Watermarking your Web Images - Do you do that - and why?

[teylward]

I try not to take away from the images by placing a watermark across the middle of the image, but I try put it off to the side where if someone did try cropping it off the image wouldn't look right (eg. cutting off tyres, wheels, heads, legs, etc.) I know people can still copy and paste and edit to get rid of the watermark, but nothing is 100% safe if someone wants it bad enough. If the image was an absolute perfect image, then I would be more inclined to watermark straight across the picture.
I do photography as a hobby, but may earn a little bit of money off of it one day.

[SamNabz]

Since you are now selling your images via your website, I think you should definitely place a large watermark on the images you have for sale not only on your website, but anywhere else you advertise/publish them, such as; Facebook, Twitter etc.

With the watermark being slightly transparent, site visitors and potential buyers are still able to view the entire image; however, if they were to save/steal/screenie the image, they will be stuck with a nice big watermark through a majority of it.

Placing a small watermark in the bottom corners of your images is not going to do much, if anything at all, as it can simply be cropped out.

[reaction]

Personally, i have only really posted my photos here and on facebook which is only shared with my family and friends.

You realise anything on fb is owned by fb and can be used/sold by fb and any of its partners? Unless they've changed their T&C.

[Kym]

As an aside, AP protects member images, at least as much as we reasonably can on the web.

Specifically:

• Attachments and Competition entries can only be viewed by logged in active members.
• The Gallery is only available to active members with 50 posts and 30 days membership, but members can hot link from the gallery if they wish.
• The front page comp winners are reduced size and quality.
• The anti-spammer technical measures stop more than 100 'bot registration attempts a day.

Also AP recognises and licenses your provided content, See: AusPhotography Forum Rules [25] .. [28]

And finally there is the privacy policy... http://www.ausphotography.net.au/for...Privacy_Policy

[Wayne]

I don't often post anything, and when I do if it is just from my personal pile of pics, I usually don't watermark, but I never upload in anything but low resolution.
If it was from a paid shoot, my government clients own © anyway by default so they never leave my PC via any means other than a disc to the client and non-govt client images are only ever uploaded to my secure galleries, and they are also low resolution and watermarked.

[s1l3nt]

You realise anything on fb is owned by fb and can be used/sold by fb and any of its partners? Unless they've changed their T&C.

Touche... Funny thing is, i did a paper on this at uni yet still didnt think about it when posting my pictures. Haha The low resolution that it goes onto facebook as, they wouldnt bother with it. Plus the photos on facebook, are mainly for my progression and to compare my skills, etc, for myself. Or photos of family get togethers. Not much use to facebook as far as im concerned

[reaction]

Touche... Funny thing is, i did a paper on this at uni yet still didnt think about it when posting my pictures. Haha The low resolution that it goes onto facebook as, they wouldnt bother with it. Plus the photos on facebook, are mainly for my progression and to compare my skills, etc, for myself. Or photos of family get togethers. Not much use to facebook as far as im concerned

It's never what you think they may use stuff for, but what you can't imagine they may use for that bothers me. My thinking is, if someone in one of your photos had a stalker, would you be happy for that stalker to have access to the photo/info you post? I find that's the easiest way to consider it.