Has anyone every copywrited a photograph?

[Elderflower14]

Ds has taken an iconic lockdown photo... I want to copyright it... Anyone done it before please...?

As the creator, the copyright belongs to her automatically - you don’t need to do anything.

Have a read here:
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/481194/c-notice-201401.pdf

The monkey selfie - the photograher whose camera was picked up by the monkey won the copyright case

www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/monkey-selfie-david-slater-photographer-peta-copyright-image-camera-wildlife-personalities-macaques-a7941806.html

How can I stop people using it though?

The simplest way is to put a copyright symbol on it. If someone wants to use it, they pay you royalties, at an amount you set

Beware if you put it on social media - i think there is very often a clause in the t&c to say copyright passes to the host

If it’s truly great, can he licence it through Getty Images or some such?

The taker of the photograph owns the copyright by default.
If they have ever uploaded it to a social media site, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc then those companies now have the right to use and sell that photograph should they see fit (it is in the T's and C's) so keep it offline.
If you want to use it for the purpose of making money from it then you could either sell it to an agency or direct but unlikely to gain much more than £50.
Best thing to do, if it really is as iconic as you say is to sell prints in a limited run. You may make a bit more profit that way.

Watermark it, same way shutterstock do? Only release the unwatermarked image to people that pay?

Who is using it? If it is a publication then you can invoice them for it

@Naicehamhun

The taker of the photograph owns the copyright by default. If they have ever uploaded it to a social media site, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc then those companies now have the right to use and sell that photograph should they see fit (it is in the T's and C's) so keep it offline. If you want to use it for the purpose of making money from it then you could either sell it to an agency or direct but unlikely to gain much more than £50. Best thing to do, if it really is as iconic as you say is to sell prints in a limited run. You may make a bit more profit that way.

This isn't true, certainly for Facebook. Their T&Cs make it clear that you own the copyright of the photos you upload.

You still own the copyright on Twitter, although the T&Cs mean you grant them a licence to use the photo. Same with Instagram.

It's worth checking the individual T&Cs, but in general, you still own copyright to the photo.