WikiPaintball:Adding photographs

Adding photographs to WikiPaintball explains how contributors can share, licence and include photographs in articles while respecting copyright and the rights of photographers.

Photographs are an important part of preserving paintball history. Images of historical teams, tournaments, players, equipment, playing fields and other subjects can provide valuable visual documentation.

WikiPaintball does not accept direct photograph uploads from contributors. Instead, contributors are encouraged to use Wikimedia Commons, provided that their images meet its copyright, licensing and educational requirements.

All photographs used on WikiPaintball must have an identifiable and lawful basis for reuse.

Where photographs are hosted

WikiPaintball's preferred external image repository is Wikimedia Commons.

Wikimedia Commons is a free media repository operated by the Wikimedia Foundation. It hosts photographs and other media that can be freely reused, including for commercial purposes.[1]

It is not a general-purpose image hosting service. Uploaded photographs must have a realistic educational purpose and comply with Wikimedia Commons policies.[2]

Photographs documenting paintball history, competitions, equipment, people and venues may be suitable.

Contributors should not upload photographs directly to WikiPaintball or use unauthorised copies hosted elsewhere.

Copyright and ownership

Before sharing a photograph, contributors must establish who owns its copyright.

In most circumstances, copyright originally belongs to the photographer, although employment agreements, contracts and other arrangements can affect ownership.

Owning a photograph does not necessarily mean owning its copyright.

For example:

A player appearing in a team photograph does not automatically own the photograph.
A team captain does not automatically own photographs taken by an event photographer.
Purchasing a physical print does not transfer the underlying copyright.
Receiving a photograph through email, WhatsApp or social media does not automatically grant permission to redistribute it.
A photograph appearing on a public website is not automatically free to use.
A photograph being old does not automatically mean its copyright has expired.

Contributors must not download photographs from websites, social media, magazines, online archives or other sources and upload them elsewhere without the necessary rights.

Giving credit to the photographer is not a substitute for obtaining permission.

Acceptable image licences

WikiPaintball encourages photographs that are available under recognised free licences.

Suitable options include:

Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY): Allows reuse and modification, including commercial use, provided the licence conditions and attribution requirements are followed.
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA): Allows reuse and modification, including commercial use, with attribution and applicable ShareAlike requirements.
Creative Commons Zero (CC0): A public-domain dedication that permits broad reuse without the usual attribution requirement.
Public domain: Photographs whose copyright has expired or which are otherwise demonstrably in the public domain.

Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) is a recommended choice for contributors licensing their own photographs.

The following are not acceptable for Wikimedia Commons:

Images marked All Rights Reserved.
Creative Commons licences containing NonCommercial (NC) restrictions.
Creative Commons licences containing NoDerivatives (ND) restrictions.
Images with no identifiable licence or copyright information.
Images made available only for personal use.
Images for which the photographer has granted permission solely for WikiPaintball.

Wikimedia Commons requires licences that permit reuse by everyone, including commercial use and modification.[1]

Uploading your own photographs

Contributors who own the copyright to suitable photographs can upload them to Wikimedia Commons.

Step 1: Create an account

Visit:

Wikimedia Commons

Create a free Wikimedia account or sign in using an existing Wikimedia account.

Step 2: Open the upload page

Visit:

Wikimedia Commons Upload Wizard

Follow the instructions to select and upload the photograph.

Step 3: Confirm ownership

If you personally created the photograph and own the copyright, identify it as your own work.

Do not select this option for photographs taken by another person, even if you appear in the photograph or possess the original file.

If somebody else owns the copyright, their authorisation to publish the photograph under an acceptable free licence must be established.

Step 4: Provide accurate information

Include as much verified information as possible:

Photographer's name or recognised credit.
Date or approximate year.
Tournament or event name.
Location.
Teams or players shown, where reliably identified.
A description explaining the photograph's historical relevance.

Use a descriptive filename rather than a generic camera filename where possible.

Do not guess the identities of players, dates, team affiliations or event details.

Step 5: Choose a licence

Select an appropriate free licence, such as CC BY-SA 4.0 or CC BY 4.0.

Only the copyright holder, or somebody legally authorised by them, can grant the relevant rights.

Free Creative Commons licensing allows other people to reuse the photograph, including outside WikiPaintball and for commercial purposes, subject to the licence terms.

These permissions cannot ordinarily be withdrawn from people who continue to comply with the licence.

Review the terms carefully before publishing.

Step 6: Publish the photograph

Complete the upload process and save the photograph's Wikimedia Commons file-description page URL.

This page contains the image, its description, copyright information, licence and attribution details.

Photographs taken by somebody else

Contributors may wish to share historical photographs taken by tournament photographers, former teammates, journalists or other individuals.

The preferred approach is to ask the copyright holder to upload the photograph to Wikimedia Commons themselves.

Alternatively, the copyright holder may authorise publication under an acceptable free licence. Wikimedia Commons may require this permission to be documented through its Volunteer Response Team.[3]

Permission must cover the relevant free licence, not merely allow the photograph to appear on WikiPaintball.

A photographer saying "you can use this on your website" is not sufficient permission to upload the photograph to Wikimedia Commons.

If the necessary permission cannot be established, do not upload the image.

Adding photographs to WikiPaintball articles

Photographs already available on Wikimedia Commons can be included in WikiPaintball articles where Wikimedia Commons image integration is enabled.

Step 1: Find the photograph

Locate the image on Wikimedia Commons.

Check its description page to confirm that the photograph has an acceptable licence and that the stated source and ownership are credible.

Step 2: Copy the filename

Copy the exact filename displayed on the Commons file page, including its extension, such as .jpg or .png.

Step 3: Edit the article

Open the appropriate WikiPaintball article and select the editing option.

Where Commons image integration is available, the standard MediaWiki image syntax is:

[[File:Exact_filename.jpg|thumb|Descriptive caption]]

The filename must match the file on Wikimedia Commons.

To specify the width and position:

[[File:Exact_filename.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Descriptive caption]]

MediaWiki supports displaying files from Wikimedia Commons through its InstantCommons feature when enabled by the website administrator.[4]

Step 4: Include attribution

Photographs should include a factual caption and appropriate attribution.

Where required by the licence, identify the photographer, provide the licence details and link to the relevant information.

For example:

[[File:Exact_filename.jpg|thumb|250px|Photograph showing a paintball event. Photo: [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Exact_filename.jpg Photographer name], [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ CC BY-SA 4.0].]]

Replace the example filename, photographer, caption and licence with the actual information from the Wikimedia Commons file page.

The licence requirements of each individual photograph must be followed.[5]

Step 5: Preview and save

Preview the article before publishing.

Check that:

The photograph displays correctly.
The caption is accurate.
The photographer is credited where required.
The correct licence is identified.
The image is relevant to the article.

If the image does not display, check the filename. Wikimedia Commons integration may not yet be enabled on WikiPaintball.

In that case, contributors can provide a link to the Wikimedia Commons file-description page instead of embedding the image, and request assistance from a WikiPaintball administrator.

Photographs that must not be used

WikiPaintball does not permit contributors to add photographs simply because they are publicly accessible.

Do not use:

Photographs downloaded from paintball news websites without appropriate licensing or permission.
Images copied from Facebook, Instagram or other social media without the necessary rights.
Professional tournament photographs without an acceptable free licence.
Photographs copied from old team websites without documented reuse rights.
Scanned magazine photographs where copyright has not been cleared.
Images copied from online archives merely because the original website no longer exists.
Watermarked photographs without appropriate authorisation.
Images whose ownership or licensing cannot be established.

Historical significance does not override copyright.

When a photograph cannot legally be reproduced, contributors may link to the original publication as a historical source instead.

Accuracy and privacy

Photographs must be relevant to the article in which they appear.

Captions should identify subjects only when their identities and the surrounding circumstances can be reliably established.

A photograph of an individual wearing a team's jersey does not, by itself, prove membership of that team.

Contributors should also consider privacy, personality rights and applicable consent requirements, particularly for photographs involving children or private settings.

Copyright permission and permission relating to the people depicted are separate considerations.

Photographs must not be used to make misleading or unsupported historical claims.

Reporting copyright problems

If a photograph appears to have been used without permission or with incorrect licensing information, contributors should report the issue to WikiPaintball administrators.

Reports should identify:

The WikiPaintball article concerned.
The photograph in question.
The original photographer or copyright holder, if known.
Evidence of the correct copyright or licensing status.

Where a photograph is hosted on Wikimedia Commons, copyright concerns may also be reported through Wikimedia Commons' established procedures.

Disputed images may be removed from WikiPaintball while their status is reviewed.

References

External links