Last updated: 9 October 2026
Who we are
The Shot List is an independent publication and weekly email newsletter about product photography. It is written by Elina Kustlyvy, a commercial product photographer based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. It launched in January 2026.
Each issue reviews a small number of recent campaigns from beauty, fragrance, jewelry and luxury brands. Elina writes about how each image works: the light, composition, styling, retouching, and how well it fits the brand.
The Shot List is free to read. It has no paid tiers, no advertising, no sponsored posts and no affiliate links. No brand or photographer pays to be featured, and none can pay to change what we write.
Why we show the images
You cannot review a photograph without showing it. Our readers are photographers, art directors, students and people who work in brand marketing. The critique only makes sense when the reader can see the picture being discussed.
We show campaign images for the purposes of criticism, review and education. The Shot List is published in Canada, and this is fair dealing under sections 29 and 29.1 of Canada's Copyright Act. Other countries have similar exceptions for criticism and review.
What that means in practice:
- We only feature work that the brand or photographer has already published.
- We only show images we review. Every image appears with our critique of it.
- We do not alter the images apart from resizing and compressing them for the web. We do not crop out credits, add watermarks, or edit the content of the photograph.
How we credit
We credit the work in text, next to the images, not only by a link. A typical credit reads: "Chanel (@chanelofficial), photographed by Karim Sadli (@karimsadli)."
- Brand. Every review names the brand.
- Photographer and creative team. When the photographer, retoucher, stylist or agency is named in the source, we name them too. Our shot pages also carry the photographer's name in the page data that search engines read.
- Missing credits. Campaign images are often published without naming the photographer. When we can't confirm who shot something, we say so rather than guess.
If you shot, retouched, styled or art directed an image we feature, you can ask for a credit. Use the "Claim this shot" button on the shot's page, or contact us as described below. We check every claim before we publish it, and we may ask for a link to your portfolio or another way to confirm it. We are always glad to add your name.
Trademarks and no affiliation
Brand names, product names and logos belong to their owners. We use them only to say which brand and campaign we are writing about.
The Shot List is not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by any brand, agency or photographer we cover, unless we clearly say so in the article. Featuring a campaign does not mean the brand approved our review, and our opinions are not theirs.
Our opinions
Our reviews are honest professional opinions, based on what is visible in the published images. Other photographers and art directors may see things differently, and that is fine. We aim to be fair and specific, to criticise the work rather than the people, and to correct factual mistakes quickly.
What we don't do with the images
- We don't sell, license or sublicense any image we feature.
- We don't offer images for download, and we don't offer prints or merchandise.
- We don't use featured images in advertising for ourselves or anyone else.
- We don't use featured images to train AI models, and we don't sell or share them as data.
- We don't claim ownership of any image we feature. The copyright stays with its owner.
Our own text, our own photographs, the site's design and its layout are © 2026 Elina Kustlyvy.
Requests: credits, corrections and removal
We want to hear from rights holders. Most requests are handled the same week.
Where to write
- Email: [email protected] (subject line: "Image request" plus the page address)
- Instagram: a direct message to @elina.kustlyvy
Email is best for removal requests, because it gives both of us a written record.
What to include
- The address (URL) of each page or image on shotlist.to you are writing about.
- What you would like: a credit added or corrected, a factual correction, or removal.
- For a credit: your name, your role (photographer, retoucher, stylist, agency) and a link that confirms it, such as your portfolio or the original post.
- For removal: who you are, your connection to the work (the copyright owner, the photographer, or someone authorised to act for them), and something that shows it, such as a link to the original publication or your agency's listing.
- How we can reach you.
What we commit to
- We reply within 2 business days to confirm we have your request.
- We act within 5 business days of receiving the details above. For credit corrections this usually means the same day.
- If a copyright owner, or someone authorised to act for one, asks us to remove an image, we review the request. When it checks out, we remove the image within 5 business days and tell you when it is done. If we need more information, we will ask.
- Removing an image from the website does not recall newsletter emails that were already sent. We will remove it from the web version of that issue.
- If you would rather we keep the review but swap in a different image, or add context from you, we are happy to do that too.
About formal notices
If you prefer to send a formal copyright notice, send it to the email address above with the details listed. We respond to formal notices on the same timeline as any other request.
Good faith
We built The Shot List to celebrate and study good product photography and to give photographers the credit that campaign images often leave out. If we have featured your work in a way you are unhappy with, please write to us first. We would much rather fix it together than argue about it.
The legal bits
This page explains how we work. It is not legal advice, and it does not give anyone permission to use the images we feature. To use an image, ask its owner.
Our reviews are Elina's opinion of the photography. We check credits and facts, but we sometimes get things wrong. If you spot a mistake, tell us and we will fix it.
The Shot List is written and published by Elina Kustlyvy in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. We may update this page; the date at the top shows when it last changed.