Finding images for blog posts is a challenge that every blogger must face. Previously, we shared some of our favorite sources to find royalty free images. One of the sources is creative commons search which uses, Flickr, one of the biggest resource of creative commons licensed images. In this article, we will show you how to find and insert creative commons licensed images in WordPress.
Video Tutorial
If you don’t like the video or need more instructions, then continue reading.
First thing you need to do is install and activate the WP Inject plugin. Upon installation, you need to go to Settings » WP Inject, and configure the plugin settings.
WP Inject allows you to search the massive Flickr site for creative commons licensed images which you can use in your posts. However, there are different types of licenses. Some allow you to use images on non-commercial sites only and some give you permission to use even on commercial sites. Most licenses require you to give attribution to original creator of the work. On the plugin’s settings screen, you need to choose a license that you want to use for your image searches.
After that, check the box next to the option ‘Save Images to Server’. If you do not check this box, your website will be loading images from Flickr. This will slow down your page speed which is not good for your site’s SEO. If you have a fairly busy site, then we would recommend you to use a CDN solution to serve images on your site.
Rest of the options on the page are quite self explanatory. Once you are satisfied with the settings click on the Save All Settings button to store changes.
Now you are all set to add images from Flickr. Create a new post or edit an existing one. On the post editor screen you will find WP Inject meta box just below the post editor. Use this box to search for images. It will search Flickr for images that match your licensing requirement and will show the results. Once you find the image that you like, click on the image and choose the file size that you want to add in your post.
That’s all, the plugin will now add the image to your post and upload it to media library. It will also add an attribution link. You can remove the attribution link if the image license does not require it.
We hope this article helped you find and add creative commons licensed images directly from post editor in WordPress.
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Man, this plugin is fantastic. Saves time and lots of money. As a beginner I really enjoy this plugin on my blog http://www.goodorbad.me. The biggest problem is that it makes me play with pics instead of writing. LOL.
Why isn’t there a copyright issue for Pinterest users since they are being encouraged to “pin” any image they like?
So if I use a photo that requires attribution, I can use the Link feature for the attribution, I don’t need to actually insert text on my website?
Awesome plugin! I just installed it and love it. Thanks so much!
If I use this to insert images on my site, and someone then pins that image, does the pin link back to my site? Or to flickr? Thanks.
Your site, because the image is actually hosted on your site.
Hi,
Great Article. Could you please point me in the direction of where I can use/purchase celebrity photos?
They are not for a gossip blog, but rather a type of biography site I’m considering starting.
Thank you so much in advance for your help!
Angel, searching for celebrity photo sources might give you some reults.
I get the impression from your article that only one option can be selected. I use both with and without attribution images on my blog, according to what is available on Flickr, so a single setting with greatly reduce the possibilities.
I also see that images are automatically uploaded to the Media Manager, is this a default? Can it be changed? Many sites with larger quantities of images store them in separate folders – I do it by month – so searching for an uploaded image amongst a whole mess of previously used images could become something of a chore….
Compfight does the same thing: https://wordpress.org/plugins/compfight/ and it also lets you copy and past the HTLM code for quick and easy attribution which is required for CC licensed photos.
Kevin, you don’t really need CC provided HTML code to fulfill the requirement of attribution. A simple link to the source would be sufficient to fulfill licensing requirements.