50+ Photo-Sharing Tips For Traffic and Against Theft

Do you think your photos (artwork, videos, etc.) are good enough to sell? If so, you might wonder about issues such as privacy, theft and the best SEO practices for sharing your photographs. In this article, Linda shares tips that anyone can use to bring attention to a site and to a graphic design or photography business. At the same time, she shares tips that can help protect you and your photos from theft, privacy concerns and more.

Protection and Theft

1.You may become your own worst enemy if you don't read a site's fine print – your photos may be eliminated by site owners if you don't follow rules and guidelines or if you neglect to pay a fee.

2.Back up your photographs on disc or on an external hard drive before you make any changes. These files may become invaluable if you make mistakes. Two copies of that backup may prove wise, too.

3.Make two copies of your final photograph and store one away from home (along with copies of your passport, etc.). Floods, fire and other unforeseen disasters can steal your photos away forever.

4.Some photo-sharing sites may allow third-party use of your photographs. Read the fine print before you upload, or you may discover that a company can legally 'steal' your photo.

5.Think about using a watermark to protect your images online. By using a watermark, you can make an image unusable for print and for Web use. Some stock photography sites add their watermark for you if your work is accepted on those sites.

6.Don't bother with the 'right-click disable' features, as any smart thief will use the 'print screen' option to replicate your image.

7.Don't bother with the "shrink wrap" option, where a transparent image is used over the real image to avoid that bottom image from being stolen. While a user might be frustrated over right-clicking for nothing, the smart user will – as in the above tip – print the entire screen and crop out your image for use.

8.Some cameras and photo organizing software will allow users to add copyright information to photos. If you have this capability, use it.

9.Darren Rowse wrote a great article on how to create your own watermark. Read more about some watermark products at Michael Carr's site.

10.Protect your work as well as your reputation by using a photo permission form. Even if a gallery doesn't offer you a form, you might make one and present it to them. Trust me, they will appreciate your willingness to share your information and your professionalism. You can view samples of these forms at Orange Public Library [PDF] or through Eastern Washington University.

11.In many cases, other than the ability to upload high-resolution images, your photographs should not be usable in print. In other words, if you're worried that a 1" x 1" photograph at 72 ppi might be stolen to use on T-shirt, then you're worrying far too much. An image at that size and resolution is not feasible to use for print without huge compromises on the thief's part.