Put each reviewer's name on the stills they see
Turn it on for a project member or an approval link. Their name runs across the stills they see. Project members get it on downloads too.
If a still leaks with the name intact, it points to an account.
Visible text on stills only. A cropped copy can lose the name.
Turn it on for one person
Check Requires Watermarking on a project member in Edit Permissions. From then on, every still they view or download carries their name, added on our server before the file reaches them. Set the opacity from 5% to 50%. Your originals are never modified.
Stills only, off until you turn it on. It is visible text, so a cropped copy can lose the name.
Mark an approval link with the cast member's name
Switch on Enable watermarking when you create an approval link, and the cast member sees previews with their name across them. Pick the opacity the same way.
The mark is the tag linked to that person, otherwise the talent's name, otherwise the access code.
Downloads are logged against a name
When someone downloads a still, the download is logged with who and when. Changing a watermark setting is logged too. If a copy surfaces with the name intact, you know which account to start with.
Downloads and settings changes are logged. Views are not.
In ReelStorage, you choose who sees watermarked copies. Once it's on for someone, every still they view carries their name.
How it works here
Watermarks aren't baked into your files. The name is added to previews and downloads for people who have watermarking turned on. Your originals stay untouched in storage.
- You never manage two versions of the same photo
- Each person's copy carries their own name
- You can change the opacity without re-processing anything
- Downloads are logged per person, with the date
Setting it up
It's a setting on each project member and each approval link. Turn it on and set the opacity from 5% to 50%. On a project member, the watermark is the person's name. On an approval link, it is the tag linked to that person, otherwise the talent's name, otherwise the access code.
No batch step
Once watermarking is on for someone, every preview of a still they get is watermarked, and so is every download if they are a project member. Upload photos from set and they see them watermarked.
Pre-release stills
Watermarked copies let you circulate stills for approval and selection with a visible deterrent against misuse. Because the watermark is the reviewer's name, a copy that surfaces carries that name unless it is cropped out. Downloads and settings changes are logged. Views are not, so the log does not show who opened what.
Who sees what
- Members with watermarking on: see and download watermarked copies
- Approval links: watermarked when you turn it on
Exports and delivery links do not add a separate mark for each recipient.
Who uses it
Unit publicists keeping review copies marked until they're cleared.
Producers circulating stills internally to project members.
Details
- Originals are never modified
- The name is added to previews and downloads
- Opacity from 5% to 50%
- Set per project member and per approval link
- Stills only
Questions
- Do watermarks appear on the original files?
- No. Originals are stored untouched. The name is added to the previews and downloads of people who have watermarking turned on.
- Is watermarking on by default?
- No. You turn it on for each project member or approval link. Once it is on, it applies to every still that person views, and to their downloads if they are a project member.
- Can someone crop the name out?
- Yes. The watermark is visible text, not a hidden mark, so a cropped copy can lose it. It deters sharing and points to an account, alongside the download log.
- What does the watermark say on an approval link?
- The tag linked to that person, otherwise the talent's name, otherwise the access code.
- Can the person turn it off?
- No. The name is added on our server before the file reaches them, so there is no setting on their side. Changes to the watermark setting are logged.
- Does it work on videos, exports or delivery links?
- No. Watermarking applies to stills only. Exports and delivery links do not add a separate mark for each recipient.
Tell us what you're shooting next.
Start with one title. Upload a shoot, bring its metadata in from a CSV, and confirm the cast. Then decide.
A person on our team reads it and writes back.