Hiyah!
Im really lovin the function where we can view a larger version of the image, but just noticed that we can also download that larger version as well.
I know the resolution is not big that anyone could print a large print out of it, but is actually enough for people with like me (photoshop skill) to reproduce it, even with watermark, people can still erase it. How do we avoid people from downloading the image?
I know there are some flash based website where they have images but we can only view them, but this is flash.
georgiegirl, about 1 year ago
Yes. It would be good if people couldn’t download our pics. Hope RB fixes this if they can.
AbyssalSoul, about 1 year ago
mmmm, you have a point here… Since my stuff is 3d I can always bring up the original files and offer 700 different camera angles of my renders, the models, the textures, dates of files creation, etc.
But for things like paitings, drawings, etc… =( Argh! I think that disallowing the right click is a first barrier (although you can always save the site and take the image from the support files folder). The second barrier should be, indeed, offering a flash based image display because it only streams the files and they aren’t stored in the disk (sadly, there are also ways to bypass the flash thing, there is always a way in this crazy computer world…)
ArtAfresh, about 1 year ago
This is a hot topic everywhere! A watermark option is available at similar sites but of course this spoils the view for a potential customer and the choice to apply it or not rests entirely with the contributor.
kookylane, about 1 year ago
true, I personally don’t like watermark, would like to avoid this if possible, the streaming file with flash sound good to me, as mentioned by AbyssalSoul you can bypass anything if you want, but at least it’ll make it difficult and not many people are that tech savvy. I myself don’t know how to bypass all those things mention, but right click or drag is super easy to do.
AbyssalSoul, about 1 year ago
Yup, most people will get a bit discouraged if right-click is disabled. This would work when an image is viewed in the “large” size (because it would be pretty annoying if we want to comment and we can go around copyin/pasting text with ease). I studied in publishing rights the fact that the current generation of computers needs multiple copies of our files to be properly executed (downloaded file on the disk, file executed on the RAM, temporal file also created while you execute it) and that allows some people to track these stuff in order to bypass security measures. Flash removes the need of downloading to disk and streams the information, making it harder to obtain.
I don’t know what the artists can do aside from taking pictures of themselves with their works in progress and the date the pictures were taken (to have them as proofs). Only the creator can show the progress made from the blank paper to the final canvas or whatever is the support material.
I’m sure the RedBubble team will come up with something interesting. They are awesome people!
Graeme Hindmarsh, about 1 year ago
How do we avoid people from downloading the image?
The short answer is that you can’t – if they really want to do it, they will.
It’s very easy to by-pass all the protective measures web designers put in place to make this harder. What RB has done is to compress the image which introduces artifacts – this means that if the the image is blown-up to a printable size, it will look like crap! Sure, there are filters to get rid of artifacts, but it flattens tone and colour, detail is lost, edges are fuzzy – not a good look!
I think you have to weigh-up the pros and cons – bigger images give potential customers a better idea of what they are buying. And you have to remember that customers are not only buying the image, but also a whole package – printing/mounting/framing/laminating etc.
Perhaps what is more worrying is the amount of artists who steal or use images from Royalty Free and Stock Photo websites to make their own compositions and then try to sell them. Royalty Free licences for images don’t automatically give an artist the right to print and sell derivative works made with these images. Intellectual Property Law is a mine-field and is, arguably, one of the new cash-cows of the 21st century. Always read the fine print if you intend using other people’s work. Stealing is not cool!
Craig Shillington, about 1 year ago
Hmmmmmm Maybe an option for us to set so the image can be viewed larger or not, and maybe have it only available to people on our friends list, or to everyone etc. I personally don’t have a problem with people seeing (and thus downloading) my images larger. I use Flickr and the large option in there is L A R G E!! But you can set who sees the larger versions and who doesn’t. You can even set who sees an image at all (Public, contacts, Friends, Family etc.) I guess like the music industry … if someone wants your stuff that badly for free, they will always find a way to do it. Flash might be a good way to go, but there are drawbacks with speed and congestion etc. Would make RB a little more frustrating for viewers and the RB techs as well. I guess another nice thing would be to have RB IM for friends … or even a RB internal email system … where if you trusted someone and they wanted to view a photo larger we could IM it to them (or at least get an email where we could send an original larger photo to them privately)
Graeme Hindmarsh, about 1 year ago
And BTW, for all those that think Flash might be the way to go, two words and a number to burst the bubble – command/shift/3. It works on a Mac and there is an equivalent in Windows – it’s a standard feature in the operating systems. It takes a photo of your desktop -including any Flash content that is open at that time. Crop the resulting image in your photo editing app and you have the picture!
Justin French
,
about 1 year ago
Speaking personally (ie, not as a RedBubble employee), I have to say that this is just a reality of the web. The reality is that once you publish something to the web, it’s out there and it’s accessible.
Sure, you can do all sorts of half-baked things to prevent theft, but they’re exactly that — half baked. Like Graeme says, if I can see it on my computer screen, I can take a screenshot and do whatever I want with it.
The thing is, we all lock the doors to our house, but locks only keep honest people out, and I think it’s important to think of the web in a similar way.
For me, the trick is to find a balance.
That last point is important. We’ve already seen work posted on RB that we knew wasn’t original art — and the community spotted it straight away. I’ve had the design of my personal website, plus many sites I’ve worked on for other companies and bands stolen many many times, yet someone on the internet spotted the rip-off and let me know within days.
Watermarks are the only effective protection that I know of, yet personally, I’d much rather some schmuck steal a low-res copy of my art than have some ugly watermark or branding get in between me and my audience.
The internet is a wonderful open place with amazing opportunities and risks. Sure, there’s a bunch of dishonest people out there, but I think the overwhelming majority are on your side.
Jienn Heibloem, about 1 year ago
THIS IS SUCH A HUGE POINT- the right click function enables anyone to steal imagery unless that function is changed in the coding to prevent the theft…... I dont want anyone downloading my work…..
also print screen function also allows soeone to steal images…..
so please lets not have this happening here where so far it seems such an environment of integrity and complete respect for each other….
I love that redbubble is a growing arena for a community love if you like…of each other creativity and expression id hate it to be spoiled or frauted by people stealing rather than purchasing work…...
brings shivers up my spine…..liddle dramatic but then protecting each other and oneself is really imperative…...
xxxx my 2 c worthxxxxx me…..jien
webgrrl, about 1 year ago
Even in Flickr with their options – i bet i can access anyone’s ALL SIZES – there are many ways and tools.
i have a small watermark on all my photos/design, i see it as my signature, but i put it on very lightly and where i place it (left or right) depends on the picture
i dont like FLASH! Its only good when all is working and you have best connection, activeX, etc etc—Not everybody has the latest and snazziest computer
If someone really wants my pic, they will get it, i have taught self to take solace that they went thru the effort of getting it.. that my stuff was good enuf to steal, hehehe, what else can you do eh?
Craig Shillington, about 1 year ago
Great points Justin. I think we need to be not so naive (I guess I want a better word there) about how ‘safe’ our stuff is online. But in the end … it’s not just the RB community who can view (and thus download) our work here … it’s ANYONE who has an internet connection and who comes to the site. Basically … that is ANYONE You don’t need to be a member of RB!! LOL. Locks (prevention) are only there to keep honest people honest. I have found over time it’s no use worrying too much about who has stolen my work etc. If I did I would surely be on a daily crusade looking for my stolen work elsewhere and would never enjoy the experiences I have taking and sharing my photography. A lot of my work is blogged online without my knowledge or permission. For the most part the photo links back to my Flickr site, but not always. More usual than not you can write and ask to have the photo removed and they comply. For me it’s flattering because these people love your work so much that THEY too want to share it on their site. I guess that is different to someone stealing, printing and selling your work. Again though, I can only think and compare it to the music industry, when music is copied and shared illegally … it still gets heard by more people and a lot of those that really like it WILL go and buy it. I HATE watermarks!! I think the Larger View RB has adopted at the moment is modest enough. Would be nice to have an option on whether to show that larger view or not … and if so, who to. I hate to compare RB to other sites, but Flickr has a heap of great ideas …. especially in regards to viewer experience and interaction. One of the biggest being knowing when someone replies to your comment on THEIR work … rather than having to remember what you have commented on and having to go look manually. For me, if I don’t answer something in someone else’s RB page .. I feel arrogant. That is just me though, but the more contacts I make .. .and the more comments I make outside my own pages …. the harder it becomes for me to keep up. Even Flickr has a long way to go though. I guess if we keep throwing out ideas here some practical ones will get implemented. In all honesty (even though RB is in it’s infant stage) I can see RB becoming as big if not bigger than Flickr at some stage!!! And Flickr for me, is the BEST photo sharing place on the net. Again though, if we focus too much on who is stealing what and how to not allow that (when in reality we probably can’t stop that) it will slow or even hinder any sort of maturity of this site as a world wide leader in photo sharing and buying.
kookylane, about 1 year ago
COOL!!
Well, the amount of response is a bit overwhelming. But yeah, I definately want to keep all the function that RB have, and well i guess some things are unavoidable, can’t really have it all eh? just need to have faith in others.
Anyway, so far of all the pros i found, I only found this one as a problem, but compare to all the good things, guess not worth worrying over.
Just thought i asked, incase there is a solution out there, since am not that internet savvy.
Thanks for all the comments and suggestion, its a real insight.
Graeme Hindmarsh, about 1 year ago
I’m with Justin, webgrrl and Craig on this – if someone wants my image bad enough (and words for that matter – people steal those too – even here!) they will do do it. What they end up with will be second-rate, hardly worth the effort but, in some twisted perverse way, it’s almost flattering. After all, thieves only steal things that are worth stealing and chances are that if you’re not selling, nobody will be bothering to steal your work either!!! ;-)
One of the great things about RedBubble (and there are many) is that on each work’s page there is a publication date. May not sound like much but it’s actually very important. The publication date is linked to your copyright. As soon as an original work is published, it’s protected by international copyright laws . No need to put little © signs any more – the publication date is the critical factor as far as the copyright protection of original works is concerned – please don’t get me started on the copyright issues with derivative works!
I agree with what Craig said about music too. I’m also a composer and musician and recently did a Google search on my music. Imagine the surprise when I found that it’s being offered for sale on dozens of illegal MP3 sites all over the world. Does this bother me? Not really. I’m actually very flattered. I don’t make much money from my music so I doubt they will either! But at least it’s getting my name out there and it’s kind of nice being sandwiched between Kylie and Shakira!!! ;-)
kookylane, about 1 year ago
LOL, sandwiched between kylie and Shakira!!! huahahahaaha what a great expression.
Yeah i guess you have to be proud for having people stealing your stuff, just means that they are really good and worth stealing, hahahah
Grant Bissett - Minister of Kerosene, about 1 year ago
HOME TAPING KILLS MUSICIANS.
Craig Shillington, about 1 year ago
Dunno if Robert Smith would agree with you there Grant ;)
Jeremy Mawson, about 1 year ago
Great thread. I intend to license what I upload with the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 Australia License.
Then it (sort of) doesn’t matter who gets the high-res version.
Jeremy Mawson, about 1 year ago
E.G. I’ve added the license to my Belafonte T-shirt
kookylane, about 1 year ago
hey Jem, nice photo ;P
Will check out that website you gave! thanks!
Jeremy Mawson, about 1 year ago
Thanks. :) Try this one: http://creativecommons.org/license/
webgrrl, about 1 year ago
off topic sort off : When people download/rip/burn/etc music, its not just the musicians/music maker that loses… So does the Graphic Designer!!! and of course every other person/trade that connected to making cds/records etc…
end of rant.. :P
Jennifer Sando, about 1 year ago
I still think a watermark option at Redbubble should be available. It doesn’t prevent stealing, I know, but it does discourage and helps with acknowledgement and attribution. And not the kind of watermark that sits smack-bang in the centre, either (as is the option available with Imagekind)—they are really annoying for the viewer. Anyway, I feel very uneasy about the ultra large version available and have decided not to use the portfolio here for the time being.
Peter Greig, about 1 year ago
I know I’d prefer the option to have a light watermark on my preview images on RB. So even if someone does steal my images, at least credit is given where credit is due (and that stands for ALL artists’ work).
I know its ugly, but if its light enough (and not right in the middle) then I think the buyer can make an informed purchase.
Why not check out http://www.veer.com to see how they do it, they have an excellent zoom function for their stock images.
Evangeline Than, about 1 year ago
Actually, I don’t mind a light watermark in the middle of the image. E.g., This one from illustrator Penelope Dullaghan’s site is quite subtle and doesn’t seem to detract from the image.
And (hopefully) it would be a massive headache for someone to process this to get rid of the mark ;)
Lots of information from the Australia Copyright Council here too, if anyone is interested.
Natalie Manuel, about 1 year ago
The way I look at it is that if people are going to steal your photos, they are very unlikely to be the type to pay over $100 for a framed print. People who buy reasonably pricey artwork generally are not the type to save and print themselves because they VALUE the artwork.
I personally think it’s just a trade off you have to live with.
ladyvanessa, 9 months ago
It says there is a watermark option. However I just uploaded my first photo and it has not one watermark! Does anyone else have a watermark? Thanks!
Vanessa