If you regularly upload photos on the Web, you should ensure that no one is using them without your consent. One easy way to do this is by watermarking your photos. A photography watermark can be another picture as in a logo, words, or the name of the photographer which is placed over the picture. If a photo has a watermark, those looking at it will know that they are not allowed to copy or use your photo without first notifying you or abiding by your requirements. Many websites also do watermarking on their pictures and illustration to warn those visiting the site that reproducing or reusing these images constitutes infringement.
Watermarks can be created in a few minutes with little or no difficulty as long as you have the appropriate software. There are a number of software you could use to do watermarking, Photoshop and Corel creative suites, for instance. There are also web applications that permits you to create photo watermarks for free. These applications that allow you to make photo watermark for free might or might not have batch processing capabilities. Many of these programs which enable you to make free watermark photos have other features as well such as simple photo editing. A lot of these software also allow direct uploading of free watermark photos to social networking and image sharing websites.
There are also websites that allow you to make photography watermarks and then search for places where your photos are being used on the World Wide Web. This tracking service will help you monitor for infringement. In most cases, you have to pay a small amount to enjoy such capability. In most cases, these websites require you to pay around $30 to $50 a month to continue using the service.
Some photo hobbyists and professionals are reluctant in adding watermarks to their pictures because they believe these will negatively affect the look of the image and prevent people from seeing their work in the best quality possible. If you are one of those people who subscribe to this notion, consider using invisible watermarks. As the term implies, an invisible watermark is an overlaid image that cannot be seen, but can be detected algorithmically.
Some photographers place an invisible watermark that is destroyed when the image is manipulated digitally. This type of evidence can be admitted in court to support misappropriation lawsuits. The choice of watermarking your pictures is yours to make, but remember that doing such can save you from a lot of headache and heartache in the future.