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A Collection is how every event lives on Fokus. One race, one wedding, one company offsite — one collection. Everything you upload, sell, and get paid for is grouped under it. This guide walks you through creating one from scratch, end to end.

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Before you start

You don’t need to upload photos yet. You can finish the collection setup first and add photos after it’s saved or approved.

A cover image

JPEG, PNG, or WebP. Up to 5MB. This is the thumbnail buyers see when browsing — pick something that captures the event.

Event date and location

The actual day of the event and the city it happened in.

A price per photo

Required for marketplace collections. Whitelabel (private host) galleries don’t sell through Fokus, so pricing doesn’t apply.

Event link (optional)

Facebook event, race website, organiser’s page — helps approvers verify the event is real.

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Open the New Collection form

From your Dashboard, click Create New Collection in the top right. Or from the sidebar, go to Collections → New Collection. You’ll land on a form titled New Collection.

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Pick a distribution mode

This is the most important choice on the page. It changes everything that follows — what’s required, what’s optional, and what buttons you’ll see at the end.

Marketplace

Sold on fokus.ph. Customers find your collection through search, browse, and selfie‑search. Needs admin approval before it goes live. Pricing and platform commission apply.Choose this when you want Fokus to bring buyers to you.

Custom (private host)

Available on the Whitelabel plan. Displayed on your own domain (e.g. gallery.yourstudio.com), set up beforehand under Settings → Custom domains. No admin approval needed. No checkout — the gallery is free to view.Choose this when the event was paid for separately (a wedding client, a corporate gig) and you just need to share photos with the people who hired you.
Custom (private host) requires a Whitelabel subscription. If you haven’t subscribed yet, the option will be locked — reach out to [email protected] to learn more about Whitelabel, or simply use Marketplace mode, which is free and available to all photographers.
Not sure? Pick Marketplace. Most race and public‑event collections live there. You can’t switch a collection’s mode after it’s created — if you need the other mode, create a new collection.

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Upload a cover image

Click the dashed box in the Cover Image section and choose your file. The preview appears immediately. You can change it later from the collection page.

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Fill in the details

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Set visibility and access

These two settings live together in the Visibility & Access card.

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Visibility — who can find your collection

Anyone can find and view it. Appears in marketplace search and browse. This is the default.
Only people with the direct link can view it. Won’t appear in search or browse. Useful for sharing with a specific audience.
(Whitelabel / private‑host only.) Nobody can access the link, even with the URL. Useful while you’re still preparing the gallery.

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Who can contribute — who’s allowed to upload photos

You’re the only photographer. This is the default.
You invite specific photographers by email. Good for an event you’re co‑shooting with a small team.
(Marketplace only.) Any photographer can request to join. Toggle Auto‑approve if you want their requests to skip your review queue.
If you’re running an event with multiple shooters (a marathon with a team of photographers), pick Invite Only or Anyone. Each contributor uploads their own photos and gets paid for their own sales.

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Set your pricing

The pricing section disappears for Whitelabel (private‑host) collections — those galleries aren’t sold through Fokus.

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My Price per Photo

This is the price you’d like buyers to pay per photo. Think of it as a suggested price — the final price that goes live on the marketplace depends on the event category.

Running & Triathlon events

These use standard platform pricing set by Fokus. Even if you enter a different number, the listed price will be aligned with the standard for that event type. This keeps pricing consistent for runners across the marketplace.

All other event categories

Pricing is reviewed case‑by‑case during approval. The price you enter is a starting point — our team may approve it as‑is, or reach out to align on a fair number based on the event type and audience.
Why does Fokus standardise running and triathlon pricing? These are our highest‑volume event categories — keeping prices consistent makes the marketplace feel fair and predictable for buyers, which lifts conversion for every photographer covering the event.
As you type, the Earnings Preview on the right updates live:
  • What you take home per photo after platform fees
  • A breakdown bar showing your earnings vs. the platform fee
  • Projected total if you sell 10, 50, or any custom number of photos
Promo rate: 15% + ₱4 per photo. Fokus is currently running a promotional commission rate of 15% + ₱4 fixed per photo — applied to every collection approved during the promo. Once your collection is approved, this rate is locked in, so you’ll keep earning at the promo rate even after the promotion ends. We’ll let everyone know before the standard rate kicks in. For non‑sports events, the final price is also locked in at approval.

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Contributor Settings (only if contributors are enabled)

If you allowed contributors in the previous step, decide how their photos are priced:

Standard Price

All contributing photographers use one fixed price you set.

Photographer Sets Price

Each contributor picks their own price within a min and max range you define.

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Partner Commission (approved distribution partners only)

If your studio is an approved distribution partner, you can also earn a commission on every contributor sale in your collection. Set your rate (% and/or fixed PHP) — the form shows the maximum you’re allowed.

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Save or submit

You’ll see two or three buttons at the top right, depending on the distribution mode you chose.
1

Save as Draft

Saves the collection without listing it. Good if you’re still gathering details or waiting on a cover image. You can come back and finish later.
2

Submit for Approval (marketplace)

Sends the collection to our review team. Before it goes through, you’ll pick one of two publishing modes:
  • Automatic — The moment we approve, your collection is live. (Recommended.)
  • Manual — We mark it approved, but it stays hidden until you hit publish. Good if you want to time the launch yourself.
Approval usually takes a few hours during business days.
3

Save & Publish (Whitelabel / private host)

For Whitelabel collections, you can publish immediately — no admin approval needed. You’ll be asked to confirm, and once you do, the collection is live on your selected domain(s) right away.

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What happens next

Status is Pending Approval. You’ll get an email when we review it — usually within the same business day.
Status moves to Published. Time to upload photos.
Status sits at Approved until you hit Publish from the collection page. Use this when you want to control the exact go‑live time.
Status is Published. The collection is already live on your domain.
In every case, the next step is the same: upload your photos. Open the collection and start the upload — Fokus handles watermarking, face detection, and bib number reading automatically.

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Frequently asked

For running and triathlon events, pricing follows the platform standard, so adjustments aren’t typically needed. For other event categories, you can request a price change before the first sale by messaging [email protected] — once buyers have paid, pricing is locked to keep things fair for everyone.
If your event falls under running or triathlon, the listed price reflects Fokus’s standard pricing for that category — not the number you entered. This is intentional. For other categories, our team may have adjusted the price during review; if you weren’t notified, reach out and we’ll walk you through the reasoning.
No — distribution mode is fixed once the collection is created. If you need the other mode, create a new collection.
We’ll email you with the reason. Most rejections are for unclear titles, missing event details, or copyright concerns. Edit the collection and resubmit — you don’t have to start over.
Usually within the same business day. If it’s taking longer, message us at [email protected].
Yes. Open the collection and head to the Contributors section to invite by email or change the access setting at any time.

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Next step

Verify your identity

Once your collection starts selling, you’ll need to be verified to withdraw your earnings.