How and Why to Watermark

Protect Your Digital Copyright

In recent years, as we watch the rapid growth of the Internet – from Facebook to Twitter to Picasa - the whole world as we once knew it, seems to be getting smaller and smaller.  On the Internet, nearly everything can be found and download; audio files, images, documents, and videos.  Because it is so easy to locate and save these files, many people no longer consider the consequences of downloading someone else’s work.  So while they download a cool picture, save the latest hot single from Lady Gaga, or copy & paste a thesis, they unconsciously infringe upon someone else’s work.  Even worse, there are those who download copyrighted material intentionally, in spite of the penalty!

As a professional photographer, when you publish your images on the Internet, look for practical ways to display your work while protecting them from potential copyright infringement.  There are many ways for computer-savvy users to steal the hard work of other people.  On a Windows computer, simply right-clicking on an item, and selecting “Save As”, will download someone else’s image, movie, music file, or document.  And even if you are diligent about preventing the “right click” action, those preventative measures are useless against someone who uses a Mac or screen capture utility.  Still, even adding a transparent watermark atop your prized photo, the experienced computer user knows how to remove that watermark.  The most effective and practical way to deter people from stealing your personal photos is by applying some form of watermark.

Why do you need to watermark images?

Because a watermark is a visible, or sometimes invisible, method of telling the Internet world that these pictures belong to someone.  Essentially, you identify the file with specific copyright information; like author/owner, rights, etc.  Then, if someone still downloads your watermarked image, the download they have includes all that copyright information.  The primary purpose of watermarking images is to provide copyright protection for intellectual property that's in digital format.

How should you watermark images?

First of all, a good watermarking software application is needed. Second, the software should be easy to use and shouldn’t take a great deal of time to learn.  Finally ensure that, if you have questions about the watermarking software, their technical support is superior.  Without good support from the creators of the software, countless hours can be lost trying to protect your digital images.  Eventually, some folks give up and post their unprotected images on the Web.  Do not get discouraged!  Not only is WinWatermark software easy to use, but the written and video tutorials we provide are there to lend a hand.  And, if those two avenues prove fruitless, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for outstanding customer service!

WinWatermark software can help you add translucent text and/or an image watermark to any image to protect them from unauthorized use. The watermarks can be your name, the copyright symbol ©, a comment, a website address, your business logo, any text or graphical objects.  Image filters, dates, photo details and other EXIF information can also be used for protecting your photos; all of which can be customized to suit your needs.  Once the images have been watermarked, they can be published to the Internet.  Without a watermark, proof that you are the owner of an image is much more difficult than if a watermark had been used.