I make it a point, well almost all of the time, to at least watermark my images with my name and phone number in the lower left. Since I do this for the images I post on Facebook or email to potential clients, this makes it apparent that I feel the image belongs to me and they are not free to do with it as they please.
I am not a "huge" fan of watermarking the whole image unless it is one that I have posted for sale. Windows 7 has a built-in "snipping" tool and someone could very easily steal an image from my site - even if I have disabled the "right-click" option or even embedded it into a Flash slide show.
This was reinforced in the fact that I recently took some photos of a friend's acoustic "open mic" night at a local pub (pics posted a few blog entries ago). I posted about 10 or so on Facebook and tagged him and the other musicians so they could have them on their page as well.
The BAR, instead of asking me, simply downloaded all the Facebook images and created their own gallery. Now, if they would have let me simply "tag" them - then all the comments go on my fan page and it helps to further promote me. You want to remain professional in your approach to this scenario, so here is how I handled it. YOU may choose to handle it differently based on how well you know the individuals involved. In 99% of the cases, they have no malicious intent. They just don't realize that photography is your profession.
First and foremost, I was sure to become a "fan" of their page and thank them for adding my images. Furthermore, I thanked them for leaving my name and copyright notice on them as well.
The bartender, who I have "known" for a while (as much as a patron can know a bartender) put a footnote giving me the equivalent of a byline. In all honesty, that was a nice move on his part.
BUT, had I not made it a point to watermark those images, no one would know that I took the time to professionally take the photos. Now... they do. Take heed of this advice.
From custom vinyl "Fathead" wall graphics to freelance assignments, HSI provides a wide range of services. Take a look around and contact us. We're professional, experienced and affordable - you might just be surprised.
