Watermarks let you share images publicly while discouraging unauthorised use. Done badly, they ruin the picture; done well, they are barely noticed until someone tries to steal it. Here is how to strike the balance.
When to watermark
Watermark work you publish publicly but want credited or protected — portfolio photography, product shots, paid content previews. Skip watermarks on images meant to be freely used, and on anything where the mark would harm the viewing experience more than the theft risk justifies.
Types of watermark
- Logo/text in a corner — subtle, professional, easy to crop out.
- Repeated/tiled pattern — hard to remove, but intrusive; used for preview protection.
- Centre overlay — maximum protection, minimum usability; for proofs only.
Placement and styling tips
- Opacity 20–50% — visible enough to deter, faint enough not to distract.
- Avoid the extreme corners alone — they are the easiest to crop. A mark over part of the subject is harder to remove cleanly.
- Scale with the image — the watermark should be proportional, not fixed pixels, so it reads on both thumbnails and full size.
- Match the tone — white marks on dark areas, dark on light, or a soft drop shadow so it stays legible over any background.
Keep an unmarked master
Always watermark a copy. Keep the clean original archived so you can produce unmarked versions for clients or print later. Export the watermarked version as JPG or WebP for sharing.