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Participant
August 7, 2025
Question

Rejected for "Quality Issues" – Need Feedback (IMG_8697.jpg)

  • August 7, 2025
  • 6 replies
  • 666 views

Hi everyone,

My image was recently rejected by Adobe Stock with the reason "Quality Issues." I’d really appreciate your help identifying what specifically might be wrong so I can improve future submissions.

Here is the description I submitted with the photo:

"Aperol Spritz cocktail with orange slices and ice cubes in a wine glass, served on a wooden block with crushed ice. Refreshing summer drink, perfect for bars, menus, and lifestyle use."

I’ve reviewed the image, but I’m not entirely sure if the issue is with sharpness, exposure, noise, or something else. I'd be grateful for any constructive feedback.

Thank you in advance!

File ID: 1630548251
Filename: IMG_8697.jpg

6 replies

jacquelingphoto2017
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 8, 2025

Hi @Alex GooDWiN ,

The first file is either underexposed or has a white balance issue. It has a grey-blue tint. The other two are similar. Submitting similar images can earn you a deactivated account. 

Best wishes

Jacquelin

RALPH_L
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 7, 2025

Your problem is the underexposed shadows. This can easily be seen in the histogram.

 

Jill_C
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 7, 2025

I just looked at the others. If you submitted all 3, you should have earned a rejection for "similars".

Jill C., Forum Volunteer
Jill_C
Community Expert
Community Expert
August 7, 2025

IMG_8697.jpg - perhaps the blownout area at the bottom of the glass stem could be the reason. However, it would also have been rejected for use of the trademark name "Aperol" in the keywords and title.

Jill C., Forum Volunteer
Participant
August 7, 2025

Hey Alex,

I took a look at your description and issue — and I’ve seen similar rejections before. Based on what you wrote, there are a few common quality factors Adobe might be flagging, especially with beverage photos:

  1. Focus & Sharpness: Even slight softness (especially near the rim of the glass or ice) can trigger rejection. Try zooming in at 100–200% to check for micro-blur.

  2. Lighting & Exposure: Harsh highlights from reflective surfaces like glass or ice often cause blown-out spots. Also, crushed ice on wood can confuse the auto QA checkers due to texture clashes.

  3. Color Noise or Artifacts: If you shot in low light and brightened it later, noise may appear in the shadows — especially around the wooden block or background.

  4. Chromatic Aberration: Check the edges of the glass for color fringing. It’s subtle, but Adobe bots sometimes flag it.

To double-check how food/beverage photos are framed and accepted, I recently came across this reference site — it’s not mine, but I used it while trying to understand what makes images “stock-acceptable,” especially for breakfast and drink settings: McDonald's Brekfast Menu 

Hope that helps — good luck with your next submission!

Participant
August 7, 2025

This is actually super helpful — I hadn’t thought about how reflective surfaces like ice and glass could confuse QA checks. Definitely going to recheck some of my own shots now. Appreciate the breakdown!

ZALEZPHOTO
Inspiring
August 7, 2025

I want to understand, did you submit the three photos or only one? 

I took a look at image 8700  and frankly I'm not sure why it got rejected for quality issues... you used a sharpenning tool, perhaps a bit too much, but it's only noticeable very close.  It's also a bit blue, warm it up a little and add a tiny bit of vignete. Then resumit and see what happens.

Good Luck

ZALEZPHOTO
Participant
August 7, 2025

Hi Francisco,

Thanks again for your feedback!

Just to clarify — I actually submitted 5 photos from the same series, and unfortunately, all of them were rejected for the exact same reason: "Quality Issues." That’s why I’m trying to figure out what went wrong.

I’ll definitely follow your suggestions — tone down the sharpening, warm up the tones a bit, and add a slight vignette — and see if that helps on resubmission.

Appreciate your help!
— Alex

ZALEZPHOTO
Inspiring
August 7, 2025

I get a lot of harassment in this forum for telling people to resubmit...  the fact is that some photos were approved on the 4th try, then sold soon after.  I stopped doing that, now I just go straight to Getty where almost always the rejection here is accepted there. 
So use your own discretion when resubmitting!

best of luck

ZALEZPHOTO