As many of you know, I have recently started a photography business - But, being a rookie, I really don't know all the tips/trades and secrets yet (It's a learning experience). I'm asking for the help of fellow HP photographers to lay me in some insight.

Yesterday (Sunday, 9/27/15), I attended the FHANA (Friesian Horse Association of North America) Friesian Keuring and got some lovely photos from these gentle giants performances in their categories; some of these I would love to transfer onto my website to give potential customers an idea of my work and what images I can provide for them.

I have already been told by many people that I should watermark my images and keep them safe. Yet, upon research, I've read that watermarks are not only distracting, but honestly useless on a photo as they can easily be cropped/removed by photoshop in seconds. I'm really struggling on what to do at this point...

What do you guys think?

I'm not a photographer, BUT I would watermark them. A lot of the people who would steal the images don't know how to cut out a watermark or don't know how to do it well (any of the mods on here will be able to tell you that because we see it a lot).

If they're done well then they won't be obtrusive. And if someone shares your image then people will know who actually took it without it getting totally lost in the shuffle.

I am all for the watermark.  I agree with Sam on all things she has said above.  I also would like to second a watermark is important if your images get shared over social media, other websites, etc that people know who the photographer was so they can find your other works.  I would check out Mystery's (#1059) photography facebook page.  She's super awesome at incorperating her watermark into the picture without it taking away from the image.  It should give you some good ideas. ☺

https://www.facebook.com/EMcleanphotography?fref=ts 

@Sam - That actually makes me feel much better, honestly - I've read on a lot of photography sites that its super easy to remove and they can remove watermarks in a snap so its pointless to have or too obstructive of a beautiful image. But honestly, I've only seen theft on DA and, I've seen some professional photos before but they were subtle and not intrusive. 

What bothered me though was the fact one site said qoute, "watermarking shows a sign of arrogance. It gives people the impression that the photographer is arrogant and under no circumstances wants their work to be shared or to be complimented by sharing." I do not want to seem arrogant to my clients, but I also do not want to open the gate with un-watermarked images; I've worked very hard to get these shots that the horses are in. To me, their explaination of "arrogance" sounds more like stupidity because you're pretty much letting anyone copy/paste your work, claim it as theirs and make easy money on something you did.

However, I'm always for a second opinion so thanks Sam :)

@Trony - These do give me an idea, indeed! How Myst does hers is kind of what I want to do with my own logo, but I'm not quite sure how to subtly incorperate it yet, but I'll figure it out. Thank-you! :)

My vote is to definitely watermark. I don't think it comes off as arrogant at all, I think you just want to protect your photos. Like Tron said, it keeps your photos from being stolen and it also gets your name out there. Mystery has gorgeous photography. I agree, you should visit her page for examples on watermarks.

@ Nyt - Yes, I do not want to seem rude or arrogant to anyone who I'm around (especially if they're potiental clients in the future), but I also want to keep these images protected. Before every shoot I do with the breeders and their horses, I always (and I mean always), ask permission to take photos of their either them riding/showing/training, their horses or them with the horses. I never do anything without their OK and I also agree to any of their terms/concerns.

Especially because many of the shoots I do involve children or young who ride at the various Esquestrian barns near the show arena I go to, and understandably, many of them would like privacy and not have their images plastered all over the web (but there is also some who do not mind).

I want to keep my reputation good in all ways and I want people to know they can trust me or have a good impression of me so when they need a photographer, I may come to mind or they may return.

Putting a watermark on your photos is not a sign of arrogance. It simply is just protection against people stealing your photos. And by "stealing", I mean taking them and 1) altering them 2) printing them out 3) sharing them without credit or permission.

The main point of a Facebook page for your photography (not talking about stock photography) or an actual website is to act as a portfolio. That's (kinda) why I have watermarks on my photos on Facebook. I'm not so worried about people stealing my photos as I am sort of saying, "This is just a sample of my work--not for you to buy or use." I guess I could put the word "proof" across the image, but I think people usually just do that with physical photographs.

A watermark will not stop people from copying your photos and sharing them over the internet, however if you do have a watermark on your image and people do share it, that's some nice free marketing right there :)

Also, the chances of someone stealing your photos and printing them out (which should be your main concern because you've just lost a sale, technically) is slim. I don't want to deal with the drama of someone stealing my picture so if someone ever were to steal a photo, the watermark would probably deter them more.

If you have an actual website for your photography and you don't want to put a watermark on your images, there's a neat trick called "shrinkwrapping". It's a coding trick (JavaScript, I think?) where your put a blank picture on top of your photo and if someone tries to right-click/save your picture, they'll get the blank picture instead. This won't work on Facebook though, because you can't alter FB's coding.

You could also just resize the picture so it would be too small in a printout. 

But anyways, it's really is up to you. I hope some of this novel of info and opinion helped. You could always hold off until something happens to sway your decision?

@Sass - Thank-you for the novel! This actually was very helpful insight - I have many concerns for my business (naturally), but I have decided to go with my instincts and just watermark them. 

As for the coding trick, that's actually very cool! However, I don't know if Wix is compatiable with "shrinkwrapping" yet. That would have to wait until I had the knowledge to code myself, but I'll keep it in mind, for sure.

Thanks for your help! It's nice to know there's more experienced photographers here to answers my rookie questions! :)