Why I Watermark

I’m Not Sharing So You’ll Like My Work. I’m Sharing Because I want You to Buy My Work

Someone on twitter was shocked that I watermarked my work. What was I thinking, they mused publicly, replying to my image. I felt I need to reply as well. I wanted to be prompt and reply quickly and so I did so with a full page (although I could write several). I’ve already edited and expanded things slightly here. I’m sure I’ll update again at some point.

Updated 5/7/2019 8:45pm

Why do I watermark my photos on social media? Because the internet is dark and full of terrors. But seriously, I watermark because I’m sharing for free. I share for free not because I’m hoping you’ll like my work or retweet my work (it’s nice if you do) but I want you (or someone out there) to purchase my work – either a print from my web site or a commercial license to use my work.

Just about every photo I post, I’ve shot with the goal of selling it. I put great attention to detail into all my photos, sometimes traveling very far, sometimes being up for long hours, every time positioning the camera at just the right angle to capture just the right composition. And that doesn’t end after taking the shot. I review my work and select only the best images (I shoot a lot of images). I then edit them, sometimes pixel peeping, ensuring that they look the best they can be. Massive amount of time goes into my compositions and a fair amount of money goes into my gear.

And much of my work is very commercial. That means I’ve designed it to be appealing to the eye but also great for business use. Real estate agents love my work. Cities and businesses enjoy my work. My goal is to take photos that make you go “wow.” It’s that way on purpose. I try to make cities and towns and buildings and landscapes and whatever else I shoot look good, with the hope each image will strike a chord with someone and they will want to purchase it.

However, for every image I share on social media, very few pieces are purchased. That’s not surprising when you share a photo a day. But that’s okay. However, perhaps you’ll see my watermark at the bottom and remember my name. Perhaps you’ll take the time to Google me or visit my web site.

And, as sometimes happens, someone will download one of those photos and repost online rather than resharing directly from my social media feed. And that person will not tag me, or give me credit. But my watermark is there. My work promotes me. My name is there. My web site is there. It says: this is mine. I made this. And perhaps that will lead to some sales or some commissioned work somewhere down the road. And perhaps someone will think twice about using my work commercially without paying me.

I do this to make money and to promote my name. I am the photographer.

~ Christopher V. Sherman
cvsherman.com