How can I do right by this photographer?

September 3, 2007 2:10 PM

I would like to use a Creative Commons-licensed photo in the top-of-the-page banner of a web site I am developing. The photo has this license. What is the best way to fairly attribute the photo and respect the photographer's wishes?

Is a mention/explanation in the about page adequate? So "This site is run by Crouton Supafreak, and was established for the following purposes (2-3 paragraphs). The photo at the top of this site was taken by NAME, and is licensed under Creative Commons. More information about this license is HERE."

Alternately, would it be ok to have an "about this photo" link, in very, very, very small text, directly under/next to the photo, which would go to a page with attribution and a link to the license?

When people actually click on the photo, I'd like to link directly to my main site, not to the creative commons stuff.

This is a non-commercial project at the moment, but I may try to make money off it down the line.

posted by croutonsupafreak to computers & internet (4 answers total)

Both a 'title="Photo by Foo, available at http://bar/"' attribute to the IMG tag, and the same text somewhere on the page. I don't think you have to mention the license as long as you send people to the page that encloses where you found it.
posted by cmiller at 2:19 PM on September 3, 2007

Oh, I say this as a photographer whose work is referenced about a dozen times I know about on the web and in print. It's what I see most and about what I would expect. Tell them where to find me, not just my name.
posted by cmiller at 2:20 PM on September 3, 2007

I would put a link at the bottom of a page where the copyright notices are. In my opinion, the attribution should be on every page that the picture is on. Alternately, you could always email the photographer and ask what s/he is most comfortable with.
posted by sugarfish at 2:21 PM on September 3, 2007

Thanks, folks. I like the idea of the title attribution combined with a notice at the bottom of every page where the image appears.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 3:45 PM on September 3, 2007