Annotations at Upload (similar, but different, to watermarking)

[eruss]

I'm looking for a feature (or possibly a Mod or Plugin) that would do the following.  It is similar to applying a watermark because it would use ImageMagick, however it is different in that no image or text is overlaid on the original image.  A new text block is added below the image, increasing the image size by about 20-30 pixels.

WHY?
Why do I think this feature would benefit Coppermine users?

1.  There is a growing number of photo sharing websites.  Most of the time people need to (a) watermark their own images or (b) let the website apply its default watermark.

2.  Some sites share older photos.  The uploader is not always the photographer.  It is generally understood in most hobby/collector circles that the uploader would credit the original photographer.  This is similar to an old-time slide show where a presenter would show an image and reference the photographer's name.

TERMIONOLOGY & EXAMPLES

To differentiate the request from Watermarking, I am using the term Annotating or Annotation.  If this feature is found to have merit, the term can certainly be changed if needed.  Another image gallery (4images) offers this feature as a Mod:

4images mod discussion:
http://www.4homepages.de/forum/index.php?topic=13719.0

4images example gallery:
http://gallery.vano.org/en/categories.php?cat_id=78

Other examples of sites using proprietary (homegrown) software that performs an Annotation:
www.railpictures.net
www.airliners.net
www.planepictures.net
www.rrpicturearchives.net

SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS

1.  Apply text block (the annotation) to the bottom of the image.
2.  Text block data should come from a database field OR a field on the upload form.  My understanding is that the image manipulation in Coppermine occurs BEFORE the database information is entered (such as title and custom fields).  So, maybe adding a field on the upload form would work.
3.  An option should exist to provide a background for the text block area.  (see example below)
4.  Text formatting should be configured in backend.  Ideally, a font and font size could be selected.
5.  Because the text must remain readable, the text block does not need to be scaled for different image sizes.  For example, you may always want 10px text.

FUNCTION IN COPPERMINE

Below is the method in which I think this can be implemented in Coppermine.  Since coding in PHP is new to me, I can only show the process.  It's my hope that a Dev can take this to the next step.

1.  Set options in back end.

   Annotation settings
      Enable Annotation   Y / N
      Annotation vertical alignment   Top / Bottom
      Use Image or BGColor   Image / BGColor : ____________
      If BGColor, height    _____________________
      If Image, path    _______________________
      If Image, horizontal alignment    Left / Right
      Text font filename path    ______________________
      Text font size    ______________________
      Text alignment    Left / Right
      Text fine adjust (pixels up/down, left/right)  ___________________ (format: V+2/H-2)

Note: An Image and the text could be aligned differently.  For example, the site logo may appear on the left of the bar (Image aligned left) with the Text aligned right.

Example of Annotation Image.  Note that the image just needs to be as wide as the largest allowed resized upload.
(https://coppermine-gallery.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawbrass.com%2Ftemp%2Fannotation-background.jpg&hash=1bf3658de349020984e784f4c06d22dc6e5ac86f)

2.  Select image to upload.  Image selection for upload is as normal.

3.  Enter Annotation text.  This field is where the text should be entered.  It is defined by the uploader.  Assuming that image manipulation in Coppermine occurs BEFORE database fields are populated, the upload form is the ideal location to add the custom text for the Annotation.  Examples:
   John Smith Photo
   ©2006, John Smith
   John Smith Photo, Collection of Joe Davis

4.  Upload.  The upload would work as is normal, using all parameters set in the backend for intermediate and full size pics.  During upload (and ImageMagick resizing), the Annotation area would be added to the intermediate and full size images.
(https://coppermine-gallery.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawbrass.com%2Ftemp%2Fupload.jpg&hash=0ad1789574506f961d113894d14fbd2f7860b051)

5.  Example of uploaded image at 600px wide:
(https://coppermine-gallery.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rawbrass.com%2Ftemp%2Fuploaded-example.jpg&hash=22a2d556ef770db0c63021975b13dbf9a7a8d3c1)

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

If a thumbnail with a different aspect ratio would "break" Coppermine, the Annotation area could be included in the thumbnail image.  Ideally, the thumbnails would be free of the Annotation.

An option to re-Annotate an image already uploaded would be helpful, but not necessary.  (You could always re-upload the image with corrected Annotation.)  This function could be on the Edit File Information screen or in the Admin Tools as long as a specific image could be selected.

I hope that my explanation and screen mock-ups help to communicate what I am looking for.

Thanks for a great gallery!

[Joachim Müller]

valid request, could be done by modyfying existing watermark hacks.

[Bacchus1]

This is a super cool idea. Has anyone made any progress on this mod?