Before you start

You need Lightroom Classic, an Alamy contributor account with FTP access, and finished .jpg or .jpeg files imported into your catalog. Keep their original files available locally or on an accessible drive.

This is an independent transfer tool, not an editing or agency-management tool. It does not apply Lightroom edits, submit forms, or track quality-control approval. It works independently of the other Expolumi plug-ins.

It is available on Adobe Exchange. The plug-in is distributed only through Adobe Exchange and installed with the Creative Cloud desktop app. No Node.js, development tools, or separate FTP client is needed.

Check Alamy's current contributor requirements before submitting. Image quality, file requirements, account eligibility, and any first-submission rules remain your responsibility.

Install & connect

FTP transfers are unencrypted. This includes your password and photos. Use Alamy's HTTPS web uploader if you require encrypted transfer.

Install Expolumi Alamy Publisher from Adobe Exchange: in the Creative Cloud desktop app, signed in with your Adobe ID, open Stock & Marketplace > Plugins, search for Expolumi, and choose Get.
Restart Lightroom Classic and confirm Alamy Publisher is enabled in File > Plug-in Manager. Install only one copy; remove any earlier folder-based entry first.
Open Library > Publish Services > Alamy Publisher > Set Up.
Choose Set credentials..., enter your Alamy email and password directly in Lightroom, and select Save locally.
Review the transfer notice and enable Allow unencrypted FTP if you agree. Choose Test connection to check login and directory-listing access.
Save the connection. Use Stock uploads or another collection under the service.

The server and Stock folder are fixed by the plug-in. A connection test does not upload or delete anything, and it does not prove upload permission or QC eligibility. One Alamy account is shared by this plug-in's publish connections for the local Lightroom user.

Save locally takes effect immediately, even if you later cancel Publishing Manager. Avoid changing credentials during uploads.

Alamy Publisher settings with credential controls, unencrypted FTP consent, and optional Alamy Candidates configured for Picked photos with a yellow colour label — Alamy publishing settings with optional candidate collection controls. Review the FTP notice before enabling transfers. This screenshot predates the version label and is cropped to the settings panel to omit unrelated branding. Select it to view at full size.

Publish your photos

Prepare submission-ready JPEGs and import them into Lightroom Classic.
Drag them into Stock uploads or another collection under Alamy Publisher. This queues them; it does not upload yet.
Click Publish. Review the result dialog for completed, failed, or unfinished transfers.
Check the contributor dashboard for ingestion and QC. Complete captions, tags, licensing, and release information in Alamy Image Manager.

Published means transferred, not accepted or available for sale. A file disappearing from FTP may simply mean it has been ingested. Check Alamy before retrying any uncertain transfer.

Alamy publishing queue with one photo in New Photos to Publish — A photo queued in Stock uploads has not been transferred yet. This screenshot is cropped to the publishing queue to omit the sidebar and application branding. The optional Alamy Candidates smart collection, outside this crop under Collections > Expolumi, does not upload automatically. Select the screenshot to view it at full size.

Files & metadata

The original JPEG is sent unchanged with its original filename. The plug-in does not render, resize, recompress, watermark, write metadata, or delete source files. RAW, TIFF, PNG, video, virtual copies, and missing originals are rejected. Standard Stock JPEG submissions are supported, not Live News, Archive Stock, vectors, or video.

Catalog-only keywords, captions, and Develop changes are not applied. Save metadata into the finished JPEG or export an edited, full-resolution JPEG and import it before publishing. Verify the actual file. All embedded metadata, including GPS if present, is sent as-is.

Other software and Lightroom's automatic metadata-writing settings can independently change the source. Do not edit, rename, or move it during transfer. The plug-in does not run a complete agency QC preflight.

Tracking & retries

Remote filename checks and local upload history help block duplicates. Re-publishing an already uploaded item is blocked because FTP is an ingestion channel, not an update API.

Protection is local and best-effort. Renaming a file, resetting preferences, using another computer, or uploading through another client can bypass it. An uncertain transfer requires confirmation before retrying; there are no automatic transfer retries. A failure stops the remaining batch.

Cancellation takes effect between operations. An in-flight FTP call may still complete, and successful transfers remain recorded. Removing photos or collections in Lightroom removes local tracking only; it never deletes or withdraws submissions from Alamy.

If upload succeeded but Lightroom did not record it, verify the photo on Alamy first, then use Mark as Up-to-Date where appropriate. Keep your own submission record for important work.

Credentials & privacy

Credentials are stored through Lightroom's encrypted local password storage, not in publish presets, source files, catalog properties, or plug-in logs. Password fields are masked and cleared when the dialog closes. Canceling without saving preserves the previous credentials.

The plug-in sends credentials directly to Alamy for authentication, without an Expolumi-operated backend, analytics, or remote credential store.

Forget credentials clears the saved values, not your upload history, agency password, or submissions. It does not guarantee erasure from backups. Read the privacy and data-handling guide.

Update & troubleshoot

Creative Cloud desktop installs updates (Stock & Marketplace > Plugins > Manage plugins); restart Lightroom afterwards and avoid duplicate copies. Forget credentials before uninstalling the plug-in there; removal alone does not clear credentials.

For rejected files, check the original is available and is a genuine JPEG, not a virtual copy. For uncertain uploads, check Image Manager before trying again. Restart Lightroom after an update.

Local diagnostics use AlamyPublish.log. Typical locations are %LOCALAPPDATA%\Adobe\Lightroom\Logs\LrClassicLogs on Windows and ~/Library/Logs/Adobe/Lightroom/LrClassicLogs on macOS. Older versions may use Documents/Lightroom Logs.

Logs record stage names, counts, and batch indexes, not credentials, filenames, source paths, or directory listings. Review any attachment for personal information before sharing it.

Check your setup

Back up your catalog, test the connection, and publish one finished JPEG first. Confirm it appears in Alamy Image Manager before uploading a larger collection. Repeat this check after changing Lightroom, your operating system, or the plug-in.

Support & feature requests

Something not working as described here? Open a support case. Have an idea? Request a feature, or ask a question in Discussions.

These are public on GitHub and need a GitHub account. Leave out passwords, keys, account IDs, and private file paths. For your Alamy account or submissions, contact Alamy.