OCUS Reviews 

I have photoshoot that has been rescheduled twice but it’s difficult in the platform to reschedule due to it is blocked and same with getting a reschedule or photographer fee because you have to click the wrong button just to process it and i end up not getting a rescheduling fee.

After dozens of messages and false promises, I still haven't received my payment after 25 days of waiting. I was also promised that I would receive my money yesterday, December 23rd. Your salary was definitely paid to you for Christmas. I didn't have that luck, just incompetence, inconsistent promises, and messages from a terrible photographer support team. Truly a disgrace.

Il y'a souvent des erreurs d'adresse, des shootings sur Paris alors que le client est en province.

merci

OTTIMA AZIENDA

I had a call from an Ocus representation a short while ago. That was a very positive experience. I had some issues and it was good to talk about it. Unfortunately the issue remains :(
Their way of working is very rigid and inflexible. But as a side hustle I guess it is ok the way it is

Le principe est plutôt pas mal; En tant que photographe, on shoote, on transmet les photos et OCUS s'occupe du reste... "Push the button, we'll do the rest", comme clamait Kodak aux début de la démocratisation de la photo!
Côté rémunération c'est faible ça mais permet éventuellement de combler des trous dans l'agenda pour limiter la casse dans une période creuse.
Après, c'est une plateforme en ligne; on se demande parfois si on parle avec une personne ou une IA, ou parfois on parle pas...

Very bad and super slowly service. It looks everything so complicated. Nobody cares about you.

Desde que OCUS migró a su nueva plataforma, trabajar con ellos se ha vuelto extremadamente complicado. Sesiones realizadas hace semanas siguen sin validarse, el soporte técnico no responde a ningún mensaje y existen problemas graves para vincular cuentas de pago como Payoneer.
Actualmente no hay forma de saber cuándo se cobrarán los trabajos realizados ni de obtener respuestas por parte del equipo.
Considero importante que otros fotógrafos conozcan esta situación antes de aceptar encargos, ya que la falta de comunicación y de gestión afecta directamente a nuestro trabajo y a nuestros ingresos.

Je suis photographe professionnelle et Ocus est l’une de mes sources de revenus, mais de loin la pire.
La plateforme est mal conçue : par exemple, nous ne sommes pas autorisés à modifier nous-mêmes la date des missions. Tout doit obligatoirement passer par le support, et les réponses prennent parfois des jours, des semaines, voire n’arrivent jamais.

La politique de compensation pour les missions annulées par le client est absolument dérisoire : le délai est fixé à 12 heures avant le début de la mission (comment est-il possible de combler un créneau libre dans un agenda avec seulement 12 heures de préavis ?), et la compensation ne représente que 30 % du montant de la mission — c’est un manque de respect envers le photographe et envers son engagement vis-à-vis de l’entreprise.

À titre de comparaison, l’un de vos concurrents applique une compensation à 100 % du montant de la mission lorsque le client annule moins de 24 heures avant l’horaire prévu.

Une autre politique tout aussi problématique concerne l’attribution des missions : elles apparaissent uniquement sur une carte, sans aucun système de notification. Cela signifie qu’il faut rester connecté en permanence pour espérer obtenir une mission. Il serait indispensable de mettre en place un système d’alerte lorsqu’une mission est disponible — ce serait alors la loi du premier à répondre à la demande. Ce ne serait certes pas idéal, mais nettement préférable au fait de devoir consulter une carte toutes les cinq minutes.

Un autre aspect très problématique pour les photographes concerne le délai de livraison des photos : celles-ci doivent être livrées avant minuit le jour même de la prise de vue.
Je comprends que le délai soit court, puisque l’entreprise vend précisément la rapidité de livraison, mais il serait bien plus cohérent de fixer ce délai à, par exemple, 12 heures après le début de la mission.

En l’état actuel, si j’ai une séance photo en fin d’après-midi et que j’enchaîne ensuite avec un dîner ou un apéritif entre amis, je suis contrainte soit d’emporter mon ordinateur et de travailler pendant un temps qui devrait relever de ma vie personnelle, soit de rentrer chez moi avant 23 heures afin de pouvoir livrer les photos dans les délais imposés.

Trabajo con Ocus como fotógrafo freelance y, lamentablemente, mi experiencia en los últimos meses ha sido frustrante.

Aunque la empresa trabaja con clientes grandes y atractivos, la realidad operativa deja mucho que desear. La nueva plataforma presenta fallos constantes, falta de estabilidad y, sobre todo, cero transparencia en el sistema de asignación de trabajos. Como colaborador, es imposible saber qué se está haciendo mal o cómo mejorar para acceder a más proyectos, lo que genera una sensación de arbitrariedad total.

A esto se suma un problema grave: retrasos en los pagos. En un trabajo freelance, cobrar en tiempo y forma no es un extra, es lo mínimo. Tener que perseguir pagos o esperar más de lo acordado afecta directamente a la planificación financiera y a la confianza en la empresa.

Además, muchos procesos parecen diseñados sin tener en cuenta la realidad del trabajo en campo (contactar restaurantes que no responden a números desconocidos, gestión de desplazamientos, tiempos ajustados, etc.), lo que añade estrés innecesario al día a día.

En resumen, Ocus tiene potencial y buenos clientes, pero actualmente la experiencia para los freelancers es opaca, poco fiable y mal gestionada. Hasta que no mejoren la plataforma, la comunicación y la puntualidad en los pagos, no puedo recomendarla como partner profesional

Llevo 5 años trabajando con Ocus. La comunicación con el soporte siempre ha sido su punto débil, pero desde el cambio de plataforma han surgido muchos más problemas, lo que ha reducido considerablemente mi motivación para seguir subiendo fotos.

La conexión no funciona correctamente y llevo una semana solicitando la vinculación de mi cuenta de Payoneer para poder cobrar una factura que ya está aprobada. Durante todo este tiempo no he recibido ninguna respuesta ni he visto cambios en la web.

En esta ocasión, Ocus me ha hecho un “gran regalo” dejándome sin cobrar justo antes de Navidad.

A lot of photosessions. But the support - sometimes is not available, there is a lot of situation that support is needed immediately and that's a problem. But in general - I really like you :)

I would give this company 1 star but I am complicit in working for them.
This company is complete garbage. It is a headache and wastes both photographers and clients time. You will probably never talk to a human being on the company side but will spin in circles with bots and low grade AI. This company is everything wrong with technology in business. On top of that they set everything up in the most moronic way.

From Paddy Boyle, PHOTOGRAPHER

Hi,

After working with Ocus for over 6 years I have decided to call it a day.
The reasons are stated in full below not that an international corporation like Ocus will take note of my statement.

I have completed roughly 1000 missions and at the beginning all was fine.
Although I was not ok with the miserly one third compensation fee for missions cancelled that were not my fault. But I lived with it.
Neither was I ok about the zero mileage for distant missions that I accepted.
Although this could be somewhat negated by organising a number of missions at the same location.
Losing copyright, normally something I would never agree too, was not an issue with me as the photography required was very low in artistic and personal merit.

I WAS annoyed by the lack of increase in photographic fees over that period.
With inflation, parking fees and fuel costs rising and the €45 fee remaining static this has meant a reduction in actual money earned and a saving for Ocus, increasing their profits.

The slow progression of stricter guidelines has also played a part in my decision to quit.
The introduction of the rating system was an insult to most professional photographers who absolutely know what good food photography is, but €45 fee does not warrant exceptional photography.
The launch of the new platform and engagement rules is a game changer for the worse.
It is mentioned in your launch statement that these new guidelines are to help the photographers.
They most definitely are NOT.
They are to minimise the costs, responsibility, risk involved and workload to Ocus whilst increasing the burden of these elements onto the photographer.
The photographer looses the right to control his/her own calendar and to re-arrange with the client directly.

The photographer is the one who has to deal with awkward clients who do not want to prepare food, lack of preparation of food on time and moaning about the waste involved.
Clients who cancel on a whim with no regard for time wasted and money lost.
Ocus have no regard for these issues that the photographer has to endure.
And please do not reply that the new guidelines are here to help, THEY DO NOT.

The final straw for me came this month when I accepted 8 missions.
One was shot with no complications.
One was shot with the client complaining about waste of food and wished to use his own photos that were not suitable, after much coaxing he complied in the end.
One was unassigned by Ocus even though I stated on the platform that I was waiting for the client to fix a time for the shoot and that he would get back to me.
Two were unassigned by Ocus because I was unable to make contact with the clients in the prescribed time.
Two were cancelled by clients who did not want or required photography in the first place.
And finally, my most recent job (still active) was cancelled by the client when I phoned up to confirm the shoot, we rearranged the shoot but Ocus REFUSED ME COMPENSATION!
So now I will no longer work for a company who has sunk to such a low level of respect for its suppliers.

So for all the reasons above I will say Adieu (Politeness stops me from being more forthright) .

Regards
Paddy Boyle Photographer

P.S. I hate the term ‘mission’. They are not that precious.

No hay nadie que hable Español para poder hablar y explicarle los problemas. Es una perdida de tiempo intentar solucionar nada, ya que solo hay opciones de respuestas ya preestablecidas que nunca se acercan a lo que ocurre en realidad. Nadie se ha planteado revisar los precios del combustible y poner al día el pago por desplazamiento.

Poor communication, lack of trust with their photographers. Fees are extremely low and getting lower.

Ocus is very inflexible, hard to contact and underpaying as a photography provider. There is absolutely no one who looks after your rights, or who supports you. Be aware.

I have been working with OCUS for almost two years, and unfortunately, my recent experiences have been extremely negative. The new platform is full of errors that make the job difficult — and often impossible. On top of that, I have been waiting for two weeks for a response regarding a serious issue that directly affects my ability to work, and so far, I have received no answer.

Another very concerning point is the drastic drop in session rates, which are now appearing at below €20, making it increasingly unfeasible for photographers to continue working under these conditions.

Customer support has also become much worse: tickets remain open for days or even weeks, with no solution, no feedback, and no real assistance. It feels like we’re completely on our own when it comes to dealing with all the platform issues.

I’m disappointed to write this review, but I believe transparency is essential. I still hope OCUS takes these concerns seriously and rebuilds the trust and stability that once made the partnership worthwhile.