Have you ever clicked on a Wikipedia article and noticed that it had no pictures? This is much more common than you may think due to Wikipedia’s strict rules regarding images in their articles.

Images help to give more detail about a particular subject and help people understand the information better. Follow these steps to add an image to a Wikipedia article.

How does Wikipedia choose photos?

Wikipedia is an open-source encyclopedia that anyone can contribute to, and this includes Wikipedia images. Wikimedia Commons contains a massive collection of over 86 million images, which can be used in Wikipedia articles. Editors add images to articles from Wikimedia Commons. Anyone can upload images to Wikimedia Commons as long as certain requirements are met.

Creative Commons Copyright Protection

A creative commons license allows for the free distribution of authored works, such as text or images.  Everything that is on Wikipedia must be free for other people to use. If you scroll to the bottom of any Wikipedia page, you will see this text:

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

Wikimedia Commons is always looking for new images, but they take copyright infringement very seriously, so all images must be freely licensed and available for use by the public.

 

Should You Upload A Photo To Wikimedia?

Most images on the internet are copyrighted, which means that you can’t just upload any picture you find to Wikimedia Commons. If you want to upload an image to Wikimedia Commons and put it in an article, they must:

• Be in the public domain.
• Be under a free license by yourself or someone else.
• Fall under fair use if they are copyrighted.
• Portray the subject in a neutral and unbiased manner.

It can be difficult to successfully upload an image to use in a Wikipedia article due to how strict the rules are.

 

How To Add A Picture To A Wikipedia Page (Step By Step)

 

Step 1 – Create A Wikipedia Account

Before you can upload an image to Wikimedia Commons, you must have an account with Wikipedia. Fill out your username and password, and provide an email address.

 

Step 2 – Find Your Image

Finding an image that meets the criteria can be tricky. Follow these tips when selecting an image:

• Most images that you create can be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. You own the copyright to your own images and thus can give the rights away to Wikimedia.
• You can’t upload work that was directly inspired by someone else’s work, even if you made it.
• You can’t upload other people’s work without their explicit permission.
• You can, however, upload pictures of art and architecture that is over 150 years old.
• You can upload public domain content if it isn’t already on Wikimedia Commons.

 

Step 3 – Upload To Wikimedia Commons

Before you can add an image to your Wikipedia article, it has to be uploaded to Wikimedia Commons. To do this, go to the upload wizard and go through each step. Upload your media files and sign off on the release rights.

 

Step 4 – Add A Description

It is important to accurately describe your image so that others can easily find it and see what it is about. The file name should be concise and descriptive without being too long.

You have the option to enter a single line caption to your image. Below that, you will be asked to provide a description. Provide as much information as you can in the description. After that, you can proceed to upload the file.

 

Step 5 – Insert Into Article

Once you have gone through the steps, you will see a code that you can copy and paste into a Wikipedia article to upload the image.

Go to your article and click edit at the top-right. Paste the code if you have it, or otherwise format the code like this to add an image:

[[ File:Title.jpg | thumb | This is the caption. ]]

Once you add the image, add an edit summary and save the changes. Your image is now in the article. As an alternative, you can also request that an image be added to an article by using the talk page.

 

In Closing

Adding images to Wikipedia can be tricky, especially when it comes to pages about living people. Make sure that you understand the copyright rules before you add images to Wikimedia Commons. Navigating Wikipedia is a complicated process. Our expert team at WikiCreators can guide you through it and provide the expert care that you need in your Wikipedia projects. Get in touch so we can develop a personalized plan to meet your goals.