Lightroom - How To Watermark My Images

If you need to add a watermark to your images for branding or to provide a degree of protection from image thieves on the web, then Lightroom enables you to incorporate this during the image export process. The most efficient way to add watermarks to your images is to set up a watermark as a template. This way, you can call it up whenever you need to use it in the future. Here is how:

Step 1 - Select an image in your library. It is not important which one.

Step 2 - From the main menu select ‘Lightroom Classic’ then ‘Edit Watermarks’.  This brings up the Watermark Editor in a new window.

You can then choose to either have a simple text-based watermark or a custom graphic.

METHOD 1 - SIMPLE TEXT

Step 1 - Enter the text you want to add to your image in the text entry field.

Step 2 - Choose the Font, Style, Alignment, and Color of your text in the ‘Text Options’ panel. If you want one, you can also choose a little drop shadow for the text. T

Step 3 - Open the ‘Watermark Effects’ panel and choose a placement for your text. You can also change the opacity if you wish.

Step 4 - Hit the blue ‘Save’ button, and you will be prompted to create a name for your preset.

METHOD 2 - CUSTOM GRAPHIC

Step 1 - From the 'Image Options’ panel click Choose to upload a graphic. You can choose either a JPEG or a GIF. The easiest way to get yourself a custom graphic is to create one yourself in Photoshop or a similar program.

Step 2 - Open the ‘Watermark Effects’ panel and choose a placement for your graphic. You can also change the opacity if you wish.

Step 3 - Hit the blue ‘Save’ button, and you will be prompted to create a name for your preset. You can create any number of watermarks as presets in this way. For example, if you are using GIFs; it’s a good idea to create a black signature and a white signature. This way, you can select the signature color based on the color of the photo; to make sure the signature stands out.

Adding Your Watermark To An Image

Now that you have a watermark preset saved, you can call that up during the export process

Step 1 - With an image in your library selected, click ‘File’ then ‘Export’ from the Lightroom main menu.

Step 2 - From the Export window scroll to the Watermarking section of the panel, and check the Watermark radio-button.

Step 3 - Choose the signature you want to use from the pull-down menu.