Anna Shutterstock

@Jane McIlroy you absolutely can use the tool simply to look up keywords without uploading content. Check out the Copy mode section here: https://www.shutterstock.com/contributorsupport/articles/en_US/kbat02/Portfolio-Tools-New-Keyword-Tool

Thanks to all of you who provided valuable feedback on our new keyword suggestion tool. The comments we collected from more than 30,000 contributors have helped us prioritize what improvements to focus on - and we’ll outline those below. With these improvements, we’re confident that we are supporting contributors’ workflows, and that we can remove the older keyword suggestion tool that was located outside the Submit page. In the next few days, we’ll be removing the old page, and replacing links to it with a link to the new tool. We’ve made the following improvements based on your feedback: Added a large Copy button to clarify that it’s easy to use the tool before you upload and to copy selected keywords for use outside Shutterstock Expanded search results to show 150 image or video thumbnails Added more keyword suggestions to choose from Replaced the + icon with the text “Add all” to highlight that all the most relevant keywords can be added with a single click Fixed spacing after the commas for ease of pasting into outside applications You can hover on the thumbnail of your content to see it larger In the future, we will also be adding reverse image and video lookup features. With this feature, we will compare your uploaded items with Shutterstock’s vast library to show you visually-similar search results. You won’t have to type in your search terms, and you’ll get even quicker access to suggested keywords. As always, please let us know if you have more ideas for how the tool could be further improved. Thanks!

We have confirmed that the uploading error issues that were affecting contributors over this past weekend have indeed been resolved. However, a number of you will continue to see this error: "We can't read what's in your file. Please re-save or re-export your file, and try uploading it again" and this is due to other legitimate validations that are in place at the time of upload. If you believe your file meets all the technical requirements for footage, but you continue receiving this error at upload, please contact our support team at submit@shutterstock.com and provide a copy of the file for us to review. You can upload the file to any file sharing provider like Dropbox or any other file sharing service from which our engineers can download and examine the file. Thanks for your patience and continued participation on our platform!

Thanks so much for bringing this to our attention! Our developers were able to identify and resolve the issue that was causing the upload failures. We apologize for the inconvenience this has caused and thank you for your patience. Please report any future occurrences of upload failures to our contributor care team at submit@shutterstock.com .

We have launched a new version of the Keyword Tool that lives directly on the Submit page. The old version of this tool forced you to navigate away from your content, but the new tool keeps everything in one place. You can use our new tool to either edit your uploaded content, or to copy keywords to paste anywhere outside of Shutterstock, like Lightroom, Bridge, or any other platform or application. Please take a look at the Portfolio Tools: Keyword Suggestion Tool article to learn more about this useful feature!

@Mark A. Williams thanks for bringing this to our attention. Our product team is looking into it and the problem should be resolved later today!

@ULD photo life thanks for bringing this to our attention. Our product team is looking into it and the problem should be resolved later today!

We have discovered some issues with auto-rasterization of vectors with anti-alias settings. Our product team is working on a solution to improve the quality of these rasters. While we are developing the solution for this issue, we will hold off on reviewing submissions that are affected, so some of you may see a longer than usual review time for your submitted vectors. Our engineers expect to have a fix in place very early next week. Thanks for your patience as we work on improving this process!

The Shutterstock API is a program that has existed for a number of years and has proved to be a successful avenue for additional earnings sources for our contributors. Our Partner and Sales teams work on developing new partnerships all the time, so we do not announce these developments to contributors, as it is a constant and on-going process. In response to all the questions that were raised in this thread, we created this article on our Support Center. Please take a look and feel free to contact us if you have additional questions. Thanks!

The note to reviewer should still apply, and they must be tagged with the Mature Content tag.

Hi folks! We see there are a lot of questions being sparked by this topic. We are working on putting together an article in our support center that will address them, so please hold on. I'll post a link here as soon as it's ready. Thanks!

The new vector upload process is launching on May 13, 2019, eliminating the need to upload a JPEG preview with your EPS file. Shutterstock is an industry leader and this is an innovative, exciting launch. With your feedback in mind, we worked with a number of contributors to beta-test this process to successfully create quality auto-rasterized JPEGs. Here are the changes: You will only need to upload vectors, with no JPEG required. A JPEG will automatically be created for your vectors when you upload. This ensures there is a correct matching preview for your vectors, with consistent quality and minimum dimensions. You will be able to import descriptions and keywords embedded in EPS files. Your vectors can be up to 100 MB. All EPS files will have a 4MP minimum requirement, ensuring a consistent customer experience. In this article, you will find tips to implement in your workflow to assist with these changes. These changes will ensure that customers who purchase your vectors will be able to open and use them in a wider variety of programs. Together, we create a consistent experience for customers who purchase and use your vectors. Thank you to our beta testers for their participation in this product launch. Shutterstock strives to constantly create better experiences for our contributors for the long term. While we understand these adjustments impact your workflow, we are confident that the new workflow will help you focus on creating beautiful vectors while providing a quality product our customers have come to expect from our marketplace.

We are streamlining guidelines around the review of content with nudity and sexual themes. Up until now we accepted some content without an R-Rating and some content without a Mature Content Model Release. A Mature Content Model Release is one in which the model is over 21 years old and there is a photo ID attached to the release confirming the model’s identity and age. Starting May 20, 2019 the following types of content will require a ‘Mature Content’ tag (formerly Nudity/R-Rated, which will be updated soon in the Content Editor and mobile app) and a Mature Content Model Release if a model appears in the content. Click on the descriptions for visual examples (WARNING: LINKS BELOW CONTAIN IMAGES WITH NUDITY AND VULGAR LANGUAGE ) Content that shows gluteal cleft (the buttocks) Content with infant buttocks will not require a Mature Content tag, but will require a Minor Release, even if the model is not recognizable. Content that shows exposed female-identified nipples Content that depicts exposed pubic hair Non-explicit nudity Sexual or suggestive content Content with nudity and sexual themes that does not meet these requirements will be rejected with the Mature Content Model Release, Mature Content Designation, or Objectionable Content rejection. We will also no longer accept Documentary Editorial content with nudity in which the subject appears to be unaware of being on camera, or appears to object to the image being captured. We are also implementing stricter guidelines for content with vulgar language and profanity: We will accept content with mature language in the image or titles and keywords as long as it is tagged as “Mature Content” (formerly R-Rated.) Some terms may be rejected for Objectionable Content or Objectionable Metadata depending on how the term is used. These new guidelines will create a more consistent review experience for our contributors and will also ensure that our collection provides a consistent search experience for our customers with the Safe-Search filter.

Our Contributor Terms of Service have been updated. Below are some of the key changes that have been made: Clarification on the terms of the referral program. Further explanation of how royalty percentages are calculated. Improving how we resolve complaints. Complaints will be resolved through individual arbitration not litigation, which is a faster and less costly process. Enabling Shutterstock to send tax correspondence electronically unless you specifically request a paper copy. Clarification on when and why accounts may be suspended or terminated due to copyright infringement. Please click here to view the updated Terms of Service. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this release, please do not post questions here, contact us instead. Thanks for being a part of our community!

Hi everyone, Thank you again for all the comments and feedback you have provided. We understand the importance of having embedded metadata recognized during the upload process as well as the change in workflow when working with large files. We have collected all of your input and are actively working with our product and engineering teams to come up with the best path forward. While we continue to delve into the numerous points that were brought up in your responses, we will postpone the release of the 4MP requirement and the auto generation of JPEGs from EPS files. We’ll continue working on perfecting the tools that empower and support all of our contributors, and we’ll be back with an update soon. Thank you again for all your input and for being such an active part of our community of artists!