ViewBug has a rating of 3.1 stars from 242 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally satisfied with their purchases. Reviewers satisfied with ViewBug most frequently mention photo contests, amateur photographer, and amazing photos. ViewBug ranks 3rd among Photo Sharing sites.
I love this platform so far. It brings the community of artist together. It also has some cool challenges
I have been entering my photos in view Bug Contest for the last couple of years. I'm no louse when it comes to landscape photography. Some of my pictures are very very good. I have lost contests such as simple ones like image of the month two pictures that are no way near as good as mine. I I'm not trying to be conceited. There are many other photos that are just as good as mine that haven't won either. Unless you're a professional photographer or pay for a yearly subscription You're not going to win It's frustrating and disheartening I have a ton of awards But they're all made up ones or pure Awards which are important Because being liked by a photographer is Probably the most important thing. It makes me not want you even try anymore as far as photo contests are concerned. I read review after review of people who are really good but, not professional or maybe don't subscribe to there yearly membership who agree 100% as far as there silly coins they are basically coupons. They had one good item it's supposedly been sold out for 2 years.
This site is wonderful for sharing photos with others, but the problem is within the contests. There are all these amazing prizes that I used to get excited about but now I've realised an amateur like me with a Canon 100D could ever win them. The photos that people post to these contests are exceptional but clearly taken with very expensive cameras. So they'll probably get the prize and sell it off or give it to someone else. I really think that this voids the point of the contests. Also people who win resubmit their photo for the next contest and could still win. Us people who haven't got £3,000 to spare are getting buried under the professionals.
Ok I just joined this week and started entering contest and challenges. Then I started voting. WOW this is big time amateur hour! I swear if I have to sit and look at another person poorly taken shot of their kid or their pet or vacation I'm going to poke myself in the eye with a fork! Look I'm not being too picky and I know there was a point 30 years ago that my images looked no better, but back then we had the common sense to know what was good and what wasn't and would have never thought of entering it in a contest. Now days everyone thinks they are good just because someone told them so. I know I am not the best photographer out there. There is always someone better but I sell my work regularly at art shows and festivals and make pretty good money doing it. With all the amateurs on viewbug I'm really curious if my work will be noticed or just passed over in the millions of poorly taken photographs.
Hello Tomas,
We very much appreciate your constructive feedback and will be sure to share your input with our management team.
We’d like to learn more about how we could have improved your experience with us. Please feel free to contact our member support team directly via email at members@viewbug.com. We look forward to hearing from you.
Have a nice day!
Your friends at ViewBug
I have enjoyed putting my photos on viewbug but its such a frustrating site, 1 when it comes to voting I can only see a few photos before going to next page (there could be 20 pages). 2 there should be some form of forum. 3 Its definately biased this is not sour grapes at all, but I have come to realise that its more who you know not what you know, seen some terrible shots win in some cases that it beggars belief. What I do now is use viewbug as a sort of link for other to see my photos. As I said frustrating because it could be a great site with a few tweeks here and there like feedback on photos etc.
Hello Paul,
We very much appreciate your honest feedback and would like to improve the situation when there has been a dissatisfaction with our service.
We'll be sure to share your input with our tech and management team and give consideration to your suggestions. We are working on some great updates to improve the member experience on our site, including better browsing and much more, so stay tuned!:)
We’d be happy to learn more about how we could have improved your experience with us. Please feel free to contact our member support team via email at members@viewbug.com. We look forward to hearing from you!
Have a lovely day!
Your friends at ViewBug
As an amateur photographer, I value everything I learn from the Viewbug community. I try join contests and challenges as much as possible and check out my competitors' work when I can and learn from them. I see some people wrote "don't waste your money - unless you pay you don't win anything etc.", I don't believe these people are being fair. If your main goal is to win something then you should just buy a lottery ticket, why waste your time with photography. Anyway, I don't mean to offend anyone and I respect everyone's opinion but if you are in this community just because of prizes then maybe you are in the wrong place so please don't blame the website because you didn't win anything.
Hello Ron,
Thank you for sharing your experience and for your support. We are glad to hear that you enjoy being a part of the ViewBug community.:-)
Have an amazing day!
Your friends at ViewBug
I can't express how much I love being a part of this community! Everyone is so welcoming and the free rewards they offer are just fantastic. Participating in contests is a bonus but the real joy comes from the support and encouragement I receive.
Hello Christopher,
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're thrilled to hear that you love being a part of our community. It's fantastic to know that everyone has been welcoming and supportive, creating a positive and encouraging atmosphere for you.
We're glad you're enjoying the free rewards and finding joy in the support you receive, this is what our platform is for after all. We're also delighted to have you as an active member.
If you ever need any assistance or have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out. Keep enjoying your time here, and we look forward to seeing more of your fantastic contributions!
Best regards,
Your friends at VIEWBUG
The photo contests are both fun and challenging pushing me to explore different styles and subjects. The judges' feedback has been invaluable learning a lot... plus I can play memorama with the best photos
Hello Carol,
Thank you for the fantastic review! We're thrilled that you find our photo contests fun and challenging, encouraging you to explore different styles and subjects. It's great to know that the judges feedback has been invaluable, helping you learn and grow as a photographer. We're delighted that you enjoy our Memorama feature as well. Keep up the fantastic work, and we can't wait to see more of your amazing submissions!
Best regards!
I tried viewbug because a few months back a friend won a brand new camera bag by being the most voted photo is a contest. Then I joined and slowly but surely started getting more into it. The members are very welcoming and all of a sudden... my photo is featured on the homepage and viewbug's facebook page. Made my day, week, month! So many positive comments I was overwhelmed. I hope I get another feature soon, it lifted my spirits so much and it was an instant push to go get more shots.
There are a lot of photo contests to chose from even for free members and some of the prizes are pretty cool. I have a friend who is an amazing photographer and he won a Canon camera body last month so he was very happy about it. I'm not a profassional photographer but I'm also not in this community to win prizes really. I enjoy sharing my photos with the community and am getting a lot of constructive feedback from my followers. As a result, I've learned a lot since I've joined to viewbug. The website is user-friendly and very helpful for amateur photographers like myself.
Hello Linda,
Thanks so much for sharing your experience. We are glad to hear that you are enjoying the ViewBug community and getting constructive feedback from your followers.:)
Have an nice day!
Your friends at ViewBug
Very friendly and welcoming Photographers community. I saw an ad for photo contests and joined. Right away I upgraded to get the additional perks and so far I'm addicted to it. The site keeps releasing new cool stuff and since I'm a mid level photographer I'm getting the best of both worlds: teaching and learning. I have not yet won a contest but I've been in touch with a couple of winners and apparently they did get their prize and have been on the site for a while. The contests makes me go out there and try different subjects and techniques. I highly recommend it with a free and a paid membership.
Let alone that it become full of porn and not only good photography, they are now raised the prices compare to last year 3 times.
That still with "special offer"
Ridiculous!
I was a member since 2016 and they do not care, going to delete my account once I know all my data will be deleted and they will not use it anymore.
It's a shame that you cannot find a propere photographers community.
Do yourself a favor and don't join them.
Tip for consumers:
Don't join !
Products used:
Platinum membership
I'm a new user of the ViewBug site and noticed that a few of my photos had indicators that they had been shared to FaceBook.
I was curious as to who had done that, as well as concerned because one of the shots was of a friend who allowed me to post to ViewBug.
I sent an email to the customer support folks asking what I'm sure has been asked of them more than once :) "Who is sharing my photos?"
I received a response within a very short time explaining that FB terms do not permit visibility to the profiles that are sharing content from a third-party site, which VB is.
A few more back and forth emails and I am content with the explanations given and by the promptness of the responses. I have decided to just remove the photos that I was worried about and to create my own watermark for anything I post going forward.
So far, so good with ViewBug. I have rediscovered my passion for photography and am digging out and dusting off all the old gear!
Hello Judy,
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We are glad to hear that you received a great service from our customer support team.:-)
We value your membership and are honored to have you as a member of the ViewBug community.
Have a wonderful day!
Your friends at ViewBug
ViewBug is a fantastic platform for photographers of all levels! I've been participating in their photo contests for over a year now and I must say it's been an amazing journey. The variety of contests they offer keeps things exciting and the community is incredibly supportive.
Hello Steven,
We're thrilled to hear that you find ViewBug to be a fantastic platform for photographers of all levels. We take pride in offering a diverse range of contests to keep things exciting and engaging for our members. It's wonderful to know that you've found our community to be incredibly supportive, as we believe that photographers thrive in a nurturing environment.
If you ever have any questions, need assistance, or want to share more of your photography journey with us, feel free to reach out. We're excited to continue this journey with you and see more of your submissions.
The VIEWBUG team.
I'm on viewbug and upgraded to start selling I was doing monthly repayments when I got 3 messages to say they where preparing to upgrade my account in other words they where going to take the money for the year without my permission so l cancel
Hi Paul,
Thanks for your post. Our Member Support Team can definitely review all upgrade/renewal matters. We do not switch monthly accounts to annual billing. For any billing or account matters, we definitely encourage members to reach out immediately to our member support team at members@viewbug.com.
The ViewBug Team
I haven't been a member for long at all, but I've already upgraded to premium. There are so many gorgeous images here. It's overwhelming... and inspiring. It really doesn't matter what level you're at there is a place for everyone on this site. Sure there are competition and the competition is extremely stiff! However, it is a great place to learn and be inspired and just marvel at all of the wonderful images.
Hello Corey,
Thank you for sharing your experience. We are happy to hear that you enjoy being a part of the community. We value your membership and are honored to have you as a member of the ViewBug family.:)
Have a wonderful day!
Your friends at ViewBug
I have been on this site for several years now, thinking I will give it a chance! Well, I've wasted too much time already! If you choose to stay here for free and never upgrade to any of the paid memberships ( there is a very aggressive sales pitch for you to upgrade), you will get no exposure at all! I'm no fool! I have some pretty decent photos, and hardly anyone looked at them! I'm told that there are a large number of photographers on this site, yet when I enter any of the challenges or competitions in order to gain exposure, I noticed that in the end a very small number of people had a chance to view my photos (50 the most if I'm lucky)! I realized that half the time, my photos are not even shown! Another thing that bothers me are the winning photos! I have seen some amazing inspiring photos on this site, and yet, half the time the winning photos are a joke! I'm through! Time to move on. Out with the old, in with the new!
Hi Gabriella,
Thank you for your post. While upgraded accounts have more access within the site which can create more exposure opportunities, free Lite members are also able to get significant exposure.
We encourage members to give peer awards and like other photos, leave comments and interact with others. Participating in photo contests and joining photo challenges are also great ways to get more opportunities for impressions on members' images/profile. These can be effective ways to increase exposure to your work and build your network in the photography community.
We also feature some of the awesome images from among ViewBug members throughout our site, on our contest headers, as well as in our social media campaigns. Features are not exclusive to upgraded memberships.
The ViewBug Team
This is a great site to learn from. Putting your photos out there for others to see is a little scary. But soon you build up confidence and start entering contests and challenges. I am not a pro but I have learned to take better photos by judging other photos and learning what appeals to me as a photographer. There are some wonderful photos on this site by great photographers,
Hi Leona,
Thank you for your honest feedback. We welcome photographers of all experience levels and we're so pleased you're enjoying your time in the community!:-)
I have not used this site for years, and saw a new charge for $59.00 on my credit card last august. After repeated attempts to reach them I was told basically sorry about your luck, and make sure not to renew again.? I told that operator and four more I wanted my account deleted, so low and behold today another $59.00 charge for another renewal. Uggh. Now there is no phone to contact, I have sent emails regarding this, and called in a dispute to my CC.
Hi Tracey,
Our team is available to support our members, including refund requests. Please send an email directly to members@viewbug.com and be sure to include your ViewBug username and the email address attached to your account.
Once you send your email to us at members@viewbug.com, you will receive an automated email right away to let you know your email has been received. A support member will review and reply to your inquiry within 24 hours. We hope to hear from you soon.
Best Regards,
The ViewBug Team
I joined Viewbug a year ago and i, and those that have watched my progress, can honestly say that Viewbug has had a huge influence on my photography! There are all skill levels from serious proffesionals who display some fantastic art, to complete novices that have some of the best snapshots on life and the world around us.
Viewbug has helped me to push myself as a keen amature photographer and viewing such a wide range of styles, my skill level has come on in leaps and bounds! Thanks Viewbug!
Hello Jon,
We very much appreciate your feedback and are happy to hear that you see ViewBug as a great tool to improve your skills.
We value your membership and are honored to have you as a member of the ViewBug community.:)
Have an amazing day!
Your friends at ViewBug
Be cautious and don't be fooled by fake rewards. Your picture won the xxxxx award! Funny after I quit I got rewards almost everyday with harassing mailing that you can't spam away. Sorry I ever joined!
Tip for consumers:
Don't
Hello Abby,
We apologize for the inconvenience you experienced. Please note that our members are able to select the type of email they received.on the email preferences section. If you need assistance, do not hesitate to contact our team at members@viewbug.com
Regards,
The ViewBug Team.
I joined this site 2 years ago when I first got into that art and I would like to say nowhere have I seen photographers that get on so well together. If you were a member of my facebook group you would know this is not the norm. I have also pushed myself as a result of the site directly and I have done well. I would def recommend to others.
Hello Darcy,
Thank you for positive and honest feedback! We truly strive to create a community that emphasizes the love of photography, creativity, and positive interactions among photographers from around the world.
Thank you for being a valued member of our extended ViewBug family!
All the best,
Your friends at ViewBug
While I appreciate Viewbugs enthusiasm, which is wonderful and is an enjoyable photo exposure platform, However, something about is not transparent, and doesn't add up. After entering a competition, It doesn't show number of views but reveals rank after a while. I clicked on 'where my photo ranked', each seperate time the numbers of each image were distinctly different by thousands to the first click. The ranking and awards don't make sense. Am I really in the top 18,000 submissions and then it may change to 12,000, on clicking the same photo again. I would like to know how? As I am busy I don't enter enough but suddenly am notified I am a curator or am now silver level, and people send messages saying the same thing. I don't know how I got to silver level or what it means. I am quite new. I bought the pro but can't find how it all works, also who to ask about building a website from their platform.
Hi Nicole,
Thanks for your input!
With regard to "page views" on ViewBug, we do not count photo impressions as 'page views'. Member's photos are seen on many different pages within the site (contest entry galleries, inspiration galleries, photo section, new photos, etc.) so we do not count every impression (aka when a photo is seen) as an actual page view. Views on our site are counted as a page view, when a photo is clicked on and the viewer is taken to the photo's individual page. This allows for the view count to be more focussed (and accurate), being tallied when a specific photo's page is viewed.
With photo contests, once a contest's voting period has begun, rankings are sent out to participants each week. The rankings are based on the voting for that specific week only, which is why rankings can change from week to week during the voting period. A photo can receive more votes in one week than in another, so each week's rankings are based on the voting during that week's timeframe.
The total number of entries is published on each contest's page, in the DETAILS section where it says "Here's How It Works". The total number of entries and your photo's ranking can tell you how your image is performing in relationship to other entries within that contest.
If you have additional questions or concerns, please feel free to contact our Member Support Team at bit.ly/EmailVB
Thank you again,
The ViewBug Team
I have been a member of Viewbug for quite a few years, I have had the pleasure of winning one of the contests with my image. I had a few problems but I have since had incredible service from their team which has helped me greatly. They have been very kind and considerate and have put any concerns I have had to rest.
Its a great way to get inspired by other photographers, and while amateurs can also participate there are plenty of professional and talented photographers to locate.
Hello Adele,
Thank you for sharing your experience with us. We are so happy to hear that you received an incredible service from our team and will be sure to congratulate them for providing an excellent service.:-)
We value your membership and are honored to have you as a member of the ViewBug community.
Have a lovely day!
Your friends at ViewBug
Man, what can I say? I read some of the good comments and some of the negative ones, and it seems sitejabber is a troll dream come true. Strangely enough negative commentators have only one review, seems to me someone is after viewbug's reputation. Most of the people I do photowalks are also viewbug members and we are more than content with this site, as anywhere else you get what you give. Submit your best shots, follow photographers you like and you'll have a great experience. You can launch your own challenge for free and get participants to vote, you can have a non-paid membership and enjoy what you want from viewbug so how can it be bad? Trolls need to get a life, photographers need to jump on viewbug. Sitejabber should have moderators test products to further validate if it is a scam or not. First and last review for me on sitejabber and thank you viewbug for being such an inspiration
Hello Alice,
Thank you for your feedback and support.
We understand it’s not possible to make everyone happy even if we do our best to provide a great service.
On the other hand, we feel lucky to have members like you and very much appreciate your support.:-)
Have a wonderful day!
Your friends at ViewBug
The main reason it is impossible to get an answer, I had a problem with two of my contests, I searched for answers and found none. I sent in requests for help, all I got was the automated answers which didn't help my situation. Also if I pay for something I would like to be able to download my photos if I should loose them. I can find no way to download them and find no answer on the automated answers. I am sure this question has been asked. I have enjoyed my time there but it seems there are much fewer photos being uploaded, most contests are the same pictures. Also there needs to be a way of deleting photos that I want to remove as having over 1,000 photos is hard to find something. So, you have to go to edit and delete and then start over again, very slow especially if you internet isn't working well.
Hi Thomas,
Thank you for your feedback!
Our Member Support Team is available 7 days per week and all inquiries are responded to within 24 hours. Our system tracks all incoming member emails and an automatic email reply is sent to confirm that our system has received the email inquiry. A live agent then replies within 24 hours (usually less)!
Cloud-based storage and/or downloading is not a feature that is currently available, though it is a feature our tech team is exploring.
If we can be of any further assistance, please do reach out to our Member Support Team at bit.ly/EmailVB
Thank you again for taking the time to share your feedback and for your participation within the community.
The ViewBug Team
Viewbug is a lot of fun and provides inspiration and education. This site exhibits amazing talent, and I enjoy getting ideas from the other amazing photographers on this site. Every week, I look forward to seeing how my photos are doing in the contests. Great fun while learning how to improve my photography. Great combination!
Hello Kelley,
We very much appreciate your positive feedback and are glad to hear that you see ViewBug as a great tool to improve your photography.
We value your membership and are honored to have you as a member of the ViewBug family.:)
Have a lovely day!
Your friends at ViewBug
Welcome to ViewBug, a creative community with the world's best photo contests. Approved by millions of photographers, the best brands and awesome judges. Join over 100 photo contests per year and browse a huge selection of quality photos.
Hello Matt,
We very much appreciate your feedback and sorry to hear that you don't enjoy our contests.
We see the contests as a great tool to explore your creativity and expertise behind specific themes and believe that in most cases you do not need sophisticated cameras to create powerful images, especially when you love what you do.
Some of our members who are professional photographers may be using expensive equipments however, we also have many members who don’t own expensive cameras and are finalists and winners.
Here is just an example where the contest winner took the winning photo with an iPhone. Please refer to the links below for more information:
Sidewalks Photo Contest Winners:
https://www.viewbug.com/blog/sidewalks-photo-contest-winners
Grand Jury Winner: “In the Fog” by francescorizzato: https://www.viewbug.com/contests/sidewalks-photo-contest/61939973
We value your membership and would like to learn more about how we can improve your experience with us. Please feel free to contact our member support team at members@viewbug.com for any questions or concerns.
Have a nice day!
Your friends at ViewBug