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 1. Feb 24, 2007 10:25 PM admin | ======================= REJECTIONS EXPLAINED ======================= Your pics got rejected and you are just about to send hate mail to us? Read this document, maybe we have an explanation! :) 1. QUALITY ============ -- Noise -- Photos are usually rejected due to noise when the digital camera was set to a higher ISO level. Different cameras produce different amount of noise and compact cameras are usually much worse than digital SLR's with the same ISO settings. Tip: in daylight experiment with shutter speed and aperture values, and in low light situations always use a tripod. You can use noise reduction software as well, but they tend to do to some damage to the photos. You will lose some data, so it's only worth it if you have a camera with a high resolution. -- Blur -- We reject a photo for being blurry if we cannot find the focal point or if there's unintentional motion blur due to the high speed of the subject or due to camera shake. Low depth of field is of course no problem. Tip: to avoid motion blur make sure to set a higher shutter speed, lower aperture and if there's no other option, a higher ISO. -- Lighting -- Photos are all about lighting. We usally reject photos for being too dark and for using direct flash. Too dark is an obvious reason, you simply need to get more light somehow, either by getting more light sources or by experimenting with camera settings. As for flash, never use it directly, always bounce it, because you will get much softer shadows and a more natural feel. There are many great tutorials about lightning and flash use on the web, even on SXC! Feel free to browse our tutorial section for lighting tips: http://www.sxc.hu/tutorials -- Editing -- We reject photos for bad editing when the editing skills of the user aren't sufficient. This includes, but not limited to lack of editing, bad cropping (eg. something is missing or there are unnecessary details on the pic), bad isolation (eg. the user tried to cut the subject out but in a very ugly way), excessive filters / image processing tools (too many effects, too much noise reduction), upscaling (eg. the user resized an image in Photoshop to make it twice as big which makes the image blurry). Tip: take your time and edit the pictures carefully. -- Compression -- We reject files for compression problems when the actual file size does not represent the resolution of the image and we can see JPG compression artifacts all over. Tip: make sure not to compress the images too much. Compression settings can be found in most photo editing software. -- Background -- If your photos have been rejected with the "unsuitable background" reason, that's because there are too many distracting elements in the background of the images. Tip: make sure to use a low aperture value to blur the background or try to take the picture from a different angle from where the subject would be more dominant. 2. CONTENT ============ -- "We are not looking for images like this" -- This is probably our most common rejection reason so it is probably the most annoying as well, however we aren't using it to make people mad. SXC is unlike the rest of the photo sharing sites out there. Our users are looking for stock photos, so some subjects don't really work here, like vacations, pets, unknown buildings and street scenes. They are more happy with business related imagery, isolated objects, portraits, contemporary life scenes and seasonal images. Good concept, colour and composition is a plus. To see what kind of images people find useful, please take a look at our top downloads: http://www.sxc.hu/category/9002 We also have to mention that we approve photos even from an unwanted category if they are really good, and we tend to be stricted with those type of images that we get a lot of. 3. LEGAL / COPYRIGHT ============ This is probably the most confusing part. If you got the weird "copyrighted material" rejection, you should read this section. -- Logos / trademarks -- We reject photos with logos and trademarks on them with a few exceptions where it's inevitable to have logos (eg. Times Square, NYC). To avoid this, please edit your images before uploading them. -- Product designs -- Be careful with photos of famous products like iPods, Ferrari cars etc. If the subject of the images is too unique they might get rejected because they are practically useless. Generic looking items can be used for various purposes, whilst for example you cannot use a photo of an iPod for anything. This is a pretty gray area and since it's impossible to list all the products you shouldn't upload, be prepared for rejections. -- Artworks -- Make sure you don't upload photos of other people's intellectual properties: artworks, designs, paintings, statues, graffitis, street art and other similar works. -- Trademarked buildings -- If you took some photos of a building or a monument and they got rejected, that might be because you need to get permission from the owners first. For example, you are not allowed to upload night shots of the illuminated Eiffel Tower because they can only be used for editorial purposes. Of course, just like for product designs, it's impossible to come up with a list of buildings, so please excuse us for the occasional rejections. 4. FAQ ============ Q: How come you rejected my photo when this and this picture is online? A: Upload rules are updated regularly, and we don't apply the new rules for previously uploaded images, so you might find quite a lot of photos that don't comply with our current set of rules. Photo approvals are also a bit subjective as there are no two people who think the same way. We try to do our best to minimize the factor of subjectivity though. Q: I don't agree with the rejection reason. How can I get a second look on my images? A: If you think your images have been rejected by mistake, you can try uploading them again to get a second chance, but that's not a guarantee that they will get through. Q: How can I contact the admins directly about a rejection? A: Please don't. We kindly ask you to respect the decisions of the admins. However, if you have a question that is not covered by either the Upload rules section of the Help ( http://www.sxc.hu/help/5_2 ) or this document - and only then -, feel free to start a new thread right here, in the Policy questions category of the forums. Thank you very much for your understanding! Thanks for reading! More info on sharing photos: http://www.sxc.hu/help/5 |
 2. Feb 25, 2007 2:50 AM iikozen | Sounds good! :) |
 3. Feb 27, 2007 10:46 PM Zela | I will be checking this section regularly to try and answer questions ;-) Thank you for the general explanations listing. |
 4. Mar 15, 2007 11:47 AM bosela | Another helpful article. I know that most of this information already existed elsewhere, but I think that this presentation will benefit a lot of people. |
 5. Mar 26, 2007 7:55 PM crisserpa | My fotos are rejected and the message are: "only mathing key word". But I have changed every word and nothing is happening. Cris Serpa |
6. Mar 27, 2007 9:30 PM iikozen | Cristiana, You need to add more keywords to your photos. For ex: flower,orchid,pink,spring,garden :) PS lindas bromelias! |
7. Mar 31, 2007 3:55 PM mishahu | I submitted a photo 748196 that I thought would be good for somethings missing, which was rejected due to poor lighting. Set it up again and submitted another two 751039 and 751040 which are now rejected "thanks, but we are not looking for such images". I believe that they depict a scene that is not in the database, and also that addresses the concept or something missing, and which I also think is a "contemporary life scene". This sounds like a whinge ... but I do want to understand the process. Thanks |
8. Apr 1, 2007 4:41 AM bosela | @7 David, Can you give us links to picture? To share a rejected / pending image with others: - Click on the image thumbnail to open up the full size image. - Right click on the full size image and select the option 'copy image location' - When you paste the URL that would have been copied, it should look like this 'static.sxc.hu/XXXX' - This is a private link to the pending image while it is in pending The instructions are from Arjun Kartha. |
9. Apr 1, 2007 8:54 AM mishahu | Here you go. I agree about the lighting of 748196. The others? http://static.sxc.hu/m/mi/mishahu/748196- _10366099.jpg http://static.sxc.hu/m/mi/mishahu/751039- _39961673.jpg http://static.sxc.hu/m/mi/mishahu/751040- _79571456.jpg |
10. Apr 1, 2007 1:20 PM bosela | First, I think you should raise this matter in the contest "sticky" thread under General Chat. It will probably get more attention there. In my opinion 748196 and 751040 could legitimately be rejected for various technical reasons, not "we are not looking for such images." when we have a contest going on to the contrary. 751039 seems like a good candidate for the contest. You have to take the reasons given for rejection with a gain of salt. There are just too many variables at work in the review process. If you want more in depth analysis (along with some blunt opinions) you can ask for criticism by posting links to images (rejected or otherwise) in the "Photo critiques" forum. http://www.sxc.hu/forums/category/4 |
11. Apr 1, 2007 2:12 PM mishahu | Thanks George, I also thought 751039 was the best, and I agree I have a lot of learning to do about making better photos. I wasn't keen on giving the idea away as I still think it's a good subject for the comp. Just have to give a bit more thought to the set-up ... Perhaps after the comp participants can make a thread for the ones that weren't accepted. |
12. Apr 2, 2007 3:14 PM karim100 | salam |
13. Apr 20, 2007 3:28 PM Snickup | So, even if a pic is for a contest, you'll reject it if it's too common or not in high demand? So, now, I have to reconsider every single pic I take. I didn't realize that ya'll had these specifications. I'll keep this in mind from now on. By the way, this explanation is greatly appreciated. (I hope this doesn't sound resentful, because it's not meant to be) |
14. Apr 30, 2007 11:21 PM aleeeek | So, if a picture gets rejected, and you fix the error, is there something i can do to re-submit it? Or do i have to upload them once more? |
 15. May 21, 2007 9:25 PM ZaNuDa | My photo #789740 is rejected by copyright reason. Is it possible, that the building of Louvre museum is copyrighted even in it's parts? Or the pyramid in front of it is copyrighted? And who is the copyright owner in this case? Thanks in advance for the answers, if any. |
16. May 22, 2007 12:51 PM bosela | Vladimir, It's easy for posts to these sticky threads to be passed over. You may have better luck if you posted your question as a new topic in this forum. When you do that you can share access to rejected images by including a link to it using one of these methods: - Click on the image thumbnail to open up the full size image. - Right click on the full size image and select ‘copy image location' - When you paste the URL into the message you are entering, it should look something like this ....://static.sxc.hu/b/bo/bosela/999999 The leading "...." represent "html" which I substituted so that my reference did not appear as an actual link. This is a private link to the pending/rejected image. Make sure that the link contains "static". Or, you can load the image to another image sharing site and provide the link in your message. |
17. May 22, 2007 7:43 PM ZaNuDa | George, thanks a lot for quick and detailed answer on my question. Sorry for off-topic posting, I'll certainly try to follow your recommendations. |
18. May 29, 2007 5:55 PM crisderaud | it wouldn't be a bad idea to insure that everyone has read this before they start submitting photos on the site. It could be included as part of the policy you are supposed to read when you sign up. Just a thought. ~Cris |
 19. Jun 16, 2007 8:10 AM monobp | hola, no se inglés. las fotos del payaso, son retratos de gente amiga, friends, no problem!!! he visto mil retratos en este sitio. espero que las acepten. saludos desde argentina, muy bueno y útil este sitio!!! felicitaciones! monobp |
 20. Jun 17, 2007 7:21 PM soultga | This is very helpful - thanks admin! |
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