[Toad]

I am in the process of finalizing my new website to advertsise my photo products/services and the old issues of watermarks, copyrights and web theft keep coming up.

A few thoughts:

- a tasteful copyright on a photo does not degrade it much - it looks quite pro and gets the point across

- I hate massive transparent watermarks across photos - it degrades the appearance of the shot, is pretentious, and is insulting to your viewers. The only exception is perhaps proofs for clients that have not paid you yet - where a subtle "Proof" or some such on the photo "might" stop unauthorized downloads. Plus - watermarks can be removed by an even mildly skilled PhotoShopper - unless they obliterate the photo so much that it is unviewable.

- I have javascript to disable copy/paste and rightclicking in the browser - but it is not foolproof. It can easily be defeated by (a) disabling javascripts on your browser (b) getting the photos from your cache after viewing them, or © viewing HTML source - and going directly to the image folder with your browser and grabbing them.

The point is that someone that wants your photos from the web can get them - you can't stop them if they are determined - unless you don't post them on the web - and that kind of defeats the purpose of a website, yes?

So: is this really a big problem, and if it is - is there anything to do about it - or should we just accept that a moderate amount of unauthorized image use is the nature of the internet?

Thoughts? Comments?

[peter]

i heard that there is a way of invisable watermarking ?
dont know how it works..but its something like, you can see the watermark when it is highlighted...

[potplant]

the points you mentioned are good - also you could try ITPC and/or EXIF data...

also perhaps keeping photos online low res enough to be useless for reuse

[StudioJ]

What kind of illegal usage are you worried about Toad?

If it is someone printing one of your images providing they are small enough they would make horrible prints. Or if it is more worried about someone pinching your images and using them on their own sites or whatever you can't do much except to mark them copyright. I've never been overly worried about someone doing that, if they do it so what, its flattering although you may never even know about it. There is always the option of having a client login page for anything sensitive and if they then take the images then shame on them!

[Petographer]

Toad, I understand exactly what you mean. I pondered this too and came to the conclusion that trying to keep people from stealing your image was like beating a dead horse. So I just gave them a image not worth printing. 700x467px

[shuttertalk]

Good idea pet-o and potplant - small size is probably the way to go... although some unscrupulous people could still steal images for web graphics, logos etc.

[Petographer]

Good idea pet-o and potplant - small size is probably the way to go... although some unscrupulous people could still steal images for web graphics, logos etc.

Then they've been caught red handed.

[shuttertalk]

Hard to tell though... most wouldn't use the images outright - they might combine graphics or photoshop it in some way so that it looks different.

[Toad]

Yeah - that is the conclusion that I have come to - I publish them at 360 px at their largest dimension on my new site - and with a discrete copyright tag at one of the corners. Not going to get too anal about somebody pinching a photo for their pwn website - that is flattery anyway, right?

I'll post an URL to my new site when it is done, and you guys can critique - I just have a place holder there now - so not worth a look.

[Petographer]

Hard to tell though... most wouldn't use the images outright - they might combine graphics or photoshop it in some way so that it looks different.

That is true enough but I also thing it's not worth the worry. I believe the majority of people who are creative enough to actually take someone else's image and redesign it to something different likely have enough talent to not even bother. I mean, I know that I can be more proud of my own creation if it is indeed 100% mine.
I think the main objective is to keep people from taking the image and using it for their own financial gain. Whether it be advertising, promotional reasons or web sites. These people run the risk of getting caught. The guy who takes the image to put on his desktop or to print for his own use is not very harmful. Especially if he's going to get a grainy 4x6 out of it. The people who are willing to pay the dollars for an image are going to want the maximum resolution they can get and will pay market value.
So like Toad said, for someone to take the image is flattery anyway. I try to make it clear that if you want an image, ask. Chances are you'll get it as long as I get recognition.
For the person who wishes to worry about what happens to their images, they can spend the money and buy the software from Digimarc to track their images. For what you would likely lose in revenue from your images you'd likely pay a whole lot more using such a service anyway.

[Buddha]

You can go to Download.com and download a free version of something called Media Resizer. It allows you to make thumbnails of a size that you determine, in styles that you can choose, and with a copyright that you type in and choose where it is placed.
I use thumbnails of a size that you can actually see, in a style that has bevelled edges that give a 3D appearance, and copyrights that are out of the way with dates that are real, not just current.
Give it a try.