How To Batch Add A Watermark In Photoshop

But stamping a watermark on multiple photos is a process that causes headaches for those who use Photoshop for editing pictures. It can get a little complicated. However, there is a technique to apply a watermark simultaneously to a batch of photos all at once and save a great deal of time.

Let’s find out how you can add a transparent watermark to a batch of images using this walkthrough.

How to Batch Add a Watermark in Photoshop

Some like to have their watermark stand out, while others prefer transparency. Most of the time, watermarks have textual content that indicates the creator’s style and preferences. It can be an email address, a logo, or an artist’s name – anything that essentially states who the image belongs to clearly.

Batch adding a watermark is a tricky job in Photoshop. It requires a solid knowledge of using layers and more advanced program knowledge. While there is no specific feature to automatically batch add a watermark to images, using the “Action” feature does this job as well as anything else.

The first step in putting a watermark across multiple photos is to create the watermark on a single image. Use the picture with the smallest resolution in the folder, as Photoshop can’t scale the watermark. If you fail to do this, it can result in a pixelated watermark.

Creating an Action

You will have to create an action to batch watermark images in Photoshop. It will allow the program to repeat the cycle of creating a watermark on the individual photos you select. Before beginning with creating a single watermark, you should use Photoshop’s feature for recording actions.

Here is how to access this feature.

1. Open the “Actions” tab.
   
2. Click on the “Create New Action” button at the bottom of the window.
   
3. A dialogue window will pop up. Enter the name of the action. In this case, name it “Watermark.”
   
4. Click “Record.”
   

Photoshop will now memorize all the following actions to create a paradigm for batch watermarking.

Creating a Transparent Watermark

You can begin with crafting the watermark on the primary photo Photoshop will use as a template for batch watermarking. Open the image you want to stamp in the program and start creating layers. You will use text as the watermark in this walkthrough.

Here is how to create a watermark step by step.

1. Open the “Layers” panel and click on “New Layer.”
   
2. Go to the left toolbar and click “Horizontal Type Tool.” Type the watermark’s content anywhere inside the photo.
   
3. Open the “Edit” tab from the top menu and select “Free Transform.” Resize and arrange the textual content of the layer.
   
4. Select the “Move” tool and adjust the position of the watermark. Alternatively, click the “Arrange” button in the main toolbar if you want to center the watermark. Do not skip this step, as it fixes the watermark in every batch photo.
   
5. Select the new textual layer and go to “Layer Style,” or press the “fx” button in the bottom menu of the Layers window.
   
6. Choose “Bevel & Emboss.” Leave it at default settings and click “Ok.”
   
7. Go to the “Fill” option at the top of the Layers menu and set it to 0 to keep the bevel effect only. Doing this will result in the transparent look of the watermark and will add to the glass-like effect.
   
8. Click “Delete Layer” to delete the background picture.
   

You have created the watermark and can save it for future use.

Now is the moment you should stop recording your actions. Go to the “Actions” panel in the left toolbar, click the button with the square symbol, and stop recording your activities. You can now close the original picture, as you will watermark it anyway when you apply the recorded action to the batch.

Adding a Watermark to the Batch

There are two ways you can batch-add a watermark to your images in Photoshop. Once you have recorded the action, you can run it on a batch.

The first method of performing this is the following:

1. Go to the top menu and open the File – Scripts – Image processor tab. The dialogue window will open.
   
2. Select the folder with the images you want to batch.
   
3. Choose the “Destination Folder” where you want to export the processed images. You can choose to save them in the exact location or any other location on your drive.
   
4. Choose the file type of the exported images. It is recommended to process them in JPG format and set quality levels to 11.
   
5. Click “Run Action.” Choose the “Watermark” action you have previously created.
   
6. Click “Run” and begin processing the images.
   

After running the Action, Photoshop will automatically save all the photos it processes in the batch. Therefore, there is no need to hit the “Save As” button.

You can take another course of action to perform by adding a watermark on a batch of images. This one requires using the “Batch” selection from the menu.

Here is a quick walkthrough of this alternative.

1. Choose the File – Automate – Batch from the top menu in the program window.
   
2. Choose the previously recorded “Watermark” action from the drop-down menu.
   
3. Click “Choose” and set the “Source” to “Folder.”
   
4. Pick the source
   
5. In the “Destination” section, click on the “Choose” button and set the destination to “Folder.” Do not pick the “Save & Close” option, as it will overwrite your images, and you will lose them.
   
6. Choose the destination folder where you want to export the output files.
   
7. Click “Ok” to start the batch watermarking.
   

Photoshop will ask about the image preferences before performing the action you assigned. Choose the recommended image format (JPG) and set the desired quality. Once that is set and the program has finished running the action, you will find the output images in the chosen destination folder.

FAQs

Why is the watermark cropped?

Photoshop doesn’t scale the photos automatically. You can avoid this issue by choosing the smallest photo in the batch to design the watermark. You can check if the photos’ resolution is all the same by going to Image – Resize – Image size.

Why isn’t the watermark centered?

You probably skipped the “Arrange” step when creating the watermark, so you haven’t fixed its position on the photos. To fix this, find the “Arrange” button in the main toolbar and click it for centering and setting the watermark.

Watermarks Matter

For some, watermarking pictures is a way to protect image copyright. Meanwhile, it is a way to sign and authenticate the artwork for others. Whatever the reason for stamping a watermark on a batch of pictures may be, it’s crucial to make it look well and consistent.

Batch-adding a watermark to images can have messy results if not done correctly. Giving your batch a clean and well-positioned watermark is a key part of the job of being a quality creator.

How do you batch add watermark to your photos? Tell us in the comments section below!