Social media is great, but it has its downsides, too. One of these is that on most social media platforms, you don’t actually own the content and pictures that you post. Anyone can take that photo and do what they want with it…including sell them for $100k each.
One way you can help protect your photos so you can identify them if someone “reuses” them is to put a watermark on them. This is easy to do if you’re editing your photos in Adobe Lightroom or Photoshop, but what if you’re on your phone or mobile device? Don’t worry–it’s still super easy to add a watermark to your photos. Here’s how:
How To Add a Watermark to your Photos on an iPhone or iPad
eZy Watermark lite by Whizpool is a free, easy to use watermarking app. I love it! There are some ads which I’m sure are eliminated if you purchase the “pro” version, but that $2.99 price tag, man. Whew. (Totally kidding, by the way. $2.99 is super reasonable for something you’ll probably use over and over again.) After you’ve downloaded the app:
1. Send a .PNG version of your watermark with a transparent background to your device (I usually just email it to myself) and save the image to your photos.
2. Open the eZy Watermark Lite app and load the photo you want to place the watermark on top of:
3. You have different watermark options: you can add text, your autograph, or your own photo. We’ll be using that .PNG watermark mentioned in step #1, so select “Library” and locate the image.
4. The watermark will be added to your image. You can use your touch screen to move it around and modify its size. Once you’re satisfied with its placement, click on the checkmark.
5. Click on the checkmark in the bottom right corner to export the final image to your photo library. You can now post that photo to Instagram, Facebook, or wherever else you want it to appear!
Easy, right? If you have an Android device, don’t fear! There are several watermark apps available for you in the app library, you’ll just have to search for them! We aren’t including those here because we haven’t personally tested them out.
Lyn says
9/23/15 at 7:19 pmI can’t believe I never thought of this before! Can’t believe how easy this is. THANK YOU!!
MONROE says
9/23/15 at 9:19 pmThis is SUPER easy to do and such a necessity. I was always wondering how to do it. Well, no more!!! I can’t thank you enough. I love your website BTW.
Ashley says
9/23/15 at 9:25 pmThank you so much! 🙂
Pam says
6/12/16 at 12:57 pmPlease explain HOW to save a png watermark…maybe some of us aren’t that smart…like me! Thanks
Ashley says
6/14/16 at 4:02 pmHi Pam, that’s going to depend on what graphics software you’re using! I’d suggest Googling specific instructions for your program and version.
Kathy says
11/19/16 at 9:12 amI emailed my logo with a transparent background but it shows in the app with a white background. Do you know how to fix this?
Ashley says
11/19/16 at 12:45 pmHi Kathy, hmmm, is the file you sent yourself a .PNG?
Kathy says
11/20/16 at 6:52 amYes, it is. I exported it from PaintShop Pro with a transparent background as a .png file. When I open it on my computer, it’s fine. Not sure what is going on…
Ashley says
11/20/16 at 4:09 pmAs long as the image saves correctly and you’ve downloaded it correctly onto your phone, it should still be transparent in the app. Are you using an iPhone or a different type of device?
You’re welcome to email the image to me if you want. I can save it in Photoshop just in case there’s a weird issue with the way it was exported from PSP.
Kathy says
11/20/16 at 4:47 pmThanks but I just kept resending to my ipad until it finally worked. Don’t know what happened…
aya hilani says
2/21/18 at 5:48 pmI have exactly the same problem when I download it to my i phone, how can I fix it please L)
Scott Jung says
3/22/17 at 7:46 amOK, I have created several transparent images and when they come over to iOS, they are always black on a white background. (unless I use a different font or color) but always a white background. So when I use them in any watermark app, they are white tags which are super ugly.
Scott Jung says
3/22/17 at 8:06 amOK… WEIRD.
I had placed the transparent image in a folder that would sync over to my phone. (this way it isn’t in my camera roll).
When I emailed it and Saved it… it came over fine. Hopefully that helps someone else.
Terri Terreault says
4/21/17 at 1:01 amI think I love you! Worked easy. You are a life saver…
aya hilani says
2/21/18 at 4:30 pmi have a problem with attaching the highlighted logo to my pictures, it worked before but out of sudden the logo attached like a picture on top of my original picture, can you help me in that please
Ashley says
2/21/18 at 8:16 pmHi there, I’m not the app developer and it’s hard for me to troubleshoot without seeing what you’re experiencing, so I’m not sure exactly. If it was working before, maybe try restarting the app, or make sure you’re updated to the latest version.