How to Watermark Pictures With Photoshop
Short of creating a password protected website -- which could slow down your visitors or customers -- there are few options for securing the artwork and documents you place on the Internet. To protect your pictures, take a cue from the national government and start watermarking. Adding a watermark to a picture using the Adobe Photoshop software may bring you peace of mind or simply serve as another way to lay claim to your work.
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Instructions
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Open Photoshop, click "File" and select "Open." Navigate to the picture to watermark and double-click it, opening the image in the Photoshop work area.
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Click the "Type" tool, an icon of a "T" in the middle of the "Tools" work area. Select a size and a font from the toolbar at the top of the work area. Choosing a color for the watermark is unnecessary at this time, just use the Photoshop default for now.
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Position the cursor on the picture, click and type the watermark statement, such as the copyright date, your email address or a phrase such as "NO DOWNLOADING."
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Double-click the new text layer, symbolized by a "T" in the "Layers" palette. If you do not see the palette in the bottom-right corner of the screen, click the "Window" menu and click "Layers." After clicking the layer, the "Layer Style" window opens.
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Check the "Satin" box. This darkens the appearance of the watermark. Click the actual word "Satin" so it is highlighted in blue and the "Satin" options appear in the window. Slide the "Opacity" bar down to 50 percent so the watermark doesn't completely block the image below it.
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Check the "Drop Shadow" box, giving the watermark a 3-D look as if it is standing on the image. Click the "OK" button to close the "Layer Style" box.
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Pull down the "Edit" menu. Click "Transform." Click "Rotate." Twirl one of the corners of the text box so the watermark is at an angle, such as bottom-left corner to top-right corner.
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Click the lined icon in the top-right corner of the "Layers" palette. Click "Flatten Image." Click the "File" menu. Click "Save As," type a new or versioned name for the image and click "OK."
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Tips & Warnings
Saving the picture with a new file name is essential. If you save it with the same name as the new watermarked image, that image will replace the original and you won't have access to a copy of the non-watermarked "real" version.
