Dear Maria,

I am so sorry that this is happening to you again. The fact that we may be deprived of the joy that your beautiful photography brings us because of this unauthorized use makes me very sad. It would be a huge loss in my life.

I was just about to post photos of Peach Blossom that I shot earlier today. However, now I find myself reluctant to do so. My photos are nowhere near the quality of yours, but I would feel violated if they were stolen. I don't have Photoshop, or another similar program. It would be really helpful if someone would share the name of an inexpensive software program or another method of watermarking photographs. I have searched for a solution using the tools that I have, but I don't think that iPhoto or my Canon camera software has this functionality.

I hope eBay really cracks down on plav777.

Best,

Blanca

Hello again Maria,

I found a way to add a WaterMark on PhotoBucket. However, with my dial-up connection, it will be a lengthy and tedious process to do each photograph before posting. It is so unfortunate that this is necessary, but at least I won't need to purchase costly software right now.

Maybe I'll be able to get Peach Blossom's photos posted before I go out of town on 12/26 (insert sad laugh here).

-Blanca

Hi Blanca! ((((hugsss)))) Thanks for your kind words. You should be receiving a package hopefully today. I mailed it Monday morning Priority. I'll look into that photobucket thing.

I hope you can somehow bust this guy. How shady. I wonder if eBay would assist you at all. Maria, I do hope you figure out a good way to watermark. I personally love your pics.....but obviously all the crooks do, too. Good luck, dear. :-)

Maria, if you don't have Photoshop, let me know... I'll hook you up. I know Larry would happy to help you in whatever capacity you need computer-wise. We'll get you fixed up!

It's horrible that people are so lazy and slimy they can't photograph the tag or box that comes with their own bulbs, or at the very least, ask permission to use a picture! I do hope Ebay punishes this person somehow!

It's time to watermark or print your name through all your photos, Maria. It's fairly easy, and I think your daughter could help you with it. Just let me know if you need Photoshop.

Hi Mariava:

Oh man...I'm sooooo sorry to hear this is happening to you AGAIN! I'm always paranoid about someone taking my pictures from anywhere I've posted them and using then for their own gain. It's a sickening feeling. Mind you, I must say that several friends/coworkers have told me that ANYTHING I post on the net is considered public domain which is not leave me feeling warm and fuzzy inside....SO to that end, yes, there is a way to apply a watermark in photoshop and I'd be VERY happy to share it with you however I'm not sure what version of photoshop you use. With that being said, I'll give you the instructions here how to do this as best as I can. However if there are issues trying to do this Mariava, the best I could offer is to go over it via the phone ...that is if you're comfortable doing that. Trying to do this via messages or email might prove problematic.

Here are the instructions for doing the watermark in photoshop:

Click the text icon on your toolbar (the vertical one that appears on your screen). This will create a blinking cursor and another layer which will be the text layer. Make sure you choose black as the colour.

Start typing what you want for your watermark (I usually have the copyright symbol, the year and then my name. The copyright symbol can be created by holding down the "Alt" key and typing in 0169 "") Once this text is entered, you'll notice that you have a extra layer. If it is not visible go up to the "window" tab on your menu bar at the top and select Layers which should bring up the layers tab. Once this is visible, right click on the text layer and choose "Blending Options". From there you should see a drop down list called "Blend Mode". Click on the little downward arrow which will drop the list. Select "Screen". When this happens the text disappears but don't worry..it's still there. From there, click "Bevel & Emboss" from the left hand side. You could leave it at this and be done but I sometimes fool around with "Contour" as well. Just experiment and go from there. Once all of that is done then hit "Okay". The last thing to do is to "Flatten" the layers so that you can save the picture as a JPEG. Simply go up to the Layers tab on your menu bar, drop it down and choose Flatten Image (near the bottom) and then you're done. Now while you have your text up there, you may need to fiddle with the size of it etc so that it appears the way you want it to.

Here's an example of what it should look like when it's done:

{{gwi:453035}}

I hope that helps you out Mariava. I've done this on my photos and it works like a charm. I'm going to consider reposting some of my photos to Facebook so that they're plastered with the watermark all over which will make it virtually impossible for anyone else to use without destroying the Picture (it would be impossible for someone to edit that watermark out....trust me...I've tried).

Anyhow...if you need any further clarification, let me know. I haven't been on here a lot lately so if you want to email me through here and then we can email back and forth from our regular addresses, that'd be cool.

Good luck.

Cheers,

Gerard.

Thanks, Gerard... and remember, Maria, if you don't have Photoshop, email me before you go spending any money on programs!

Once you watermark your photos, no one will want to use them... it'll save you a lot of time and emotion.

Normally, I only size and sharpen my photos, or crop out the extra background, but Photoshop does so much more! It's an incredible program with lots of cool filters and options!

Ok...I've cooled down now. Sorry about starting this thread. I rarely get mad but when I do, I am BAD as you can see. LOL!!! Thank you so much for all your advice and support...as always. :-) I would just lay low in posting pics for now until I get this watermark thing figured out. I realized that this should be the last thing I should be dealing with right now with X'mas coming up. Maybe after the holidays. I did bookmark this thread so I can easily come back to it.

As of today, I have not received anything from Ebay. I did receive emails from plav7777. Here is a part of one of her emails.

"sorry to be slow contacting you.Have been out of town for a funeral. Thinking back,had I known how to contact you I should & would have asked if you'd mind my using a photo to show the bloom.I have stock photos but don't use them because of the color enhanced false impressions.I don't appreciate buying from those so don't want to sell that way.I'm proud of my photos & don't mind my photos being shown.I've always saved good REAL pic I find out of admiration,have my own APPLE BLOSSOM & ELVAS but pulled up those w/out thought---just something nice.The greens I used because mine hadn't bloomed yet so I had none. I apologize & know nothing else I can do.I knew of no problem w/non pro photos being shown."

I'll keep my thoughts on this and put this as a "lesson well learned" NOW!!!

Oh and I've got to post this part of her email...

"I have several nasty messages from "friends" who have seen fit to defend you"

Hahahaha...I LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

I don't know how she can feel that it's not outright theft to use someone elses photos to sell items... it's rude and crude. As for the "not knowing how to contact you"... puleeeze! It's not that difficult to track down an email address!

And, we're very glad that you brought this to our attention, Maria! You have every right to be angry and rant about this! I know I would! If we can help in any way... please let us know! :-)

Don't be sorry at all. As Jodi said, I think everyone will be glad that we are aware of the situation.

Tell her she could have posted a message here on the forum if she wanted to contact you...haha! Also, I think she should send you free bulbs!

As for the nasty messages = priceless!

-Frank

The message was not nasty I promise... :)

I just can't get over this woman's cavalier attitude about using them without your permission! It's almost as though she feels she's in the right! That bothers me... no remorse for having stolen photos that someone obviously spent a great deal of time taking and posting...

I think Maria has every right to be angry, and while I'm sure the messages to this woman were not nasty, it wouldn't bother me at all if they were!

Common courtesy dictates that you ask before using another's work!