Are You Using Truly Legal CC0 Images?
Almost every business, today, have a website. So, in a way, they are all content creators. Every day, companies post so many things on their websites and on social media. Along with these posts, they post pictures and videos. As you know, businesses, or for that matter, no non-commercial users can just pick up any photo from the web and call it their own. They have to either buy the license of the stock photos they use or use photos marked as ‘Creative Commons Zero’ or ‘Public Domain.’ Buying a stock photo license can be an expensive affair. Unfortunately, small businesses usually do not have this kind of money. So what they do is they use websites that offer so called ‘free to use in anyway’ image service to get copyright-free CC0 photos. But boy-o-boy, there’s a danger lurking behind this practice. Watch out!
Are CC0 Images Really CC0?
CC0 or Creative Commons Zero photos are those images that you can download for free and use commercially without giving any credit or royalty. It all sounds very good. The CC0 license is a blessing for the small businesses. Otherwise, it would not have been possible to buy spend at least 500 Rupees for each photo on the website – with so many restrictions! Fortunately there are many websites that offer creative commons zero and public domain images.
Don’t get me wrong. Pexels or Pixabay are great. Pexels, in particular, comes across as an impressive repository with all its inclusive pictures. And Pixabay has an awe-inspiring collection of photos. No matter what industry you are in, Pixabay has photos for you.
These websites claim that they distribute royalty-free, commercial-usage -allowed free pictures. However, there are two fundamental loopholes in this blanket claim –
- Third parties upload the photos. And, more often than not, these platforms do not have the financial strength to verify that the uploaders own the photos. So, suppose I upload somebody else’s photos to a free images website and the basic checks done by these free images companies fail to flag the plagiarism. In that case, the images can get featured on that website. And, then, if you download and use that photo on your website, you are using a non-CC0 image on your website. The original owner can sue you at any time.
- Secondly, the photos in these free images websites do not have the model release and property release. In plain words, the people or private properties featured in these have not been released to be used freely. A free image with the picture of a person(s) should include the featured person’s consent, mentioning that they can use their photo for CC0 purposes. The same is the case for private properties. The owner should give consent. So if you are using a CC0 image that features a person, someday that person might sue you!
And no, we aren’t saying this without proof.
You Can Be Sued Even If You Use CC0 Licensed Images
It has happened in the past. More often than not, the lawsuits are the acts of copyright trolling – they want to suck the money out of you. But that’s not the point. The point is, you can be sued. Here are some incidents of people getting sued for using improperly tagged CC0 photos –
Example 1 – In this case, Simon Palmer, a photographer, got sued by copytrack for using an image that Palmer’s marketing team sourced from Unsplash. It is quite fishy when Palmer revisited Unsplash the downloaded photo, and the uploader was nowhere to be seen. So regardless of whether it is intentional copyright trolling or a genuine lawsuit, Palmer had to face humiliation, and he had to go through a lot of pain.
Example 2 – You can’t legally use the night-time photo of the Eiffel Tower without obtaining a license from the agency that takes care of the lighting. Usually, any architectural setup that came up before 1990 can be photographed and used freely. So, the photograph of the tower itself is free to use, but the lighting is quite new, and a private entity has set it up. So you need to obtain the necessary release from the entity.
Example 3 – Be careful of the Privately Owned Public Spaces. Some of the places act as public places but are owned by private entities. You may have unrestricted access to the place, but you don’t have a license to take photos of such places and use them commercially. So even if a photo of such PoPS ends up in the so-called legally free CC0 website, your usage of them without the necessary permission can bring doom to you.
So, Beware of The Legal Eagles
Yes, it is unfair that a small creator has to take so much care even if she wants to use CC0 photos. And more often than not, the lawsuits filed against them are to suck as much money as possible. It will become a lucrative business in the coming years.
Can’t A Small Business Get Truly Legal Free CC0 Images From Anywhere?
We, at Dimensions, do not just focus on the problems. Don’t worry. Here is a list of truly legal free-for-commercial use CC0 images that won’t attract copyright trollers.
Kaboompics
Kaboompics is one of the rare royalty-free websites that take care of the model release contract. Additionally, all photos featured on the website are taken by only one person – the founder, Karolina Grabowska. In her own words, it’s a one-woman show. That’s why there is no scope for anonymous users submitting copyrighted photos and claiming as CC0. Using photos from Kaboompics will keep you safe. But, you have to make sure that there is no brand logo or work of art in the photo. That’s easy to do.
Website – Kaboompics
Pro Tip: Look For A Free Photo Website Where Only One Person Uploads The Photos
Undraw
Another woman-led initiative, Undraw, is safe for two reasons. First of all, the copyright holder of the images ( yes, they are not CC0 but freely usable) is Katerina Limpitsouni. No one else has the copyright.
Secondly, these images are all illustrations. So there is no issue of model or property release at all! You have to take care of the brand illustrations.
Website – Undraw
Pro Tip: Use illustrations instead of real images. They are beautiful and relatively safe to use.
Jay Mantri
Glad to see a fellow Indian making a great impact and helping the world. The photos of this website are truly awe-inspiring. You will find eye-soothing photos of landscapes, forests, smooth roads and whatnot. Once again, this is a website where only one person uploads the photos – Ajay Mantri. He is a professional designer, and you can easily find and contact him.
Website – Jay Mantri
Free Nature Stock
Another cool guy Adrian Pelletier has created this website. It is hands down the best website when it comes to truly free nature photography. If you come here to choose a photo for your blog, you will get lost in the sea of beautiful images. But, you will keep on seeing them!
Website – Free Nature Stock
The British Library
We mentioned earlier that the photos of art or authorship are usually not copyright-free. However, vintage photos of art or authorship are copyright-free! The British Library features those photos taken when there was no concept of the draconian copyright policy regarding the images. It is a Flickr community. The photos are old but using them can give your blog a classic appeal.
Website – The British Library
Skitterphoto
Another website where the photos are uploaded by just two people – Rudy and Peter. Since they are based in the Netherlands, you will find many mystical photos, photos of flora and fauna and, ofcourse, the iconic windmills. However, we could not find any mention of the model release. So we would suggest you use photos without any identifiable person in them.
Website – Skitterphoto
Illlustrations Dot Co
Let’s end this list with the mention of another Indian designer – Vijay Verma. His illustrations are vibrant and so minimalistic. Just like Undraw, you can download the images either in png or svg format. So you can easily modify the color scheme used in these images to match that of your website. (Notice the triple L in the word ‘illlustrations.’)
Website – https://illlustrations.co/
The copyright rules are exceedingly messy. The legal eagles will use this mess to suck as much money from you as possible. So be very careful while using the images, even from the so-called free photo websites. Share this article with your fellow digital marketers and content creators to spread the word.
