Dreadful QC Rating

[valestock]

Dear All,

 

I currently have one star out of three as a QC rating.

This is disgraceful, I let things worsen because I was busy with other projects and work and now I have to wait like 15 days every time Alamy reject a batch.

 

I really regret let things rot this way, but this system is really punitive. After all I have over 5000 images uploaded and I am a valuable member of this community...

 

Do you know what I have to do to improve my QC rating issue? Can I ask Alamy to have me start from scratch or something?

 

Thanks for any reply!

[Martin L]

I think the only way to improve your QC rating is to consistently submit images that pass QC.

I have no idea how long you have to do this to jump up a level.

I doubt Alamy will reset it for you

[valestock]

Thanks, Martin!

[wiskerke]

Those 5000+ images suggest you had good standing before. So you used to be able to correctly judge the image quality of your images. How come this is no longer the case?

Has anything changed in your setup? New camera? New display, like 4K; 5K; 6K; Retina maybe?

Failing eyesight? New glasses not good enough? Been there myself: dedicated computer glasses solved my eye problems, which were many all at once. Well maybe it did not solve all, but made it workable again.

 

Crawling back: very small batches (3-5) of absolutely certified safe images. Always wait until the previous upload has gone through. If all goes well the intervals will get shorter, indicating you're on the right track.

 

wim

[John Mitchell]

Adding to wise wim's advice, you might also try downsizing all your submitted images to about 3000 pixels on the long side (17 MB) for awhile to add another layer of "safety". Best of luck.

Edited March 10, 2023 by John Mitchell

[spacecadet]

+1 Wim's advice- I needed new glasses at one point I had also been shooting jpeg, but I assume you are in RAW already.

12 hours ago, valestock said:

one star out of three as a QC rating.

And now the bad news- it's out of 5, not 3. If you get to 5, your images bypass QC, subject to the occasional check, maybe one in 10 subs.

[Allan Bell]

I have been a one star since I joined back in 2008. Will not go into why as it was detailed elsewhere.

 

My last fail was back on 24th Oct 2020 and decided I was going to try to get to the 5 star rating.

 

Started loading 12 images on average and waiting for passes before loading the next batch.  This went on for a while then I became more confident and would upload three or four batches before QC looked at them and still getting passes. I was waiting up to 10 working days for the passes to come through.

 

Then the hammer fell after my last upload on 17th Feb 2023.  I was informed on 1st March that my last loads had failed QC for one image as SoLD.  I was put in the slammer for ten days and today is my release but on probation.

 

All my hard work over the period from 24th Oct 2020 is now wasted and I have to start again.

 

To be honest I don't feel like I want to put in all that hard work again.

 

Allan

 

[valestock]

3 hours ago, Allan Bell said:

I have been a one star since I joined back in 2008. Will not go into why as it was detailed elsewhere.

 

My last fail was back on 24th Oct 2020 and decided I was going to try to get to the 5 star rating.

 

Started loading 12 images on average and waiting for passes before loading the next batch.  This went on for a while then I became more confident and would upload three or four batches before QC looked at them and still getting passes. I was waiting up to 10 working days for the passes to come through.

 

Then the hammer fell after my last upload on 17th Feb 2023.  I was informed on 1st March that my last loads had failed QC for one image as SoLD.  I was put in the slammer for ten days and today is my release but on probation.

 

All my hard work over the period from 24th Oct 2020 is now wasted and I have to start again.

 

To be honest I don't feel like I want to put in all that hard work again.

 

Allan

 

Interesting and bitter story, Allen...sorry to hear that and I understand your frustration. Have you tried to contact Alamy and ask for a pardon or something? I mean, you have a pretty large portfolio, they should understand you are a valuable member!

[valestock]

4 hours ago, spacecadet said:

+1 Wim's advice- I needed new glasses at one point I had also been shooting jpeg, but I assume you are in RAW already.

And now the bad news- it's out of 5, not 3. If you get to 5, your images bypass QC, subject to the occasional check, maybe one in 10 subs.

I see only 3 stars total...maybe I am in the Second Division now...bottom of the table!

[valestock]

15 hours ago, wiskerke said:

Those 5000+ images suggest you had good standing before. So you used to be able to correctly judge the image quality of your images. How come this is no longer the case?

Has anything changed in your setup? New camera? New display, like 4K; 5K; 6K; Retina maybe?

Failing eyesight? New glasses not good enough? Been there myself: dedicated computer glasses solved my eye problems, which were many all at once. Well maybe it did not solve all, but made it workable again.

 

Crawling back: very small batches (3-5) of absolutely certified safe images. Always wait until the previous upload has gone through. If all goes well the intervals will get shorter, indicating you're on the right track.

 

wim

Great tips, thanks Wim. Thanks,

[Allan Bell]

17 minutes ago, valestock said:

Interesting and bitter story, Allen...sorry to hear that and I understand your frustration. Have you tried to contact Alamy and ask for a pardon or something? I mean, you have a pretty large portfolio, they should understand you are a valuable member!

 

No it will not do any good. Alamy's decision is final.

 

Except for the time I queried a QC decision and it was overturned. But it does not happen often. This was a special one off occasion.

 

They are not asking contributors the impossible just pass their QC which is not as onerous as some other libraries.

 

Allan

 

Edited March 10, 2023 by Allan Bell

[spacecadet]

28 minutes ago, valestock said:

I see only 3 stars total...maybe I am in the Second Division now...bottom of the table!

You have this to aim at then

[Steve F]

I'm 3 stars. Failed on my first submission. 1 fail in 8 years since. Almost always pass QC in 24 hours. 3 stars seems fine to me, but then I'm not uploading massive amounts.

[spacecadet]

6 minutes ago, Steve F said:

I'm 3 stars. Failed on my first submission. 1 fail in 8 years since. Almost always pass QC in 24 hours. 3 stars seems fine to me, but then I'm not uploading massive amounts.

Interesting to hear- perhaps there will be no more 5-star generals. They've run out of medals.

[Cecile Marion]

8 minutes ago, Steve F said:

I'm 3 stars. Failed on my first submission. 1 fail in 8 years since. Almost always pass QC in 24 hours. 3 stars seems fine to me, but then I'm not uploading massive amounts.

My history is very similar, though I didn’t start until 2017. My fail was in 2019 (needed new glasses!), so I sometimes wonder why I still only have 3 stars.

[Steve F]

Just now, Cecile Marion said:

My history is very similar, though I didn’t start until 2017. My fail was in 2019 (needed new glasses!), so I sometimes wonder why I still only have 3 stars.

 

Maybe it's not something contributors write about, but I don't recall anyone ever saying that they were promoted to 5 stars from 3 stars (we'll see if anyone chips in now!). And 4 stars doesn't seem to be a thing. 

 

I started in 2015 and still waiting...

[Cecile Marion]

If memory serves me, the five star thing seemed to happen in one great big wave near the end of 2019/beginning of 2020, right after my fail. 

[PatsyCollins]

I'm 3 stars, always have been.

I did have one image fail QC recently, but it didn't affect my rating. Used to take a few days to pass QC, now it's usually under 24 hours.

[Dave Richards]

2 hours ago, Steve F said:

 

Maybe it's not something contributors write about, but I don't recall anyone ever saying that they were promoted to 5 stars from 3 stars (we'll see if anyone chips in now!). And 4 stars doesn't seem to be a thing. 

 

I started in 2015 and still waiting...

I joined Alamy in 2014 and had one failure (SoLD) in my initial submission. Since then I have never had a QC failure and remain on 3 stars. I’m not bothered about getting 5 stars. I upload and always get QC clearance the next day which is OK.

[John Mitchell]

3 hours ago, spacecadet said:

Interesting to hear- perhaps there will be no more 5-star generals. They've run out of medals.

 

... or out of ammunition. 🤠

 

I got my big promotion to  5-star honcho a few years back, perhaps 2019, not sure. It's all a blur now. It would be interesting to hear from someone who has been promoted recently. Perhaps it was just a one-time thing.

 

 

Edited March 10, 2023 by John Mitchell

[Mr Standfast]

4 hours ago, Steve F said:

 

Maybe it's not something contributors write about, but I don't recall anyone ever saying that they were promoted to 5 stars from 3 stars (we'll see if anyone chips in now!). And 4 stars doesn't seem to be a thing. 

 

I started in 2015 and still waiting...

 

Makes me wonder if Alamy have resourced reviewing star ratings, indeed if they can import 18 million images from PA; would they feel the need to justify the cost of resourcing it? 

 

 

[Cal]

6 hours ago, spacecadet said:

Interesting to hear- perhaps there will be no more 5-star generals. They've run out of medals.

 

I suspect it's something that was grandfathered in from days gone by and won't be given to any newer members. Or that it can be awarded on a case by case basis. The fact that you only know there is a 5 star rating when you get it (lower ratings always show out of 3, not 5) says to me that it isn't a standard rating in the system.

 

I only had one fail right when I started here and since then it's all passes. Went to 3 stars almost immediately, but stayed there.

Edited March 10, 2023 by Cal

[NYCat]

I also suspect that the five star thing happened all at once and only one time. The four will not happen because it is bad luck for Asians. I forget the exact reasons but I think the words for four and death are too similar in Mandarin.

 

Paulette

[sooth]

there are likely few asian contributors on alamy, and highly doubtful superstition is the reason for not having any 4 stars. Alamy likely had big plans when this new QC system came into being, but like many features here, simply put on the back burner and never developed further while bigger and more important changes were made.

[spacecadet]

12 hours ago, Cal said:

 

I suspect it's something that was grandfathered in from days gone by and won't be given to any newer members. Or that it can be awarded on a case by case basis. The fact that you only know there is a 5 star rating when you get it (lower ratings always show out of 3, not 5) says to me that it isn't a standard rating in the system.

 

I only had one fail right when I started here and since then it's all passes. Went to 3 stars almost immediately, but stayed there.

It happened in Nov. 2019. There's something about it in this thread. My memory of seeing 3 black and 2 white stars before I got my "promotion" appears to be faulty.

The timing is right because that's when my "passed QC" emails dried up.

 

Edited March 11, 2023 by spacecadet

[IanDavidson]

On 09/03/2023 at 23:11, wiskerke said:

Failing eyesight? New glasses not good enough?

That is an issue for me.  I can no longer be sure that my images are pin sharp, even if I look at them at 100%!  Time for a return to the opticians I think.  I now don’t submit any stock unless I am absolutely sure, using a large magnifying glass….