Photographers question, Do you Watermark your photos?

[Rubyroo]

My granddaughter wants to be a photographer and is setting up a Tumblr account. Would you advise she watermarks her photos and if so how should she do it? does she need software for this? Thanks for looking.

[MoBry]

Yes, I'd recommend she use a watermark, protects your images from being copied. I use uMark and created a diagonal, fairly faint watermark in one corner so it reaches into the image. It's no good just running along the bottom or top as an image can be cropped. I try to make it as faint as possible to avoid spoiling the image, and I don't like ones that watermark all over the photo, reckon it's too much. I bought uMark professional but you can get a free copy if I remember rightly. Very easy to use, great instructions.

[Groucho]

I would not - all the professional photographers I know - do not. They copyright their images on things like FlickR etc. which all have mechanisms for doing so, but they hold that the watermarking spoils them and they don't get the recognition they deserve. As long as she keeps the very high def ones to prove they are hers - when you upload to sites one can do so in a slightly lower resolution so you can prove the original is yours and put a copyright notice on them then I don't see the point.... Painters put a discrete signature on their work, they don't paint across the face to stop it being copied. Singers don't sing a bum note on purpose to prove they are the original artist either....

Part of the joy of taking good photos is sharing them....

[Keithcaley]

...Part of the joy of taking good photos is sharing them....

As an amateur, I do agree, tho' perhaps as a professional, part of the joy is getting paid
I know that you can copyright your work, but it must be a great hassle (and expense) having to persue 'infringers' though the courts in a variety of countries...

It is so easy to copy almost any image that is displayed online, that it must be very tempting to seek the aid of technology in order to protect your rights.
Not an easy one!

[brian24001]

If you don't want your pics copied, then the only way is to not put them on the net at all.

I can remove all traces of a watermark very quickly, so I am sure millions of others can too.

[Groucho]

As an amateur, I do agree, tho' perhaps as a professional, part of the joy is getting paid

I think you need to establish a reputation before you declare yourself a professional - getting shots spread across the web only increases your reputation for quality - once that's established then don't publish where they can be copied and charge publishers by all means.

[johnny1]

does anyone know and can help.....how and where to put photos for sale?

[Groucho]

does anyone know and can help.....how and where to put photos for sale?

If you want to sell photographer's proofs why not set up a stall at a market and see how it goes... nicely framed colourful and interesting shots go down well with tourists. Particularly good landscapes and wildlife as well as village scenes, local craftsmen at work etc. The only limit is the imagination....

You can contact magazines and see if they are interested but your photos need to have a story behind them for that. Pull together a portfolio with cover story lines.

[Rubyroo]

Thank you all for taking the time to comment and share your thoughts about watermarking. I will pass your comments on.

The advice by Groucho of keeping any files safely in case of proving ownership makes very good sense and also only uploading small file sizes as I know it is easy to reduce pixels but not so easy to increase them, if at all, in jpg's for example.

Mobry, I shall tell her about uMark in case she decides to watermark her photos.

It is early days for her yet she has only just acquired her first DSLR! yet she is showing a good eye for detail and composition so fingers crossed

Johnny1 good luck selling your photos.