Author Topic: POLL about the watermark of Fotolia (Read 6947 times)

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #1 on:** June 21, 2011, 10:14 »

http://www.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=34521
For fotolia users.
I would like to listen your opinion

(There are housands of small business around the world with needs of small pictures
(for printing business cards for example, the size of the sample photo is enough!)
The watermark you have is useless for a lot of images, especially of those isolated with copy space..
(can be removed by a 5 year old kid)

jamirae · « **Reply #2 on:** June 21, 2011, 10:43 »

I agree their watermark sucks, but do you really need 3 threads here on the subject and one on Fotolia?

sigh.

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #3 on:** June 21, 2011, 10:55 »

I am really sorry jamirae.
My first post here. Can you please tell me how to delete the previous ones?

lisafx · « **Reply #4 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:01 »

You can't delete the others, but you can change the title to something like "duplicate posting" or similar. That way all comments will be on one thread.

And FWIW, I agree about the watermark, but it has been brought up before and nothing changed...

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #5 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:10 »

thank you Liza..
Nothing ever changes when we do nothing about it.

Anyway. It feels much more easier to stop uploding there, than fighting for their own good..
Thank you again. I will spend some time to enjoy your portfolio. :-)

Microstock Posts · « **Reply #6 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:16 »

I live in Indonesia. If I mention that I sell my photos online, often I get the reply, "Ah Fotolia". The people here seem to love the photos on Fotolia and the vast majority of Indonesians have never made an online transaction in their lives.

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #7 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:19 »

that is exactly what I mean "Microstock Posts"
thank you for replying..

Karimala · « **Reply #8 on:** June 21, 2011, 11:47 »

I never understood why Fotolia changed its watermark during the 2.0 conversion. The old one did the trick.

RT · « **Reply #9 on:** June 21, 2011, 12:50 »

I agree their watermark ain't great, but to be honest if someone has visited Fotolia and found an image they like which they then intend to pinch and photoshop the watermark off, I'm more inclined to think they'd wack it through tineye or the new Google search with the very likelyhood of finding it on a website free of any watermarks that they could then screen grab or download without any effort.

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #10 on:** June 21, 2011, 12:55 »

first results of the poll "Should fotolia change watermark?"

YES: 11
NO: 1

I suppose that the one answered NO, uses the samples images for free.

click_click · « **Reply #11 on:** June 21, 2011, 13:09 »

I think ideally we should do a petition here on the forum of everyone who thinks they should change it.

This way we know how many serious contributors are participating in it. Just to have the poll is a bit more unreliable.

Any way, what I'm suggesting is to eventually set a date and time when all of the contributors send an email to support simultaneously.

This way they get one big bulk of complaints instead of a drizzle of complaints spread out over the course of years in the meantime.

I think this might get their attention. What do you think?

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #12 on:** June 21, 2011, 14:53 »

thnks for the reply.
That's a good idea. That is the reason I have started a conversation inside fotolia. http://us.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=34521
to grub their attention. Perhaps it would be a nice idea, to transfer our conversation there.
I am sure they are listening..
thank you...

click_click · « **Reply #13 on:** June 21, 2011, 15:05 »

Quote from: Lambros Kazan on June 21, 2011, 14:53

thnks for the reply.
That's a good idea. That is the reason I have started a conversation inside fotolia. http://us.fotolia.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=34521
to grub their attention. Perhaps it would be a nice idea, to transfer our conversation there.
I am sure they are listening..
thank you...

I have a strong feeling that this conversation could get you banned at Fotolia (in the forums or as a photographer). Also you will have a lot fewer people respond there than here, where it's a bit safer to stand your grounds.

I suggest you do that on an independent forum of your choice.

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #14 on:** June 21, 2011, 15:29 »

@click_click
thank you for your answer.
I have always spoke my opinion free. And there is not much things I am afraid in life.
I can not see the reason for fotolia banning me, or anyone else that says his opinion to this important matter.
Actually, if you think it over, I am helping Fotolia. Helping people who work there understand the size of the problem.
I have not offended anyone. And not intend to.
I have just started to built my portfolio, and the easier thing for me is to stop uploading there, since I am unhappy with them.
But with Fotolia was the first sale of one of my photo's, and get a little bit sentimental with this..
Anyway. The truth is that I don't have time for those things..
And maybe it was a bad idea to start it..

thank you all for participating

click_click · « **Reply #15 on:** June 21, 2011, 15:40 »

Quote from: Lambros Kazan on June 21, 2011, 15:29

@click_click
thank you for your answer.
I have always spoke my opinion free. And there is not much things I am afraid in life.
I can not see the reason for fotolia banning me, or anyone else that says his opinion to this important matter.
Actually, if you think it over, I am helping Fotolia. Helping people who work there understand the size of the problem.
I have not offended anyone. And not intend to.
I have just started to built my portfolio, and the easier thing for me is to stop uploading there, since I am unhappy with them.
But with Fotolia was the first sale of one of my photo's, and get a little bit sentimental with this..
Anyway. The truth is that I don't have time for those things..
And maybe it was a bad idea to start it..

thank you all for participating

All I'm saying is, is that it is safer to post it here.

If you started this thread on Fotolia, I wouldn't be responding there.

Some people call me paranoid.

madelaide · « **Reply #16 on:** June 21, 2011, 18:00 »

It's been what, three years since FT moved to this useless watermark and never changed it regardless of complaints?

OM · « **Reply #17 on:** June 21, 2011, 18:12 »

Fotolia obviously doesn't see it as impacting their business. Therefore no incentive to change. Since when did they pay any attention to contributors' views anyway.

click_click · « **Reply #18 on:** June 21, 2011, 19:52 »

I have plenty of isolations on Fotolia where the so called "watermark" is not located on the subject at all.

It's even faster to select the few spots and fill the with white rather than using Tineye to find one without watermarks.

"Regular" photographs are pretty much covered but isolations and certain background illustrations are just waiting to be lifted because of the weak watermark.

leaf · « **Reply #19 on:** June 21, 2011, 22:12 »

i just merged the two fotolia watermark threads

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #20 on:** June 22, 2011, 07:35 »

thank you @Leaf

louoates · « **Reply #21 on:** June 22, 2011, 11:23 »

Probably the easiest way to make money in this business would be to create a Photoshop action called "remove watermark" -- if you could find a way to prevent the action from being stolen.

Lambros Kazan · « **Reply #22 on:** June 22, 2011, 11:40 »

Watermark is like a lock. Every watermark can be removed. Every lock can be broken.
There are good locks, and there are cheap ones.
Fotolia right now has no lock at all, not even a door.
Everyone can steal.

click_click · « **Reply #23 on:** June 22, 2011, 11:49 »

Quote from: louoates on June 22, 2011, 11:23

Probably the easiest way to make money in this business would be to create a Photoshop action called "remove watermark" -- if you could find a way to prevent the action from being stolen.

I already have the cheap knock-off version of it: Gaussian Blur.

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Author Topic: POLL about the watermark of Fotolia (Read 6947 times)

Lambros Kazan

Lambros Kazan

jamirae

Lambros Kazan

lisafx

Lambros Kazan

Microstock Posts

Lambros Kazan

Karimala

RT

Lambros Kazan

click_click

Lambros Kazan

click_click

Lambros Kazan

click_click

madelaide

OM

click_click

leaf

Lambros Kazan

louoates

Lambros Kazan

click_click

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