Vibrant, attention getting images are a key component of any well designed website. With the abundance of pictures available online it is tempting to download the first image that we come across to use on our site. There are two important reasons why you should always check the source of the image:
- Copyright laws – Getting caught with images you do not have proper license for can be very costly, both financially and as far as your time.
- Common courtesy – All images, even the ones without a license, have been produced by someone who deserves to be recognized.
How to check the source of the image?
As a general rule you should never download images from other websites, unless they are clearly designed as stock photo sources. Such a website will always state the conditions under which you are allowed to use the images downloaded. There are both paid sites (like istockphoto.com or shutterstock.com) that allow you to post the images without giving any credits and free sites (like unsplash.com or pexels.com) that expect recognition for their artists.
If you are not sure as to the source of an image you can always check its full metadata online or run a reverse image search on Google. To do that you can go to images.google.com, click on the camera icon and upload the image you are curious about.
How to credit your image in WordPress?
A simple line under the image telling the visitor where the image came from is enough to fulfill the copyright requirements. You can also place the information in your site footer, especially if most or all the images come from the same source. There are also a handful of WordPress plugins that automate the process for you. One example is Image Source Control Lite that uses post metadata to display the credits over or below the image.
If you are hiring a private photographer for a photoshoot in your office be sure to talk to them about how they would like to be recognized on your website. Any link placed on your site is social credit and helps boost the author in the search results.
Not sure how to properly give credit for the images on your website? Let us know, we will be happy to provide you with the necessary tools to get the job done.
Image by Bodo Bertuleit from Pixabay