1

BaldricksTrousers

alno

angelawaye

jefftakespics2

stockastic

zorba

gyllens

panicAttack

Desintegrator

spike

kuriouskat

Dodie

candidcruiser

BaldricksTrousers

candidcruiser

Shelma1

cascoly

HalfFull

panicAttack

Related Topics

Sponsors

Microstock Poll Results

Sponsors