In this blog post, we'll explain what each Creative Commons license means, how to search for images under these licenses, and how to attribute images that were published under one of these licenses to the original author. So, what do these Creative Commons licenses look like, and what types of permission do they give to those who want to reuse or republish a licensed image? Creative Commons Licenses If you choose to use a Creative Commons-licensed image on your blog, be sure to check the terms of the license. Under this license, you are allowed to redistribute, modify, and build upon the original work as long as you attribute the work to the image's original author (learn how to properly attribute images to their respective authors further down in this article). The image must not be placed under any different or more restrictive terms for re-use than those established by the original author. When reusing these types of Creative Commons images, you can redistribute, modify, and build upon the original media as long as it's not for a commercial purpose, you attribute the media to the original author, and you republish the image under the same NonCommercial-ShareAlike license as the original. "This image was modified from [origin of image] by [name of author]." How to Use Creative Commons Search Images that have been made available for use through a Creative Commons license can easily be found on Flickr or Wikimedia Commons. You can also search Google for images that carry a Creative Commons license by configuring your advanced search settings the following way: Navigate to Google Images and select "Tools" on the right, just below the search bar. In Google Images, you have four options: "Labeled for reuse with modification" generally produces images under the Attribution and ShareAlike licenses.
Many beginning bloggers turn to the image search in Google. But pictures found in this way are almost always subject to restrictive copyright terms.
Creative Commons was created as an alternative to restrictive copyright laws, and allows authors and creators (of images, animations, music, and more) to license their works for distribution and further use.
In this blog post, we’ll explain what each Creative Commons license means, how to search for images under these licenses, and how to attribute images that were published under one of these licenses to the original author.
What is Creative Commons?
Creative Commons is a not-for-profit organization that allows photographers and visual artists to properly label their content for reuse by others. There are seven different creative licenses artists can use, each one permitting a different level of sharing and reuse by the end user.
So, what do these Creative Commons licenses look like, and what types of permission do they give to those who want to reuse or republish a licensed image?
Creative Commons Licenses
If you choose to use a Creative Commons-licensed image on your blog, be sure to check the terms of the license. Most images require only that you attribute the work to the original author, but some licenses include additional restrictions.
Here’s a quick breakdown of the different types of Creative Commons licenses available to publishers.
Attribution
This Creative Commons license offers the most opportunity for sharing and republishing. Under this license, you are allowed to redistribute, modify, and build upon the original work as long as you attribute the work to the image’s original author (learn how to properly attribute images to their respective authors further down in this article).
You must also be careful not to imply that the original author has endorsed you in any way through your use of their item.
Under the ShareAlike license, you can redistribute, modify, and build upon the original media as long as you attribute it to the original author and publish it under the same license — in other words, the ShareAlike license.
The image must not be placed under any different or more restrictive terms for re-use than those established by the original author.
The NoDerivs license is short for “No Derivative Works.” Under this Creative Commons license, only exact copies of the work may be used and shared, but no derivative or altered versions of the work.
In other words, there is no modifying, remixing, or building upon the original media under this license.
The NonCommercial license allows you to modify and build upon the original media, but it cannot be redistributed for commercial purposes.
Business bloggers: Pay attention to this license. Although blogs by themselves are not a revenue stream, they can serve to support a revenue-generating business. Therefore, it’s best to avoid media under this license if you’re publishing to a company blog, unless the media’s…
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