Protect my images

  • Updated

If you're concerned about copyright infringement and unauthorized use of your photos, SmugMug offers several options to protect your images.

Note: Not all of the features discussed in this article are available on all plans.

Block access to your originals and larger display sizes

You can restrict access to high-resolution images to prevent unauthorized use:

 

When prints are ordered through SmugMug, the original is always sent to the printer.

Watermark your images

Portfolio and Pro plans include the SmugMug default watermark, and the option of creating your own custom watermark.

Note: The default watermark will only display on images with a longest side resolution of at least 801 px.

 

Note:

  • Watermarks will not appear on prints ordered through SmugMug.
  • To make watermarking effective, you must block access to your originals, as originals are not watermarked.

Enable Right-Click Messaging

SmugMug Power, Portfolio, and Pro plans include a default right-click message and the option to create your own. To deter visitors from right-click saving your images:

 

This feature displays a copyright message, or a custom message if set up in your Account Settings, when a guest tries to right-click and save.


Important: Right-click protection only works within the gallery and is not foolproof. For stronger protection, consider password-locking your gallery, applying watermarks, or disabling access to originals.

Disable Downloads

To prevent visitors from downloading your photos:

 

For Pro and Portfolio accounts, this option is disabled by default in new galleries.

For Basic, Power, and Direct accounts, visitor downloads are enabled by default.

Turn Off Printing

To prevent visitors from buying prints of your images:

 

This will disable the visitor-facing Buy button in the gallery.

Turn Off Social Sharing

To prevent visitors from sharing your images on social media:

 

Important: Once an image is shared elsewhere, it can be reshared by others.

Note on Shopping and Sharing Safely

You can safely enable the shopping and sharing options by applying watermarks and limiting the display copy size in your gallery settings. This ensures your high-resolution originals remain protected while allowing visitors to interact with lower-resolution images.

These options help protect your images from unauthorized use, but remember that no method is foolproof. For the highest level of security, consider combining multiple protections, such as password-protecting galleries and watermarking images.

Back to top

Was this article helpful?

29 out of 51 found this helpful

Have more questions? Submit a request