The internet is wonderful getting our work out there but unfortunately it also makes us vulnerable in the sense that anyone can just print our art, copy it, save it, distribute it. Who knows what else they can do with it.
This is by no means fool proof of course. People nowadays find ways to do anything basically but at least is something.
* I always make sure my images are at 72 dpi.
* I decided to make my images non-clickable. Usually when you click on an image it takes you to another page and address and you can see it at a larger size. But also people can just print them this way or if you have Statcounter like I do, you will never know if people are clicking on it to get a larger view or downloading it. So I decided to just take that feature away.
To do that you need to be in the HTML feature on blogger. Add your image like you regularly do. You'll see the text will start something like this:
a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_IPpry2xsVJ0/SvnYMgfsdKI/AAAAAAAABng/GIX58ikD0WA/s1600-h/blur.jpg"> .....
You need to select that and delete it. Then look for /a inside two <> (sorry I can't type it just as it is because it doesn't show) right at the very end of the whole text and delete that as well.
This is by no means fool proof of course. People nowadays find ways to do anything basically but at least is something.
You can always watermark your images if you want. I find the watermarks kind of annoying to tell you the truth and I think people can always get rid of them one way or the other. So I don't bother with those.
I wanted to share what I found out with all my fellow blogging friends. Better be safe than sorry, right?
I wanted to share what I found out with all my fellow blogging friends. Better be safe than sorry, right?
So here is what I did:
* I always make sure my images are at 72 dpi.
* I decided to make my images non-clickable. Usually when you click on an image it takes you to another page and address and you can see it at a larger size. But also people can just print them this way or if you have Statcounter like I do, you will never know if people are clicking on it to get a larger view or downloading it. So I decided to just take that feature away.
To do that you need to be in the HTML feature on blogger. Add your image like you regularly do. You'll see the text will start something like this:
a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_IPpry2xsVJ0/SvnYMgfsdKI/AAAAAAAABng/GIX58ikD0WA/s1600-h/blur.jpg"> .....
You need to select that and delete it. Then look for /a inside two <> (sorry I can't type it just as it is because it doesn't show) right at the very end of the whole text and delete that as well.
Once you do this, your images should no longer be clickable.
* The other thing I did was find a way to prevent people from right clicking my pictures. In other words, copying or downloading them when you right click on your mouse (or click with two fingers if you have a Mac). To do this you have to go to your template in blogger and under layout add a gadget: HTML/Javascript.
Then copy and paste all the content inside the gray box you will see here and save the gadget. That's it.
I hope you find this useful. :o)
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16 comments:
Yes! Very useful! Thanks for posting this. Just a few days ago I discovered someone online who had printed my pictures to hang in their house!
Now if only there was a way to fix this problem on myspace, facebook and etsy!
Happen to me once, it is bad, I agree with those 72 dpi.. Thanks for sharing Al..
Thanks so much for sharing this. I have already disabled the right click option on my blog (nice trick)! I find that I am a bit too trusting about what I put out there and you are right in that as artists, we should be more protective of our work. =)
Alicia- you are a gem for posting this. I have to definitely work on my blog now...it's better to be safe(r) than sorry...and thank you so much for sharing this and investigating for all of us. Wow, that's a lot of hard work. I appreciate it!!
I agree, "taking" can be a real problem, and very time consuming. I do use watermarks & will continue to do so. I personally feel that especially with the Orphan Works Bill, an art director or client would understand the need, and they can always email me for watermark-free samples.
Thanks for sharing, especially the html!
Thank you for sharing this.
Thanks for this tip!
I already used the 72 dpi and watermark, but now I will also try to figure out your tip to prevent 'right clicking'.
No need to thank me. I'm glad this helps! :)
Better to be as safe as possible with images on the web, though I for one will be sad not to be able to see your beautiful images larger any more.
A simple thing for those who don't like playing with code is to prepare the images for web before you add them to the blog. Save them at around 408 pixels wide/high at 72dpi resolution as a jpeg. If you have photoshop, go one step further and use the 'save for web' option to reduce the file size even more (it also saves space on your Picasa account).
Then the images you add to the blog are at maximum size if you choose the 'display large' option, and won't open up any larger than the original sized file in the new window when they are clicked upon.
Sad part is, even small low res images can be 'enhanced' for abuse with certain vector software, and even non-click images can be downloaded with a screen capture.... or the image file link found in the code, but hopefully we can make it as awkward as possible for those who copy and abuse other people's images.
Hi Alicia-
Please have a look at this: http://www.copyscape.com/
it seems very useful too.
Your illustrating style is amazing! I'm adding you to my list of blog links. Thanks! Scott
Hi June! Yes, I always "save for web" all my images, I forgot to mention that on the post. Thanks for all those tips!:o)
Thanks Shirley, I'll check it out! :o)
Hi Scott, I'm glad you visited and thanks so much for your kind words!! :o)
Thank you so much! I always wondered how that was done!
this is something that has started to also bother me lately, when you type my name into google now, various download sites have taken my images for people to download as wallpaper etc.. one has even put their own copyright on them!! I was really shocked! I will also be making all my illustrations 72dpi, but don't really want to have to stop the enlarging window because the detail in my work can't be seen in the smaller versions.. it is definitely becoming more of a problem now.
You are so welcome Phyllis!
Oh Kathy, that is not good. I hear you. Something similar happened to me and I sent an email to the site where they had my art ready to download. That same day I received an email apologizing for it and they removed the user that was causing all the trouble. Maybe you can try that too and email them. About the person that put their own copyright on your art... well I have no words for that!! My stomach is twisting on all directions right now. Maybe try to find out an email address and write them a VERY serious email. That is just crossing the line!
Hi hi! First of all I absolutely love your illustrations!! They're simple yet so filled with that pure adorableness you can only find in baby animal pictures. All your artwork bring a smile and warmth to my heart.
And thank you for your information on the problems to safe-proofing my photos and my work. In the couple of weeks I started to put my work online, there has been already numerous cases where people simply copied my work and pasted them as their own. I asked a computer wiz friend of mine and was sadly informed that the "Print Screen" function makes it possible for people to steal your work without even clicking on your artwork. This function simply takes a snapshot of what is displayed on the user's desktop at the time and can be copied into any drawing or photo edit program for cropping and further editing.
I have to say it is only through watermarking that stop all activities of stealing.
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