Watermarks

[dominicLF]

I would like to watermark my images to post on my website. The only thing that I see that will do it is the Digimark option in PhotoShop, but this requires an annual fee. It seems ridiculous to pay an annual fee for watermarks. What other options are out there?

[titrisol]

GIMP and this script-fu
http://www.nakhleh.net/code/watermark_images

Originally Posted by Dominic Le Fave

I would like to watermark my images to post on my website. The only thing that I see that will do it is the Digimark option in PhotoShop, but this requires an annual fee. It seems ridiculous to pay an annual fee for watermarks. What other options are out there?

[titrisol]

Found this one as well... google is your friend!!

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/remark,12476689

I don't know if anything like this has been posted before, but I thought I'd share something I just discovered -- a poor man's watermark.

1) Create a new doc with transparent background. I'm using 400(w) x 200(h).
2) Using the type tool, select your font preference and a size. I'm using 60pt with the Scriptina font. Also choose your preferred foreground color -- black is easiest to work with, but white may be preferable for the final result.
3)Click inside the doc window and type your name (or whatever you wish to appear in your watermark). If you want to use the copyright symbol, hold down the ALT key while typing 0169 on the NUMERIC keypad. You can have carriage returns.
4) Next, if you don't have the signature centered and/or sized properly in the window, select Free Transform to move and size your signature.
5)If desired, you can add a layer style such as emboss, etc. I'm using pillow emboss with smooth technique. I've also selected black with 75% opacity for outer glow. Play around a bit to get something you like.
6) Save as a photoshop document (PSD).

The signature is ready to be used as a texture on your pictures.

1) Open and edit your picture as you normally would.
2) Before posting to an online forum, you can add the texture by choosing the Texturizer tool and selecting "Load Texture" and navigating to your signature file.
3) Play around a bit with the scaling and relief to suit your liking.

Hope this is understandable/reapeatable. I wrote the instructions as I was working through it myself, so it may require a bit of tweaking.

[titrisol]

One more answer, this time in the gimp-guru list @yahoo groups

There are many many ways, but the simplest is probably just to:

a) Click the Text tool
b) Click on the image where you want the watermark
c) Type into the box that pops up
d) Adjust the opacity for the new text layer to taste.

I don't know how to get the copyright symbol though, everything I tried a
while ago wouldn't work, but someone else may have an answer for that.

You will probably find that doing the text in white, with the layer set to
"screen" or "Normal" will probably work best, but play around with it to get
the result you like best. You can also add a blurred drop-shadow to the text
or any other number of effects if you are after some different looks.

[dominicLF]

Thanks, Coffee Drinker! This is just what I was trying to figure out. It works well and the layering makes it all easily reversable.

[Mike Richards]

I've been using iWatermark. Fast and easy once set up and makes batch processing easy and fast. It's $20 to download:
http://scriptsoftware.com/iwatermark/