Image watermarking — Delivery workflow

Worked example

Deliver a pair: a marked copy that goes out and an unmarked master you keep, with names that show the difference.

Chatcument adds -signature-watermark to the name, so market.jpg becomes market-signature-watermark.jpg. Before sending, rename it with the purpose, for instance market-proof-1600.jpg, and keep the master untouched in a different folder. A client proof sheet and a social post can need different marks, so make one version per use rather than one for everything.

Match the platform. Social feeds crop and recompress, so keep the mark away from the edges and give it enough size to survive a smaller preview. Check the current upload guide for any size and format limits, and keep the exported file in the same format as the destination expects.

The common mistake is treating the watermark as protection. It is visible and removable with effort, it does not prove ownership and it does not stop copying. For a stronger record, keep the original files and dates, and use the mark to show credit or to mark a preview as unfinished.

For repeatable work, write down the text, the colour, the opacity and the corner you used, for example white, 50 percent, bottom right. A colleague can then reproduce the same look on the next shoot, and the whole set looks consistent.

Before sending a whole set, open one exported file on the destination itself, since a feed may crop the corner where the mark sits.

Photograph + logo or text

Flattened marked image

A visible watermark discourages casual reuse but does not prevent copying or prove ownership.