There are some questions that always seem to come up in my conversations with my web design clients and blogger friends again and again.

Some of them are complicated. “How exactly do you make a living online?” is a question that needs more than a blog post to answer.

But they’re not all that complex, and “I’m not sure how to credit images on a blog” is one that I hear a lot, tucked away at the end of a conversation. It’s a throwaway question, asked hesitantly.

And you probably already know why.

Many of the questions that nag at us are ones we feel like we should already have answered.

So let’s take a stand. Shame has no place in your blog or your business. (tweet it!)

That means we’re going back to basics today, with a quick and simple formula on how to credit images on a blog or website. Because we’re not going to let a little thing like this hold you back from success!

But let’s take a step back and ask: why should you care?

I’m not talking about know why you think you probably should care. I know that you know that people made those beautiful images! And not for bloggers to harvest out of google images.

One of my favourite pieces of dating advice is the campsite rule: to leave the people you date in better shape than they were when you met them, and frankly the Internet needs more people acting this way too. So start being one of them today!

If you’re a blogger, you’re creating content of your own, and it’s just as available to be copied or plagiarized as images are. And the bottom line is that if you wouldn’t want someone republishing your posts under their name, you’re doing the same thing when you use an image without crediting it.

There’s no grey area on this when it comes to copyright. There is no disclaimer in your sidebar that means you’re not liable. And as Author Roni Loren revealed on BlogHer in January 2015, even casual bloggers can be sued for thousands.

So, if you’ve ever used an image from Google Images, start removing them or deleting old posts. Even a few a day makes a difference.

And keep adding new posts using images that are the right side of the law.

Wondering How You Should Credit Images? Swipe My Formula!

The best part about this is that it’s really simple. Here’s exactly how you should credit images.

When You Know Who Made It & Have a Link to the Original:

Image by Artist / Photog Name, linked to where it was originally posted

How This Looks “In The Wild”

If you were going to use this image from my Instagram feed in your post, you would credit it directly under the image like this:

Mal on a Colourful Winter Walk

Image by Kyla Roma

Why This Works:

  • The creator’s name is clearly shown by the image. Kyla Roma’s Instagram Account or a variation would be equally correct.
  • The link takes you directly to the earliest original source you can find.
  • The link goes beyond linking to Instagram.com, KylaRoma.com, or a user’s profile URL and links directly to the to the original post or page where you found the work.

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When You Know Who Made It, Have a Link to the Original and Found It Through Another Website:

Image by Artist / Photog Name, linked to original image via Where you found it, linked to that

How This Looks “In The Wild”

If you were going to use a different image of my dog Mal from my husband’s (video game filled!) Instagram feed in your post, and you found it through the post you’re reading now, you would credit it directly under the image like this:

Mal is a sleepy boy by Broximar Via Kyla Roma

Image by Broximar via Kyla Roma 

Why This Works:

  • The creator’s name is clearly shown by the image.
  • The link takes you directly to the earliest original source of the image you can find.
  • The link goes beyond linking to Instagram.com, KylaRoma.com, or a user’s profile URL and links directly to the to the original post or page where you found the work.
  • The way you found the image is clear, which is especially helpful when you’re sharing work found through a favourite blogger’s roundup posts or a news site.

If You Took the Photo:

Go crazy! This is one of the best reasons to work on your photography skills as a blogger. I took the image for this post at a museum, and because the work is over 70 years old copyright isn’t a factor.

Otherwise…

If there’s a grey area, don’t post it. Don’t waste time, or risk it – find a picture that works, and keep moving on up.

It’s next to impossible to find a blogger who has a perfect record, we were all beginners once after all. (Myself included!) But this is an aspect of blogging where you can take a limitation and use it as motivation to be as professional as possible. If you make a strong foundation, who knows where you could end up!

Where do you get confused by image crediting? Have you had experiences with people swiping your work, or do you have questions?

I’m not a lawyer, but I’ve been on the Internet long enough to have had my writing, photography, and even a few of my complete blog designs plagiarized. I’m happy to share my experiences in the comments if they’re helpful.