Thursday, October 22, 2015

Going to have watermark my pics from now on.

Been thinking of doing it for a while since it saved the effort of letting folks know where one of my pictures that they'd liked enough to share on Facebook had come from.

Most folks, took the little amount of time it takes, to actually give credit or attribution.

Recently though, I found the below picture from my riding in Europe, on a Facebook side for B.A.D.D., it showed up as liked on my news feed by a friend on FB.

Note: the one on the page in question was before I added the watermark you see.


So, as usual, I went to the page and added replies that included a link to the original posting, on the comments on that facebook page posting when folks asked where the picture was taken.

I then messaged the admin and asked that in the future he place an attribution link.  

The admin replied, saying because of all the members of his "group", they didn't do that.  He also mentioned because I wasn't a member, my comments with links to the posting would be "faded out".  I asked him what that meant, and he said that as I was not a member of the page, the comments would only be visible to me and my friends.  Oh, but if I made a contribution to the site, then he'd post my pictures.

I dithered on this for days, finally donated the minimum amount: $1.  The admin messaged me with "Fuck off with your dollar" and "stop wasting his time".

Nice huh.  I wished I'd kept that FB conversation so I could post it here, but I was pretty angry at the time.

So, I was in the process of looking up how to report theft of intellectual property on Facebook and found he'd taken down my picture from the b.a.d.d page.  

That's good enough for me, probably should have done that in the first place.

So, watermarks from now on.  

22 comments:

Unknown said...

Wow! I mean wow!

What I don't understand in situations like this is the hostility. Why the freakin' hostility? This dude stole your intellectual property, after all.

I'm glad that you got a satisfactory resolution, Dom.

redlegsrides said...

Ry, well as satisfactory as I was willing to let it be.

The urge to respond back with what I was truly feeling to his remarks was very strong but in the end I reminded myself of the saying:

Never get into a fight with a pig in the mud, you get all dirty and the pig likes it.

And yes, I don't like it when folks call me a biker....it lumps me in with his type.

Gary France said...

Please don't watermark your pictures. It looks horrible. Why should everyone else who enjoys them clean suffer because of one asshole? Maybe put your name in one corner instead?

redlegsrides said...

No worries Gary, it's rather subtle the watermark.

There's software out there to remove watermarks, so using them blatantly to the extent of ruining a picture is not worth the effort.

Of course, thieves can just crop out the watermark where I am placing it....

Unknown said...

Ha-haa! That "Never get into a fight with a pig..." expression is great. I hadn't heard that before.

I'll now be using it in casual conversation, Dom, but don't expect me to attribute it to you. ;)

redlegsrides said...

Its OK Ry Austin, it's not mine, just read it somewhere. ;P

RichardM said...

You just need to stop taking phenomenal photos.;-)

Or just post lower resolution versions.

redlegsrides said...

RichardM, those are the low-resolution version! :)

The original images are much larger. Google photos resizes them while still producing good looking content.

As to the phenomenal part....thanks!

SonjaM said...

Sorry to hear about this hostile behaviour. Dom, this shit happens. Happened to most of us, I guess. That's why I put a little watermark in a corner and lowered the resolution. But if people want to steal your IP they'll do it regardless.

redlegsrides said...

thanks SonjaM for your comments, never thought it'd be an issue since my photos tend to be "watermarked" in a way....since most of the time, my rig is in there somewhere. Oh well. At least, now I know how to report theft of intellectual property now on Facebook.

Trobairitz said...

Yikes. At least they took it down, which they should have done right from the get go with a smile on their face, or at least gave you credit for the photo.

I don't know if his attitude is just a testament to people of a certain ilk, or because they hide behind their computers.

I don't like being called a biker either, I prefer motorcycle enthusiast.

redlegsrides said...

People tend to behave, I've found, way different when on the phone/computer vice in person. Funny how that works.

I loathe the term biker....I prefer rider or motorcyclist.

thanks for commenting.

Anonymous said...

What a d-bag.

All pix are copyright protected. Post a clear message below your picture. Then use Google image search to do a reverse lookup for your images to find all the people using your images. Then bill them for the use. -Carlos

redlegsrides said...

Thanks Carlos, what can I say...guys like him is why the word bikers have negative connotations.

Jack Riepe said...

Dear Charlie6:

The admin of the blog or site in question could have simply replied, "Dear Charlie6: This photo was so breathtaking that it spawned a lapse in my usual judgement, and I shared it without proper attribution. Will it be enough that I caption the photo with the appropriate credit now, and introduce you to our group? Please accept my personal assurances that this will not happen again."

That took 30 seconds to write. Barely knowing you as I do, I suspect you would have replied with the good grace and genial attitude of a rider whose sidecar rig of choice has more levers and switches than the original prototype for the helicopter. And by the way, meeting up with you in that saloon in Macungie this summer was such good fun that I have started wandering in and out of gin mills as a matter of course.

I recently found a online magazine and started to read a piece on e-books. It got me all charged up as it covered every aspect of the subject in thoughts parallel to my own. I found out why when I got to end. I had written it five years earlier. So much for that.

You will be pleased to hear that all of the steps I have taken to resume riding have failed, and I am one step closer to taking the swan dive in the La Brea tar pits. Nevertheless, I press on. I meet adversity by pushing my riding deadline back to next summer. Looking forward to lunch with you n Macungie again.

Sincerely,
Maximus Diplodicus

redlegsrides said...

Dear Maximus,

thanks for your insightful commentary and yes, had the DB done as you described, I would have no posting to write about it.

I am however, not in the least bit pleased that all steps leading to you resuming riding have failed....surely you'll explore perhaps the concept of sidecaring before taking that dive into the La Brea tar pits? By the way, I hear the EPA shut down said pits, didn't meet some unneeded piece of regulatory oversight apparently.

I look forward to our next meal together, especially if you're buying. :)

redlegsrides said...

Oh, and Maximus, I'll take no blame for your wandering in and out of gin mills...I believe that habit of yours preceded your acquaintance of me.

Kathleen Jennette said...

Always, always, always Watermarks. I had a lady buy a photograph from my site, copy it, and sign her autograph to it and sell it. Can you believe that ballsy move?! Totally against copyright laws (you own the photograph as the photographer--not the buyer unless you release it for commercial use). Even though there is no way around someone copying and reposting one of your photographs, at least you are covered when you let them know to either take it down, pay you, and make sure they credit your name to it. Write letter. I have done it a few times. Most are willing to do it because they know better.

David Masse said...

So much scum and silt along the bottom of the internet, even if they are a tiny percentage.

Nicely kept composure Dom. Much karma came you way for sure, and I'll bet that admin will soon stub his toe in the most painful way, if it hasn't already happened. I doubt he'll make the connection.

redlegsrides said...

Katy Did, watermarks will be used henceforth I assure you.

David Masse. I doubt he'll learn anything from that event, unlike me.

Anonymous said...

I'm really sorry to hear that. It has happened to me several times and never gets any less frustrating. That admin sure is a piece of work...sorry you had to get the brunt of his ignorance and bad karma.

redlegsrides said...

motoventures, let us put that "biker" out of our collective minds, he wallows in his little world....we shall ride in ours.