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Cheryl B.
Borsoto
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“I understand that digital images can be tagged or embedded with metadata such as technical details, copyright information, keywords and other descriptions. Is the embedding permanent or can the metadata somehow be lost?
How can we be sure that metadata, especially copyright information, is preserved so our photos are protected against others’ manipulation and misuse? Can we also have tips on effective keyword tagging so our photographs are effectively searchable in photo stock websites and agencies?”
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Adriaan
Monshouwer |
The answer comes from Adriaan Monshouwer, who is currently Commercial Director of the Dutch photo agency Hollandse Hoogte and has had a long and distinguished association with World Press Photo including being a board member and secretary of the contest’s international jury.
Says Adriaan “All embedded information can get lost or be changed. That is true for the technical data generated automatically by a digital camera and for all written information the photographer adds.
Yes, it is easy to delete your name and change the caption. There is no protection. It is like peeling the original copyright sticker from the back of a photograph and replacing it with whatever you want.
Software developers are busy addressing the issue, trying to develop a system that makes it impossible to change certain information. Or at least making it clear when something has been changed.
A photograph might tell more than a thousand words but without words, photographs seldom sell anymore. Without a proper caption or the right keywords editors searching a digital picture database simply do not find your pictures.
In most databases queries use both the caption information and the keywords. Captions should contain the ‘traditional’ editorial information: when, where, what/who and – if it is relevant – why?
Keywords should be used to describe (list) all elements in the picture, all objects, the dominant color, the atmosphere and emotion and connotations.
It takes time and training to write great captions and catching keywords. It is a skill that any professional photographer should develop. Taking great pictures does not make a photographer successful. To be seen starts with being found. And the more words you add, the more often your picture appears in a search result.
Working on your captions and keywords pays off commercially. And like selecting and editing your pictures, it is never finished. Update your keywords regularly. Add new ones, delete some old, check for spelling errors, use plural besides singular when possible.
You did not become a photographer because you liked writing. Your strengths and passion were first and foremost visual. And I don’t want you to switch - you don’t have to become a great novelist but to be successful as a photographer these days you do have to be creative and serious writing captions and adding keywords.
It takes time and energy but the rewards will show - not in the picture but in your bank account.
Good luck.
For an example of captioning and keywording, click here.
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