Why is it not possible to upload certain types of images to Picfair Stores?

There are several reasons, but all are to help you increase the chances of making sales in your store, and make sure that your images are pr

First and foremost, Picfair is a storebuilder for photographers, and we celebrate all kinds of photography in its purest form. The team at Picfair collectively have decades of experience behind them in the photography industry and know from experience that heavily edited or heavily filtered images do not sell well. These images can also frequently run into problems when customers are unhappy with the image quality after download or purchase them as a print. So to keep customers happy, we do not accept them in stores.

Also, when it comes to CGI, AI and composite images, these can be fraught with complex copyright issues and are not covered in the Picfair Licence Agreements, so we don’t accept these in stores to keep you protected from any ugly copyright issues that may arise.

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For a more detailed breakdown of our guidelines and what you cannot upload to your Picfair Store, read on:

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Non-photographic images:

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All images uploaded to Picfair must be photographic in the true sense of the word, and therefore, we do not accept any of the following (that includes photographs of them):

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-  CGI images
-  Illustrations or drawings
-  Paintings

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Filters and edits:

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Editing images is a significant part of any photographer’s journey, and we encourage photographers to build their skills in this area (see our editing and post-production section of Focus for all of the tutorials). However, we ask that the context of any edits remain true to the original photograph if you’re uploading them to your Picfair Store.

What we mean by this, is that we happily accept photographs with filters and edits applied which complement the original photograph (such as contrast, colour and exposure enhancements made in software and apps like VSCO, Photoshop and Lightroom). However, we don’t accept images that have been edited significantly to the extent they no longer represent a likeness to the original photograph.

We also don’t accept images with filters applied that transform the shot into what could be considered a graphic image, or digital illustration or render the scene to look like a drawing or painting.

We have this policy in place predominantly to help you make more sales – we understand that photography is subjective and beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, from an image sales point of view, as explained earlier, we know from experience that buyers prefer photographs that have minimal edits and look as close to the original image taken as possible.

Here are some examples of the types of filters and edits that we do not accept:

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Composite images and collages:

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We don’t accept images that have been constructed from two or more different photos, as well as photo collages. This includes grouping images together in one frame (why not upload them all separately!)

Here are some examples:

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Borders:

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We know from experience that buyers like a clean, text-free image that gives them the flexibility to use as and how they need. Any additional text or heavy, intrusive borders can prohibit buyers from using the images as they would like, and therefore we don't accept these on Picfair Stores.

Adding a simple white, black or filmic border around your image (that doesn’t overlay the image itself) is fine but anything more than that will not be accepted.

Here’s an example:

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AI images:

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We do not accept images generated by AI (artificial intelligence) uploaded to Picfair Stores. This is because our License Agreements do not cover AI content, as all images uploaded to Picfair Stores must be an original photograph taken by the copyright holder (the photographer).

AI-generated imagery is an evolving area, and copyright over content in AI imagery is complex in nature - with elements in AI images often derived from multiple copyrighted sources - Picfair’s licenses do not cover this.

Any AI-generated images will not be accepted when passing through Picfair’s moderation process, however, we may update our policy in the future as AI-generated imagery continues to evolve.

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Final thoughts:

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We hope you find these guidelines useful, and that you also understand the reasons as to why we don't accept certain types of images to Picfair Stores.

Of course, defining the level of editing and filters applied to images can often be a subjective process, and if you have any questions about whether your image might, or might not be accepted, please don’t hesitate to contact us and we’ll be happy to provide guidance.