Don’t Be A Grinch…

I recently received word that a client of mine posted some of the digital images she purchased from me, to share them on social media with friends and family. This is wonderful! However someone else downloaded one of the images and is now posting it online in a way that upset my client greatly.  I understand that family dynamics can be a precarious thing sometimes, especially around the holidays. I get that. But my work is also my work and I do everything I can on my end to protect it, my clients and their children.

PLEASE DON’T BE A GRINCH…
Okay, first of all… my photography is my artwork. I pour my heart, my soul into my livelihood, and it quite literally pays my bills. So while I would love to work for free, I simply can’t without my family sacrificing for it.

I own the full copyright to all of my images, and provide my clients with a Print Release when they purchase the digital images, which gives them written, legal permission to print and share the images with others.  But that’s not the end…

Did you know that screen captures, scans and cell phone photos of your images are considered stealing? Yep! It is! And it is punishable by as much as up to $250,000 per image, and 5 years in prison! 

PROTECTION…
When I post and share images from my sessions online, I include a WATERMARK on the images to help PROTECT both my client and myself, from people illegally stealing (aka: downloading) and using these images in a wide variety of ways, while also allowing my clients to legally share these images online with their friends and family.

Again, the watermark is not there to take away from your image or to sneak in advertising, it is there to PROTECT US BOTH, by discouraging others from wanting to steal, print or use these photos illegally without consent.
This protection also is automatically applied to your online gallery.

There are many reasons people download and steal images online, some have completely innocent intentions, while some are rather scary. While a watermark is not 100% protection, it will strongly discourage it, or at least give legal photo credit, which allows you to share my images online. So please think about what images you post or download. And if you love my images, please consider placing an order or sharing our protected, watermarked versions rather than being a Grinch.

So clients, friends, family… please think about what you post, download, and what you use online. I love it when my clients are excited to see and use their images, but please remember that if you post your unprotected images on your social media, others may use them in a way you don’t like, and there is very little I can do about it to help you.

If you ordered digital images from me, and would like watermarked, re-sized and sharpened versions of the images to share and protect yourself or your family, Simply shoot me an email to request them and I would be happy to send you complimentary watermarked versions quickly and easily..

Thanks everyone!
~ Juli