How to Properly Check Photo Quality Before Uploading to Adobe Stock? Questions About Review Process,

[Photonoobie]

Hi everyone!

I’ve noticed, like many others here, that recently a lot of photos are getting rejected — and most of the time the reason is just “quality issues.” But it’s not always clear what exactly is wrong and how the reviewers decide.

I have a few questions and would really appreciate if anyone could share some advice:

1. Is there any official description of the review process?

   Maybe some kind of checklist or guideline that would help me evaluate my own images the same way moderators do? ( not just check focus, check noise etc, more details how to do it and what is criteria because picture is always have some noise and some not in focus )
   
   

2. How to check color accuracy properly?

   Are there any formal methods or tools to make sure the colors are correct — not just judging by eye, but using some objective criteria?
   
   

3. How to control white balance more accurately?

   At the moment, I either adjust white balance visually or use the white point picker tool, but is there a better way — for example, with histograms, reference charts, or software that tells you if the image is too warm or too cool?
   
   

4. How to avoid oversaturation?

   Is there any reliable method to control saturation levels, not just by feeling, but with actual numbers or visual indicators?
   
   

5. Are there any tools to automatically detect common technical problems?

   Lightroom helps with highlight and shadow clipping, but are there any programs that can also detect other issues like noise, incorrect white balance, oversaturation, color problems, etc.?

1. What are the best export settings for Adobe Stock?

   • Is it better to export as JPEG or TIFF?

   •  

   • Should I always resize to a certain resolution or is cropping freely okay?

   • Any advice on color profiles (sRGB vs Adobe RGB)? I use always sRGB as read in manual

   • Are there other export options in Lightroom that I should pay attention to for stock submission?

Thanks a lot in advance for any tips or recommendations!

---

[Nancy OShea]

Let common sense be your guide.

Compare your best work with current Stock inventory. 

• Is this something that Stock needs more of, or do they already have millions & millions of similar assets?
• As a customer, would you buy this?
• Is it unique in some way that sets it apart from all the rest?
• Is it the highest visual & technical quality for use in commercial projects?

Read your Stock Contributor User Guide for more tips.

• https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/reasons-for-content-rejection.html
• https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/quality-and-technical-issues.html
• https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/user-guide.html/stock/contributor/help/photography-illustr...
• https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/how-to/tips-stock-image-acceptance.html
• Model/Property Releases:
  https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/model-release.html
  https://helpx.adobe.com/stock/contributor/help/property-release.html
  
  

[daniellei4510]

TIFFs would not be accepted. Only JPGS or PNGS (if the have transparent backgrounds). ALWAYS use sRGB. We don't know of any assets being rejected for using other color spaces, but sRGB is the most suitable for print and web.

[Photonoobie]

Thanks for the clarification!

Is there any difference in the settings for Sharpening and Image Sizing?

Is a resolution of 240 OK?

And what’s better: to set it to 4K resolution, or is it enough as long as the image is over 2 megapixels?

[daniellei4510]

I use 300 ppi myself, but 240 should be fine. And the minimum file size is 4MP, not 2.

[marca62246029]

The ppi is not important, it is only used at the time of printing and can be adjusted by the person who will print the photo.

[Nancy OShea]

White Balance

https://www.adobe.com/creativecloud/photography/technique/white-balance.html

Depth-of-Field

https://photographylife.com/what-is-depth-of-field

FYI: How to Get Clean Images from High ISO Photos

https://community.adobe.com/t5/stock-contributors-discussions/fyi-how-to-get-clean-images-from-high-...

Hope that helps.

[Photonoobie]

Let’s say I’m not very good at distinguishing colors, and I would like a tool that could help me check whether my perception is accurate.

Are there any technical tools or methods that can help verify this more objectively?

[Nancy OShea]

Color is most often expressed in RGB values (red, green, blue).

Use the Color Sampler tool in Photoshop to measure the RGB values.

To make precise color & tonal adjustments from Photoshop, use a Curves Adjustment Layer. Or go to Image > Adjustments > Curves.

https://helpx.adobe.com/photoshop/using/curves-adjustment.html

After Curves Adjustment

[daniellei4510]

"

"How to control white balance more accurately?

At the moment, I either adjust white balance visually or use the white point picker tool, but is there a better way — for example, with histograms, reference charts, or software that tells you if the image is too warm or too cool?"

There are tools to help keep your monitor correctly calibrated (not cheap), but color is too subjective to measure with software or any physical devices. I sometimes use the white color balance tool to get things started on a particularly difficult image (especially when skin tones are involved), but I rarely accept its initial results. 

[Photonoobie]

Can this instrument like color checker helps me to make properly calibration, or it's is overgear for this purpose.

[daniellei4510]

I'm not familiar with it, but I'll look into it.

[daniellei4510]

OK, got it. Simply put, it will help you calibrate your monitor so that the colors you see on screen will match when an asset is printed. Unless your monitor is out of whack, it won't be of much help with regard to this thread's discussion in general. On the other hand, I rarely provide a critique on an image that looks like it needs a color adjustment when looking at it on my 5-year-old laptop, since I don't trust the colors I'm seeing on it compared to my desktop. And quite frankly, if you don't know what you're doing with a calibrator, they can really mess things up. I once had a job where the company owner's daughter was sent to a workshop on how to calibrate a monitor. She came back and started messing with things until the colors on the PCs we were using looked fine, but came out with a color cast when printed. The owner made it MY fault that his daughter messed things up and fired me. 🙂

[Photonoobie]

I think there’s just a little mix-up — this isn’t about monitor calibration. I’m actually on a MacBook, which already has a decently calibrated screen for photo work.

What I meant is using the ColorChecker to create a custom camera profile in Lightroom or Camera Raw. It helps get more accurate colors straight from the raw file, especially in consistent lighting. It’s more about color accuracy from the camera side, not the display.

First, the ColorChecker is photographed under the same lighting conditions as the actual shoot, ideally in RAW format. Then the image is processed in a dedicated application (such as the one from Calibrite), which analyzes the color patches and creates a custom camera profile. This profile helps ensure more accurate colors in Lightroom or Camera Raw for all photos taken under similar conditions.

I should mention that I haven’t used this process before myself, so I don’t actually know if it really helps a beginner learn or improve color correction for stock. Maybe someone with more experience can comment on that?

[Photonoobie]

There is a Youtube video example of process

                          How to use a ColorChecker Passport Photo 2 in Lightroom           

[daniellei4510]

I'll take a look.

[daniellei4510]

I'm just not sure it will help with that. But at only $68, it might be worth a try. What I DO know is, I received some fairly expensive color calibration equipment from one of the sponsors of a website years ago for free. I played with it and I think I only made things worse. 🙂 But this one involved thing that you placed on your screen, so the color checker you mentioned sounds different.

[Ricky336]

Bear in mind that printing is another process going from RGB to CMYK. So the printer also needs to be calibrated.

[ZALEZPHOTO]

I'm finding out that a big reason for rejections is noise, which usually is the result of over editing.

I avoid auto color corrections since often are way off, but you can use it to give you an idea of which direction your colors should go.

Zoom in on your photos at differnet times, I have been very annoyed for rejections, then later see why a great photo was rejected.  

Don't take it personally and don't give up!

[Photonoobie]

Thanks for the advice! I do check for noise — in most cases, it’s either not present or I reduce it with noise reduction tools. But you’re right, some issues can still slip through. I wonder if there are any tools or software that can help analyze noise levels automatically or highlight problematic areas, since my images are quite large and it’s not always realistic to inspect every part pixel by pixel.

[Nancy OShea]

I don't have any magic bullets for correcting images.  Like most things, it's takes practice, practice, practice & experience.

FYI: How to Clean Noise from High ISO Photos

https://community.adobe.com/t5/stock-contributors-discussions/fyi-how-to-get-clean-images-from-high-...

[ZALEZPHOTO]

I'm using Topaz for sharpening and noise reduction, I find it works most of the times, but the noise reduction can be bad with some textures and even with human skin.

Don't give up, just keep submitting more and more