Skip to main content

Image Use Guidelines

Our website is the public face of MLML. We want it to be rich in multimedia and visually appealing. The images we use on our website must be used legally, according to their copyright and licensing. The guidelines below will help to make sure that the image specs are appropriate for use on the web and that we have the right to use a photo. Pay special attention to statements of allowable re-use and how the image owner would like you to give them credit. Please also see our Permitting Guidelines.

 

Image Specifications

Resolution:

    • Slider
      • Upload original image, then (within WordPress) resize/crop to:
        • Width - 1400px
        • Height - Anything you want, but keep it consistent amongst all of your slider images or it will look bad. For reference, the main website uses 500px for its slider images.
    • Everything Else
      • Original size, high resolution images. WordPress will automatically generate appropriately sized thumbnails.
      • Enable Lightbox whenever it is appropriate (usually all the time).

File Types:

    • JPG - For photos.
    • PNG - For drawings, graphs, logos, etc.

 

Image Metadata

*indicates required information

Enter the information below for each image you upload to the Media Library:

    • *Title - The Title is used by WordPress to sort your Media Library. Set this to the author/copyright owner's title for the image if there is one.
    • Caption - Use this field for image attribution when required by a license.
    • *Alt Text - Always enter alt text for 508 accessibility compliance. See https://moz.com/learn/seo/alt-text for a good explanation and some examples of alt text.
    • *Description - Paste image licensing info here using the Image Author/Copyright Owner & Licensing Template found below. This field is internal to WordPress and does not display to the public. Use the Caption field for attribution or other info you want to convey to the public.
    • Custom URL - Add if you want your image to link to another web page when clicked.
    • Custom Target - Default is sufficient.
    • Custom Class - Leave this blank.

 

Image Author/Copyright Owner & Licensing Template

Instructions:

    • Fill out the template and paste it in the Description metadata field on every image uploaded to your website.
      • The template consists of the following:
        • Image title - The author/copyright holder's title for the image. Specify "No title" if no title is available.
        • Image author/copyright owner - Photographer, artist, or owning group name.
        • Image source - Where you got the image from. Self, email from {x}, and the URL of the original image are examples of image sources.
        • Image License - Creative Commons (CC0, BY, BY-SA, BY-NC, etc); CSU Photography, Visual Image & Concept Ideas release form; individual permission given; public domain.
        • Image License URL - URL to the license, if applicable. Specify N/A; image is in the public domain' or similar if not.
        • Image subjects - People, animals, or any other important objects/scenery in the image.
        • Image permit information - If applicable. Specify "N/A" if not.

Template:

Required Fields:

    • Image title:
    • Image author/copyright owner:
    • Image source:
    • Image license:
    • Image license URL:
    • Image permit information:
    • Image subjects:

Important Notes:

  • Even if image contents are irrelevant, this template must be filled out; there are no exceptions.
  • You must fully understand and abide by the license terms used by the author/copyright owner.
  • Although in many cases attribution will be sufficient, you cannot assume this is the case.
  • If you are unable to fill out all applicable fields in the template for an image, you cannot use it.

 

Image Metadata Example

Title

Young humpback whale with blowholes clearly visible

Caption

By D. Gordon E. Robertson (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Alt Text

Overhead view of a young humpback whale at the ocean's surface with its blowholes clearly visible

Description

Image Title: N/A

Image author/copyright owner: D. Gordon E. Robertson

Image Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Humpback_Whale,_blowholes.jpg

Image license: CC BY-SA 3.0

Image license URL: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0

Image permit information: N/A

Image subjects: Young humpback whale

metadata_example.png

Back to top