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Editorial Board· 6 min read
Understanding Image Copyrights and Creative Commons (2026)
Rachel SawyerVerified Contributor
Updated April 2026 · Originally October 2012
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Bloggers and most likely photographers and graphic artists new to sharing their work are not experts on copyrights or the law, but these sites are filled with so much industry jargon most have little chance of knowing for sure they are doing what is legal. These sites really need to explain copyright in a much simpler manner so that anyone can understand which uses are permitted.
While some may take the time to try to read pages of terms and conditions - they mean little to nothing to the average person.
Standard restrictions apply and APatterson must be notified when using the photo for any public work.Fair enough, but notified HOW? If you are going to say you want notified couldn't you tell people HOW to notify you? Do you want an email message or is a trackback from a blog post enough? Graphic artists and photographers should understand that we need to know whether they are asking to be notified BEFORE an image is published (which would be more accurately described as permission) or you just want to be sent a link or sample after the fact.
Reasonable to whom and who gets to decide? Most sites today probably use the Creative Commons licenses and anyone CAN find descriptions of them, but UNDERSTANDING what they mean is a another thing altogether.CC licenses have a sophisticated and flexible attribution requirement, so there is not necessarily one correct way to provide attribution. The proper method for giving credit will depend on the medium and means you are using, and may be implemented in any reasonable manner, although in the case of an adaptation or collection the credit needs to be as prominent as credits for other contributors. The CC website offers some best practices to help you attribute works, and the CC Australia team has developed a helpful guide to attributing works in different formats.
"Both creators and users generally consider uses that earn users money or involve online advertising to be commercial." "Users who make money from their uses of others’ works"The first makes it sound like most blogs ARE commercial because they might "earn users money" while the second sounds more like the IMAGE is making money rather than the blog. There is no obvious place to draw the line on non-commercial use. Take these examples:
We have to weigh the benefit of having what you create go viral and be seen by many against the desire to control and sell your creatives for profit.
Even among bloggers there is no consensus. There is likely even less agreement between image copyright holders and those who wish to feature their images. It is likely to be a long time before case law catches up with common practices - and even then laws are one thing and enforcement much more challenging.
What do you think? Should sharing freely be encouraged or should everyone have to pay for anything they ever use? Tell us in the comments. We want to hear from you!
Need to know for sure what is legal and what is not? Check out the listings in these categories.
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