Is making a Facebook fan page for photography a good idea?

[me]

I want more people to be able to see my pictures (watermarked) and I was thinking about making a Facebook fan page for it. Most of my friends and family are on Facebook.
veito da costa:
That's why I said "watermarked".
I would put my name on them, they wouldn't be able to take credit for them if my name was written across it with a watermark.
Google watermarked photos, you'll see what I mean.

[veito da costa]

Have you read FB's TaC?
They can do whatever they like with any photo you upload, and you can do nothing about it.

Its up to you.

[SDR]

yes, could be a good idea for people to follow your work.. I did the same, and have some good contacts from it..

[Moz]

You are allowed your own Photo gallery in FB, but a fan page would allow you to have strangers view your work without you befriending them.
I say go for it.

[♣ALT]

Yep, go for it! I did the same thing, but used the business page instead so I can get a start. So far, I have had two offers and I only created it this week. Make the page and get your name out there.

[faintpencil635]

takes about 10 - 40 minutes to remove a water mark.., so only if you use links will that be a good idea.


And FAcebook don't steal your photos but they can use them at will for any advertiser. with out giving credit.
eaither way its someone else making money off your work. if that's what you want with or with out watermarks that are easy to remove (all are) Give me one i'll proove it to ya.. unless i'm that good and I highly dought that!

[Rasham Blanding]

I'd say it is a great idea. A social networking site is a good way to get your name and work out to be seen. by people. By posting them up you never know who will see them and possibly want more. It's almost like the word of mouth strategy. I tried a company a while back to increase facebook friends and it worked wonders since more is better when trying to gain exposure. here is a link
http://paydotcom.net/r/103232/Rasham/26375228/

[Darin Heinz]

I think it's a great idea. If I shot more digital work, I'd be first in line to put one up.

The whole point of Facebook is for networking, and if you can manage to get your best work posted, total strangers will see it and may well contact you for a sale.

I wouldn't make the watermark too big, or too garish, as this ruins a photo more readily than anything else. I also wouldn't make the image too big, as a precaution against replication. The image size on Facebook is limited to 600 pixels on the long side. While I'm on the subject of appropriation, you should expect any pictures you upload to the Internet to be swiped. That's why I only scan and post about 1/1000 of my work, and anything I post has been cropped so that if by some chance I ended up in court, I have the bigger image on film to prove it was mine....

As far as Facebook's relicensing of your photographs, it just doesn't happen anymore. These days, they fully comply with copyright law, in the wake of past incidents which ultimately threatened to shut them down. Their privacy policies are increasingly stringent, and they acknowledge and recognize the copyright of the photographer. If one of their affiliates want to use your photo, you will get an e-mail from them beforehand requesting permission. Besides, with the way they mash up images, I wouldn't be too worried about "image theft."

So start your page. Upload samples, not the library. Join groups far away from your family and friends to maximize your networking ability. And above all, don't spend all your time online. You've always got new things to shoot!

I hope this helps! Good luck!
Darin