Many artists are finding it advantageous to have a web site to use as a digital portfolio. But at the same time are leery about how to post their images in order to protect their artwork and copyrights. Here are a few things you can do as an artist to protect your art images on-line.

Size, Format & Resolution

Resolution is how clear the image will be on screen and printed out. Generally even though newer monitors take the 96 dpi (dots per inch) it is still suggested that you save and use web images at 72 dpi to decrease their vulnerability to being printed out or enlarged by others.

Size is how large it will appear on the screen or printed out. Do note depending on your dpi the difference in screen size and print size can vary greatly. Generally as an artist you will want a large enough image to see the general idea of the piece but not so large as to be easily downloaded and reprinted in any quality by others. Sizing of images for the web generally is a personal choice with no hard and fast rules about sizing. That said one should keep in mind that there are still a large number of people on dial up connections due to their geographical location. So keeping sizes as well as numbers of images posted per page to something a dial up can handle is a good rule of thumb. Thumbnails are generally 50-100 pixels per largest edge and full sized images at a maximum of 400-500 pixels per largest edge.

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