Have you ever noticed how teen girls tend to leave a mark on their school or gym lockers to identify them easily and ensure no one uses it to their benefit? This is a similar concept to watermarking.
Watermarking allows you to give an identity to your belongings, making sure they don’t get stolen or used for other means.
Are you a photographer or graphic designer still wondering if you should or shouldn’t watermark your creations? If Yes, then this blog will resolve all your whys regarding watermarking your photos. Keep reading to learn why watermarks are important for your photos.
Table of Contents
What is Watermarking?
Watermarking is the process of adding or marking a picture or a document with a logo, piece of text or signature.
Watermarks are typically transparent, so those viewing the document or picture can still admire it. It is also great for identifying photographers or designers. But, most importantly, it is widely used to protect the copyright so that no one else can use the image or document without the owner’s permission.
A common example of watermarking is currency. Many countries use watermarks to secure their notes against counterfeiting. These watermarks usually consist of images or patterns imposed on paper. Visible only when held to the light, makes it difficult to reproduce using standard procedures.
Benefits Of Watermarking Your Photos
Every time we scroll past Google images, we see hundreds of images with an imposed watermark. Some would even agree they have tried to remove these postings to use the photos in their documents. Something surely must mean to them. They must serve a purpose. Below, we have discussed some major reasons why watermarking your photos is beneficial for you.
1. Asset Protection
Nobody wants their efforts to go down the drain. Especially photographers!
Imagine someone stealing all the hard work you put into getting a perfect picture of the sunset simply because you forgot to put a watermark on it. You wouldn’t want that, right?
Watermarks help protect your visual files and images from being stolen, altered, or even used without your permission.
Watermarks are generally difficult to remove. They require special editing tools to take the picture—and in some cases, they are impossible!
This way, you can prevent people from claiming your assets, which can lead to loss.
2. Brand Consistency
Another great benefit of watermarking is that it helps keep your brand consistent. Your customers or audiences can identify you right at the beginning simply by recognising your watermark.
As a photographer, you must have hundreds and thousands of pictures, from portraits to landscapes. These watermarks can keep your brand consistent throughout each of them. By using a single form of signature or logo, you can set the tone of your brand.
3. Increased ROI
Sounds uncertain, but it’s true watermarking can be one of the reasons why you can get greater ROI. They can help you protect your assets and provide a secure update, distribution, and response, which ultimately can help you generate a greater return on investment.
Along with it, it can also help ensure that you are paid the right amount for your pictures. Photographers, especially wedding photographers, watermark their sample images before sending them to the client. This is often because printing is also a part of the package the client chooses. To ensure that you are charged for low-resolution samples, that they have chosen, instead of high-resolution ones, watermark them.
4. Ensures You Get The Credit
We live in an age where images are frequently pinned and posted multiple times. This also increases the risk of stolen credit.
But, by adding a watermark, you can ensure that you get the credit for all your blood, sweat, and tears. This helps you promote your business and grow in the industry.
More importantly, this is not only about the credit. If you don’t incorporate watermarks, you will miss any opportunity to generate passive income from your quality assets.
In fact, someone else can sell your captures and sue you for using them. Therefore, you must get credit for all your digital assets.
How Can You Watermark Your Pictures?
There are different means to watermark your digital photos. Photographers generally rely more on logos, initials, or e-signatures.
Creating a compelling watermark is imperative for your business. But the best part about living in such a digital age is that you don’t have to spend hours just to create a watermark for your business. By using an online logo generator and signature marker you can make your task a breeze.
Where Should You Place a Watermark in Your Picture?
Typically, designers and photographers prefer to position their watermarks at the bottom corner of their photos. This prevents the watermark from impacting the beauty of an image. But this is not set in stone. You can place your watermarks on any corner you like.
Placing a watermark on the corner raises a tiny risk of cropping the image and using it. You can steer clear of it by placing your watermark at the centre of your image, with a light translucent or transparent ink.
Bottom Line
Now you have complete insight on why watermarking your photos is critical. The four reasons above discuss how you can stay away from fraud, stolen credit, and incorrect payments by simply watermarking your digital pictures. If you’re a photographer or designer who has not yet decided to use it, you’re missing out in a big way.
