What about image theft? Should you watermark your images?

Any photo you put on the public internet can be downloaded, sometimes easily, sometimes with a bit of effort. In order for the visitor to see the image, by definition it has to travel to their computer.

Putting a watermark for me, defeats the idea of sharing - it is visible and scars your image. And it can be post processed out.

If you do not want any risk of image theft, do not share it on the internet.

If you want to share an image for cross inspiration, cross appreciation and just the sheer thrill of cross participation, then
* don't share a commercially commissioned image without approval by the owners including you
* limit the damage but still have fun by restricting the dimensions e.g. to HDTV dimensions at max
* alternatively adopt the concept that certain images are a donation or promotion of yourself to the world - artists in photography or music face the same decision.

For sincere people who want to use your images and contact you to receive credit and payment, ensure your EXIF and IPTC metadata is filled out. Although Facebook scrubs them, other galleries don't

The internet and digital images is different from print. And it's worth having the moment to ponder what it is and what value digital images have to you and others.

* if your business is about selling digital images in the stock image marketplace or for journalism or for commission by a sponsor, then you do not want someone using your image for their own gain without you sharing in the rewards of work. In such cases, to show a sample for purchase, yes, watermark it to hell, unless the intended purchaser will walk away from all that ugliness instead of paying your for a clean image.

* if you create images for self satisfaction then it is somewhat of an affront to you for someone to take your image and misrepresent it as theirs or to make money out of it. What value do you put to that affront? How much time x labour x money are you going to pay out to chase someone who has "stolen" or misrepresented your work? Put a value on that and decide whether and how you want to protect your images.

* If you are shooting a set for self improvement and participation in creativity, cross fertilisation of ideas, meaning you are gaining intangible benefits and giving intangible benefits, then you have to put up an image that views satisfactorily on your peers' devices. If everyone in the group adds a watermark, then sure, add a watermark. If you are the only one in the community adding a watermark, a watermark can come over as ostentatious decoration or feeling self important (even if you don't mean to). Of course in a challenge or a competition, it is unwise to put a watermark because the judge may positively or negatively observe who made the shot before actually assessing the shot.