PhotoDune: Update & Next Steps

A few months ago we announced that we were going to be making big changes to how we approach photos here at Envato. Among the highlights of that announcement were:

  • A new set of quality standards
  • Refining our existing library
  • Adding photos to Elements
  • Reviewing authors, not items
  • Improving our infrastructure

With the introduction of new quality standards we began the process of reviewing our library and assessing a sample of each PhotoDune author’s portfolio.

We’ve now completed the initial phase of that review process and begun inviting qualified authors to take the next steps in preparing for the new world of Photodune. This also means that we’ll be removing PhotoDune content and upload functionality for authors who won’t be joining us in this next phase.

For authors who agree to participate, we’ll be doing a complete portfolio review and removing items that don’t meet our new guidelines. We’ll email each author in this group with an estimate of how much of their portfolio may be removed.

We’ll also be emailing authors with portfolios we’ll be removing in their entirety with more info about our decision and next steps, including how and when we’ll be removing their PhotoDune portfolio.

All decisions on photos and authors included in the next phase are final. However, we sincerely hope that any author not invited at this time, will consider submitting an updated portfolio when submissions reopen later this year.

There are likely to be questions around what this means for authors with earnings that haven’t been paid out yet. Here’s what will happen next:

  • Authors with items on other marketplaces: No change to the payout process.
  • Authors with items on other Envato marketplaces with a balance over the minimum threshold: Request a payout using the normal process.
  • Authors with a balance under the minimum threshold that only have items on PhotoDune: We will email you and attempt to send you a final payment (make sure your contact info is up-to-date).

The removal of portfolios is not something we do lightly. This process will impact every author and customer on Photodune. We believe that these steps are necessary if we want to help the PhotoDune community to be all it can be. We won’t be defending decisions made in the review process or responding to requests for appeal but we will be monitoring this thread for the next two weeks responding to your questions.

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I’ve just been told I do not meet the the new Photodune library standards. But there’s no mention as to when Photodune will send me a final payment (I’m exclusive to Photodune and my balance is under the minimum threshold). Can anyone shed some light on this?

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Very low earner site for me anyway and I already stopped submitting new work long ago so I’m not very disappointed. I do expect you to pay what is owed to those being terminated even if the balance is not over the payment threshold.

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Just pay me and get it over with.

All your changes over the past few years have led to this mess. Rather than axing contributors, you might want to have a good look in the mirror.

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So, the portfolio that makes me $5000 per month from all microstocks is not good enough for PhotoDune? Ok. :joy:

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Wow, a lot of emotion in here…

I only have 8 images on Photodune, the process of uploading everything just takes too long. I uploaded my best selling 8 images when I first started and I’ve had very few sales, while those 8 images have generated THOUSANDS of dollars on Shutterstock, iStock, Dreamstime, Pond5, etc… So it’s not like you guys are players in the marketplace anyway.

Thanks for the heads up, I appreciate it. And I really do hope that Photodune takes off and becomes a player. When it does, I’ll think about re-applying.

And I appreciate the opportunity to make a little bit of money here. With luck, things will get better.

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This is an insult.

I have been selling on Envato for years. My content was accepted like ervyone elses with an approval rate of +90%.

Now, you decided to remove my entire portfolio?!

After years of work I do not even get a specific reason? Instead all I get is a canned response?!

This is the worst possible way to get rid of a long standing contributor.

If anyone from Envato would like to talk to me about this and explain these actions, it would be highly appreciated.

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I have also had the insulting email about my work. If this is how you treat your photographers after hours of uploading, keywording and being accepted you do not deserve us. My images sell here and sell very well outside here. I have 30 years experience and qualifications in Photography so I do not take the “reviewers” here at all seriously.

Thanks Photodune,

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Wow…this is so pathetic. Instead of axing contributors who do not have sales . You’ve choose to axe my account. 1,685 sales

I’ve been in the industry longer than your puny site. The last time Istock decided to control upload limits they were over taken by Shutterstock and there are nowhere no.1 anymore . The last time Dreamstime decided there are too many similar images, they blocked it and fell into oblivion. Sites who accept huge quantities such as Shutterstock and depositphotos are successful. Not to mention, Your site have one of the worst upload process in the whole industry.

Please get on with it and delete my account. I won’t have anything to do with Envato as a client or contributor in the future anymore.

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I was very pleased to find my portfolio has been reviewed and was found to have a VERY HIGH number of photos that didn’t reach the high standards necessary. It would appear the fake news problem has spread to Envato, as I currently have zero items in my photodune portfolio, high standard or otherwise. Tremendous!

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Your decision to close my account for “not meeting the new standards” is disappointing and, frankly, insulting because the rejection email has, among other generalities, the lines reading “Inappropriate content type” as well as “Authenticity and commercial viability”. As a microstock illustrator with more than 10 years of experience and images that made several large publications, I feel not only offended by the tone of your rejection — but I regret deeply the giant waste of time and effort put into uploading my work at Envato. In a market becoming more and more competitive, I also know it isn’t only my loss, but yours as well.
The above being said, I expect that my (very small) balance to be refunded in a timely manner.
Cheers.

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While I don’t care much too much about losing my account here (I did not earn a huge amount here), I can certainly understand peoples frustration and anger after they have taken the time and effort to upload their images in a clumsy and difficult submission process. That said, I understand trying something new in an effort to find a niche for your company. I’m sure the competition is fierce in the stock arena. I wish you luck.

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No problem to delete my portfolio. BUT they must pay me even if my balance is under $50.

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Thanks Photodune for the kick in the shin, hope at least you guys pay out the commissions from the removed accounts. One less item on the bottom of my bookmarks.

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‘Over the coming weeks we’ll be removing your PhotoDune portfolio as part of our clean up process’.

What was missing was the bit about payment! When will my final payment be made (even if under the $50 minimum)? I think a lot of people would like to know this.

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Echo the thoughts of everyone above. The Dear John email was impersonal and insulting, a small thank you for being part of the Envato experience would’ve been appreciated! When can I expect payment for my non commercial images? (non-exclusive and under the minimum).

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ok, since last year i stop to upload in Envato, i think that was a lost of time, so thanks to remove my portfolio. Was very hard for me to have time to do this :wink: bye

Just received the insulting e-mail from Envato letting me know that I was being fired from the site.
Ironically enough, as I was logging in to my account, I got this pop-up on my face:


A 5 years badge! Whoohoo! Let’s celebrate!

But I have collected other badges: Weekly Top Seller; Trend Setter; Featured Item; Featured Author;…

Thanks for nothing. Shame on you.
I seriously hope you keep my portfolio online until I reach minimum payout. Almost there.

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Yeah, big loss, that $1.80 I earned from your agency. Keep the change. The same photos sell much better on the agencies that people take seriously. I didn’t even bother logging on to this useless site until I got that email that you are deleting off my profile. Thanks. At least do that right and make sure you don’t leave remnants of my pictures on your servers.

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As I have been rejected as a PhotoDune contributor, I have just deleted my item from Graphic Templates not to block the payment of my final balance in PhotoDune which shortly after the previous payment is $2.88. I hope to see it soon on my PayPal account :smile:

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