Commons:Help desk

• Community portal
  • introduction
• Help desk
• Village pump
  • copyright
  • proposals
  • technical
• Administrators' noticeboard
  • vandalism
  • user problems
  • blocks and protections

Shortcut: COM:HD

Skip to table of contents | Skip to bottom | 🌐 Help desks for other languages

This help desk is a forum for questions and help on:

How to use Commons

Anyone, from newbie to experienced, can ask a question here. Questions will be replied to here as well. Any answers you receive are not legal advice and the responder cannot be held liable for them.

Ask your question

or

In order to get quick answers consider the following points:

• Have you checked the frequently asked questions, help pages and the help desk archive?

• For licensing and copyright issues, please use the copyright village pump
• For proposing changes to the way Wikimedia Commons works, please use the proposals village pump
• For community-wide discussions, please use the main village pump
• For changing the name of a file, please see our file renaming guidelines
• For matters requiring the attention of an administrator, please use the administrators' noticeboard or contact an individual administrator directly
• For questions about Wikipedia content, try English Wikipedia's "Teahouse"
• For questions not about Wikimedia projects, try English Wikipedia's reference desk

Resolved sections (marked by {{section resolved|1=~~~~}}) will be archived after two days. Sections with no discussion will be archived after ten days. The latest archive is Commons:Help desk/Archive/2026/01.

For quicker help, join our live chat room. ^webchat

Translate this page

COMMONS DISCUSSION PAGES

• Commons Help desk
• Village pump (general discussion)
  • Copyright
  • Proposals
  • Technical
• Graphics and photography discussion
  • Photography critiques
  • Image improvement
    • Illustration workshop
    • Map workshop
    • Photography workshop
    • Video and sound workshop
• Categories for discussion
• Undeletion requests
• Deletion requests
• Volunteer Response Team/Noticeboard
• Translators' noticeboard
• Work requests for bots

---

• Contact administrators
  • Vandalism
  • User problems (Dispute resolution)
  • Blocks and protections
• Bureaucrats' noticeboard
• CheckUser requests
• Oversight requests

---

• Telegram
• IRC ^webchat
• Commons mailing list (archive)
• Commons' bugs on Phabricator

	SpBot archives all sections tagged with {{Section resolved|1=~~~~}} after 2 days and sections whose most recent comment is older than 10 days.

Can I upload old Winston cigarette commercial?

I have a file of a Winston's cigarette commercial dated to 1955. Can I upload it? KneeHallHawk (talk) 16:00, 31 December 2025 (UTC)

@KneeHallHawk: Hard do know from just that. If it is from the U.S., then there is a fair chance that the answer is yes, because often things like that were not copyrighted. And if it is from Europe and from 1955, it may well fall out of copyright in a few hours (1955 + 70 = 2025). But you'd do better to ask at COM:VP/C, and if the commercial you are talking about is on line somewhere, you should link it so it is clearer what you are talking about. - Jmabel ! talk 20:29, 31 December 2025 (UTC)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uuz6kqSvyIw

I was able to download this from YouTube. I apologize for any confusion caused. KneeHallHawk (talk) 21:33, 31 December 2025 (UTC)

Hi KneeHallHawk. There's more information on this in COM:YOUTUBE, but there's an issue with the video you linked to above. The first one is that it's almost certain that whoever uploaded the commercial to YouTube isn't the original copyright holder of the commercial; in other words, the YouTube uploader is almost certainly not connected to either the company that makes (made?) en:Winston cigarettes (the most likely copyright holder) or the creative team (advertising agency?) that made the commercial (a potential copyright holder). So, without knowing more about the original copyright holder of the commercial, it's going to be hard to accurately assess its copyright status. The commercial (including any screen shots taken from it) probably should (at least for now) be assumed to be still under copyright protection and not OK for Commons without verifying original copyright holder consent. Now, it's possible that the commercial could've entered into the public domain already depending on where it was produced and first broadcast due to a lack of en:copyright formalities (at least under US copyright law), but 1955 (assuming the date is correct) isn't generally really old enough for something to be within the public domain just because of its age under US copyright law; so, more information about the commercial is needed. If you can find that info and add it to any post you make about this at COM:VPC, it might help others to better assess the commercial's copyright status. -- Marchjuly (talk) 22:51, 31 December 2025 (UTC)

Hi Marchjuly:

https://archive.org/details/wintasgo

I was able to find the same video on Internet Archive w/ some additional copyright info attached. I hope this will help determining if it can be uploaded. KneeHallHawk (talk) 14:57, 1 January 2026 (UTC)

@KneeHallHawk: Thanks for the extra information. You might want to ask about this at COM:VPC. The licensing of the Internet Archive version you found places restrictions on commercial reuse (i.e., it's an NC type of Creative Commons license); so, just based on that, this couldn't be uploaded to Commons because such licenses are too restrictive for Commons puproses. However, I'm almost positive Creative Commmons license weren't around back when the commercial was created in 1954; so, it's possible that the NC license wouldn't be valid for the commercial since it was added well after the commercial first aired by someone other than the original copyright holder. So, you might want to ask about that at VPC. -- Marchjuly (talk) 06:11, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm trying to upload a PDF file of my e-book under the license Creative Commons

I'm trying to upload a PDF file of my e-book under the license Creative Commons Attribution–ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0). But the system doesn't accept it, claiming that I don't have this license. What should I do? Наталья Гвелесиани (talk) 05:27, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Natalia Gvelesiani, what is the subject matter of your e-book, and what would be your purpose in uploading it to Commons as opposed to, say, Wikiversity or the Internet Archive? (This project seems particularly odd as you seem to be using your user page here as something akin to the top page of a personal website. But Commons is instead a resource for Wikipedia and related websites.) -- Hoary (talk) 06:44, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Copyright help regarding File:Georg Hönel als Student 1870 cut2.jpg

Obviousely I made a mistake when filling in the forms of the uploading procedure. The photograph was taken in the years around 1870-1872 by an unknown person. It shows my grand-grandfather Georg Friedrich Hönel born 1851 and died 1909. Since I am not familiar with Wikimedia Commons rules I did not understand how to make the necessary steps to release this photograph to free usage. Thank you for help! Gernot Haraldson (talk) 11:10, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

@Gernot Haraldson: I've fixed that, but you still need to add categories. - Jmabel ! talk 20:16, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Thank you so much! I'll try to fix the category issue a.s.a.p. to the best of my poor knowledge! Gernot Haraldson (talk) 22:14, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

teto

so i want to upload some pictures of kasane teto (https://kasaneteto.jp/illust_logo/) for the dutch wikipeda. the ones i want to upload are the 4 from the top, but i will only use the 2008 one. the other ones i want to upload if other people need to use them. on the website i linked are the picters and the copyricht stuff. can i or can i not upload the picters? Tymenaz (talk) 12:53, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

@Tymenaz:  Do not upload the pictures as they are not freely-licensed. It also explicitly states terms that are unacceptable:

商用でなければ、どうぞ！アマチュアによる同人レベルでの活動範囲内であればご自由にお使い頂けます。
As long as it's not for commercial purposes, go ahead! You are free to use it as long as it's within the scope of amateur, doujin-level activities. (Google Translate)

Forbidding commercial use is against our licensing policy.

Also, I highly recommend reading COM:THIRD before even considering uploading third party works. HyperAnd [talk] 13:24, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

@HyperAnd ok, i will see what i can do to get premision from them to upload it to commons with all licensing recuerments met. in the e-mail that im planing to write will be the folowing things: the question of uploding the 2008 ilustrasion to wikimedia commons and a link to the commons licensing policy so that they know that they would be agreeing to. do i need to add anything?

Tymenaz (talk) 16:17, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

@Tymenaz: Please read COM:THIRD. - Jmabel ! talk 20:18, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

@Jmabel when i sayed that i only read the top part, but after reading the whole thing i did what it says there if you want to get a license. so im just waiting for a response now.

Tymenaz (talk) 22:33, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

This logo

[1] Is it Commons-ok per COM:TOO or not? Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 14:23, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Near the borderline for U.S., so hard to say. I wouldn't upload it myself. - Jmabel ! talk 20:20, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

that means we just had to upload fair use? Does webp consider trademark? Thebaldball (talk) 10:48, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

Fair use on en-WP can be seen as doubtful in that context [2], hardly seems like "only if its presence would significantly increase readers' understanding of the article topic, and its omission would be detrimental to that understanding." But you can try, and if someone objects they will say so. Same applies to uploading it on Commons. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 11:31, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

Help documenting Sydney

Hey all, I've been extensively photographing South West Sydney for some time now, I was wondering if anyone else wanted to join me in my travels? I'm using Wikidata to locate photographic sites (and adding sites to Wikidata as I find them). - Chris.sherlock2 (talk) 15:44, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Copyright help regarding File:BHV-Logo.jpg

Bitte beschreibe dein Problem mit der Datei unterhalb dieser Zeilen. Ich habe das Logo des Berliner Hockey-Verbands hochgeladen, dass es ein deutscher Sportverband und eingetragener Verein ist. Dessen Domain ist die https://berlin.hockey.de/ und das Logo ist unter anderem hier zu finden: https://berlin.hockey.de/temp/images/logo/logo-berliner.svg. Ich bin selber Präsidiumsmitglied des Berliner Hockey-Verbands und dort zuständig für Medien- und Öffentlichkeitsarbeit (https://berlin.hockey.de/praesidium). Die Nutzung des Logos für diesen Anlass ist durch das Präsdidum genehmigt, ich verteile selber die Nutzungsrechte für das Logo. Welche Angaben fehlen oder muss ich ergänzen, um die Nutzung des Logos öffentlich zu machen?

— Preceding unsigned comment added by A. Oelze (talk • contribs) 21:39, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

(mit Hilfe von Google Translate) Auf der Dateiseite fehlt sowohl eine Lizenzvorlage als auch eine Begründung, warum die Datei gemeinfrei sein sollte. Sie müssen eines von beidem angeben. Deshalb wurde die Datei vom Bot entsprechend gekennzeichnet. - Jmabel ! talk 23:23, 2 January 2026 (UTC)

Video does not play File:Город Станислав 1944.ogg

The video I uploaded does not play. It shows a decoding error status, restarting the decoding does not help. S. Mochar (talk) 16:04, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

It appears that the transcoding failed. So, I reset it. Ruslik (talk) 20:04, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

So what? S. Mochar (talk) 12:30, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

AirBorneo logo

[1] can this be upload per WP:TOO Thebaldball (talk) 16:27, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

AirBorneo logo (I have to repost again)

is this good enough to uploaded per WP:TOO? Thebaldball (talk) 23:21, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Thebaldball: TOO is always a bit of a judgement call. You are more likely to find expertise at COM:VP/C, but my guess would be "slightly above TOO," which is to say we can't host it. - Jmabel ! talk 01:05, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Upload new version of file with different file type?

I want to replace File:Yale1888.jpg with the full-resolution TIFF directly from Yale Library.

When I try this I get the error:

> File extension ".jpg" does not match the detected MIME type of the file (image/tiff).

The tooltip says:

> Destination filename: This is the name of the file you will be overwriting. You cannot modify this.

How can I upload a new version of a file that has a different file type from the existing? PK-WIKI (talk) 23:24, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

@PK-WIKI: The simple answer is that you can't. You should instead upload it under a new name (with the correct extension for the new type) and then update any references that you want to update. It might be possible to do something clever with redirects, but in most cases that would at least be an abuse of the system. --bjh21 (talk) 23:47, 3 January 2026 (UTC)

You would have to convert the tiff to jpg to overwrite it. Abzeronow (talk) 00:39, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Thomas Sanchez

I am a complete tyro. I have edited the wiki for the author Thomas Sanchez. I now wish to add a photograp[h. I ve put it in WIki COmmions, but do not know how to load onto the Wikipedia page. Any help would be appreciated DetroitSlim (talk) 00:55, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi DetroitSlim. Did you take File:Thomas Sanchez.jpg yourself? The EXIF data for the file describes it as a screenshot. Is the image a screenshot from a video you took yourself? The reason I'm asking you this is because whether Commons can host this file kind of depends on COM:Own work and COM:Screenshot. Commons can only host content that meets COM:L, and generally this means content that is either within the public domain for some reason or that has been released under a copyright license by its copyright holder that is free enough for Commons' purposes. If all you did was upload a photo taken by someone else or made a screenshot of a video taken by someone else, you wouldn't be considered the original copyright holder of the image, and Commons wouldn't be able to host it without verifying the original copyright holder's consent. -- Marchjuly (talk) 02:07, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@DetroitSlim: and you might want to read COM:THIRD. - Jmabel ! talk 08:12, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Remove uploaded file how to

Ammara Ahmad Amarjit Chandan (talk) 10:07, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@Amarjit Chandan: Hi, Please tag the file you want deleted with {{SD|G7}}. Please read COM:SD for details. Thanks, Yann (talk) 18:14, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Unggah video

Kenapa tidak bisa unggah video Rico Crasela 01 (talk) 10:19, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@Rico Crasela 01: Pastikan video yang diunggah adalah dalam format berkas yang bebas, seperti WEBM. Kita tidak menerima format MP4, MOV karena merupakan format berkas yang non-bebas. Lihat pula Commons:Video dan Commons:Project scope/Allowable file types. HyperAnd [talk] 21:17, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Change in wiki commons rate-limiting? Getting frequent 429 - errors on wiki commons image requests

I have an app (ios / android) that is displaying images from wikimedia commons that has been out for over a year. About a week ago I started seeing a massive increase of 429 - Too many Requests responses. Nothing on our side has changed, the requests come from user devices (and IPs) and the 429 responses come after about 10-20 requests (request volume hasn't changed either). I haven't found anything about wikimedia commons rate limiting just the api and there we should be well below the limits. Have I missed some documentation or does anybody know who I could contact to resolve this? P.S: I am following the user agent format recommended here: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Reusing_content_outside_Wikimedia Bbbub (talk) 10:55, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@Bbbub: might be better asked at COM:VP/T. - Jmabel ! talk 21:20, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Thank you, I have done that: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Commons:Village_pump/Technical#c-Bbbub-20260105111400-Change_in_wiki_commons_rate-limiting?_Getting_frequent_429_-_errors_on_wiki_comm Bbbub (talk) 11:18, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Uploading a Photograph

I started to upload a photograph that I took and ran into a few problems: 1) I took the photo and would like to receive photographic credit. How do I do that? 2) After uploading, I got a message saying not to complete the upload because it was a photo that I took of Erwin Helfer for Erwin Helfer's wikipedia page, i.e., a personal photo. I'm okay with it being in the public domain, I just wanted photographic credit. 3) I've uploaded it but I am not sure what state I left it, uploaded but not submitted? I think I did this twice. 4) How do I proceed? Stevenbdolins (talk) 16:37, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@Stevenbdolins:

1) You choose one of the several available licenses that require attribution (aka credit). You insert the corresponding license template or choose one from the menu of the upload tool you use. For example, possible licenses that require attribution are {{Cc-by-4.0}} or {{Cc-by-sa-4.0}}. See Commons:Licensing for more information. You can use the parameter "attribution" with some license templates to make your credit requirement more obvious to reusers. Note that in Wikipedia articles, your credit will not appear in the article but it will appear when clicking the photo. Also, realistically, be aware that people outside Wikimedia sometimes (often) illicitly reuse photos without mentioning the required credit. So, you must be prepared either to tolerate such uncredited uses or to go through the trouble of contacting the delinquent reusers to try to enforce your attribution.

2) I don't know what message you received. It was possibly related to something you replied while navigating through questions of the upload tool you were using. If you're uploading a photo for a Wikipedia article, that's not what is usually meant by "personal photo".

3) The account Stevenbdolins on Commons was created today and has not uploaded anything to Commons yet (see logs). And no upload attempt was blocked by the filters on Commons (see filters). Apparently, the account Stevenbdolins on en.Wikipedia, created on 16 December 2025, did not upload any file to en.wikipedia either (see logs) and the only filtered actions there were for edits, not for uploads (see filters). Maybe you can clarify what, when, where, how, you tried to upload.

4) Depends on the above. -- Asclepias (talk) 18:46, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

One further question: what upload tool were you using? I usually recommend Special:UploadWizard for beginners, especially if they are uploading a photo they took themselves, it walks you through that case very well. If you were using anything else—e.g. some cross-uploader from another wiki—please try that instead. - Jmabel ! talk 21:23, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

How do I upload a text file with images?

I want to create a new Wikipedia page. How do I do so? ValenciaEuge (talk) 17:22, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

@ValenciaEuge: Hi, What subject do you want to create a Wikipedia about? On Commons, we only accept multimedia content with an educational value. No text file created by you. Please read COM:SCOPE. Thanks, Yann (talk) 18:12, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Also, note: if you want to "create a new Wikipedia page": (1) this is not Wikipedia, it is Commons, the associated media repository. (2) there is a different Wikipedia in each of several hundred languages. I'm guessing that you mean the English-language Wikipedia.

For the English-language Wikipedia, start with en:Help:Your first article. For uploading pictures, start with COM:First steps. If you plan to upload pictures you did not take yourself, you will almost certainly also want to read COM:THIRD. - Jmabel ! talk 21:26, 4 January 2026 (UTC)

Image of software

I am writing something about software, And I am hoping to add a image of it functioning. I have seen plenty of these images all over Wikipedia, But when reading the infographic, It said I cannot put a screenshot of software running on Wikipedia. Is this true? are all the other articles breaking the rules? Romey13 (talk) 02:51, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Screenshots of software are not inherently different than screenshots of a movie or television show. If the original medium is either freely licensed or in the public domain, then a screenshot is a derivative work that is allowed. If the original work is not, then the screenshot almost certainly would not be (there could be some exceptions, but those would be rare and probably not relevant). Note that the way that some software renders is not even able to be copyrighted, e.g. a terminal interface that is just plain text. Other software definitely can be protected by copyright, such as video games. If you have a specific example in mind, that could help other users guide you on if the screenshot would be acceptable, but as you can see, there is no clear yes/no dichotomy and it's dependent on a few factors. —Justin (koavf)❤T☮C☺M☯ 03:05, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

It looks like they want to upload screenshots about software made by Lexaloffle games, according to their contributions on English Wikipedia. Here is their ToS. HyperAnd [talk] 03:51, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

pagina bloccata

vorrei sapere come fare ad aprire una pagina, mi è arrivato un messaggio che è bloccata in quanto ho utilizzato nome e cognome Massimo Poggi junior velista (talk) 14:59, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Massimo Poggi junior velista: È una domanda su questo sito (Wikimedia Commons) o sulla wikipedia in italiano? Se quest'ultimo, dovresti chiedere lì. Se qui, quale pagina? - Jmabel ! talk 22:14, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

proofread of the month picture help

hi guys! I uploaded a picture to the wikimedia commons that was on the book as some kind a flourish:

Flourish

but i dont know if it is correct. First of all, the picture is titled "black and white", are titles supposed to be really descriptive? I just named it that because it was the simplest thing. Second of all, how do you remove the artifact {{raw image|The Wines of the World (1875).djvu/25}}? I admittedly don't know how to use this, so i just copied and pasted the wikimedia image inside of the <raw image>, like {{[[File:Black_and_white.png|thumb|Flourish]]|The Wines of the World (1875).djvu/25}}, and it worked.... kind of. Look at like... markdown for what i wrote if it doesnt appear.

anyways, I also request your help on page 9 of this month's The Wines of the World by Henry Richard Vizetelly. A lot of stuff about wines, but it's cool and I like cool stuff. :D have a good day! L.HEID (talk) 16:16, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Having intelligible titles is important, see Commons:File naming for more details. As for this title of "Black and white.png", yes, it would definitely be better if you used another title. A simple way to quickly crop images and also give them appropriate file names is with Commons:CropTool, an optional solution. Furthermore, in this particular case, I am modifying the image so that its background is not white but transparent. In my estimation, the purpose of this image is to have black ink on the paper and the background is just by default whatever the color of the paper is. I make it a point to remove white backgrounds whenever I can if I think that the background is not intended to be white but is instead just the default color of the paper. Let me know if anything I wrote was unclear. —Justin (koavf)❤T☮C☺M☯ 21:36, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Also, the source isn't "Wikimedia" (which didn't exist in 1875), but the book or file from which the image was taken. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:58, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Copyright of spotify images

can I upload an image that is on spotify and tunefind? Skatheo (talk) 18:01, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Skatheo: Most probably no. You need a formal written permission for a free license from the copyright holder. Please read COM:L. Thanks, Yann (talk) 18:05, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

And probably COM:THIRD. - Jmabel ! talk 22:16, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Incarcare fisier PDF

Sunt autorul unei lucrari sub denumirea" Teoria similitudinii sistemelor micro si macro cosmice" care contine 161 de pagini si doresc sa incarc acest fisier aici. Incarcand acest fisier aici imi pastrez drepturile de autor? Ioan Virgil (talk) 18:41, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Ioan Virgil: Ca să răspund la întrebarea explicită: dacă licențiați o lucrare sub {{CC-BY-4.0}} sau {{CC-BY-SA-4.0}} , vă păstrați drepturile de autor și dreptul de a fi recunoscut ca autor, dar permiteți oricui să o republice (chiar și comercial) și să creeze lucrări derivate.

Există însă o problemă mai importantă. Așa cum s-a explicat la Commons:Scopul proiectului, mai ales Commons:Scopul proiectului#Conținut educativ exclus, Commons nu este un loc pentru documente autopublicate care sunt în principal text.

Cu toate acestea, dacă acest lucru a fost publicat într-o revistă evaluată de colegi sau de către o editură recunoscută și vă păstrați drepturile de a-l licenția și încărca aici, acest lucru ar fi acceptabil.- Jmabel ! talk 22:37, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Multumesc pentru raspuns. Ioan Virgil (talk) 20:05, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Imagem em CC - BY

Boa tarde. Por favor sou novo e estou começando a criar usando o wiki. Pesquisando encontrei um artigo em https://whoseknowledge.org/pt-br/resource/encontrar-imagens-para-ilustrar-a-wikipedia/ que falava sobre direitos autorais de imagem no wikipédia, nele dizia que posso usar imagens em CC-BY, CC BY SA e Public domain, procurando uma ao meu gosto para escrever um artigo no wikipédia no CC Search, achei uma que diz que se enquadra em CC-BY 4.0. Posso usar essa imagem sem realmente ter problemas? E se sim, devo colocar créditos da imagem no artigo e como ? Obrigado Felipe Takeda (talk) 21:14, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Bem-vindo. Falo solo um pecenu portugues. Miras Commons:Licensing/pt? —Justin (koavf)❤T☮C☺M☯ 21:33, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Felipe Takeda: Tenho um pouco mais de conhecimentos de português. Pelo que disse, a resposta é "sim", mas eu teria mais certezas se dissesse qual a imagem e onde pretende usá-la. - Jmabel ! talk 22:42, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

Publicity Photo

I would like to upload a publicity photo of The Fred Bloggs Band, to the draft of a proposed article about that band. I am in the photo, and I and everyone else in the photo give their consent to their image being used, but we cannot trace the photographer who took the photo in Bristol UK in about 1974. When we paid the photographer for his work, I remember him saying that we could use it anywhere, but we cannot trace the receipt from fifty years ago. Can I legally use the photo on Wikipedia under the terms "Not my own work, but permission granted for public use by photographer"? Horsechestnut (talk) 22:43, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

@Horsechestnut: Sadly, I think not. You are left with sort of an orphaned work here.

By the way, are you familiar with en:WP:COI and en:WP:AUTOBIOGRAPHY? I don't see the relevant disclosures on your en-wiki account, but perhaps I am missing something. - Jmabel ! talk 01:03, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Thank you for making me aware of the possible Conflict of Interest in writing about something that I was involved with, even though it was years ago. The article was originally declined due to lack of notability, and is currently only a draft, which I have tried to improve by adding more references. Horsechestnut (talk) 08:20, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

My attempt to add content to the discussion was turned down by way of a "filter"

Discussion continues at en:Wikipedia:Teahouse#My attempt to add content to the discussion was turned down by way of a "filter". Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 21:42, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

The following discussion is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

---

I was advised to use the method outlined below to upload an important reference to a Wikipedia page (: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quilts_of_the_Underground_Railroad>.)What I am referencing is a published book ( publishing information below), intending this to be a source of reference material.

{You can request edits be made to the article by going to <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Edit_Request_Wizard> and following its instructions. For the first step, you'd be clicking the button appropriate to your relationship to the article subject, which in your case is the second button due to your conflict of interest in seeking to have your own published work included as a reference in the article. Fill in your proposals for the article in the blanks presented, and be sure to press the Publish changes button when done. This will post a request on the article's Talk page, <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ }Talk:Quilts_of_the_Underground_Railroad>, and flag it for the attention of any interested volunteer.

Book info: Publisher : Trafford Publishing (March 27, 2009) Language : English Paperback : 164 pages ISBN-10 : 1425188125 ISBN-13 : 978-1425188122 Item Weight : 14 ounces Dimensions : 8.5 x 0.43 x 11.02 inches

After following these instructions I was greeted with a message stating as follows:

"An automated filter has has identified this edit as removing important content from this talk page, so it has been disallowed.To add a comment to this talk page, click the "Add Topic" tab at the top of this page..."

This is a worrisome dialogue since (1) It is not true- this reference material removes nothing, and (2) An automatic filter quite likely does not apply here, and that process is is quite capable of making mistakes.

THis book has been reviewed, i was given awards for this work resulting in a Time magazine article in April 2025. It is a publication not be ignored, I don't think Wikipedia wants to get a reputation for being ignorant. JohnEAllenDDS (talk) 04:48, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

I'm pretty sure Wikipedia will survive this incident with its reputation intact.

You perhaps saw the warning because you tried to edit an old version of the talk page, after someone else had edited it.

But you are not on Wikipedia, you are on Wikimedia Commons, which is a separate project.

You can comment on Wikipedia at en:WP:Teahouse. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:23, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Hello. Thanks for a timely response. I an not aware of the architecture of Wikipedia's website. I am just attempting to contribute to the public knowledge about a particular subject, by adding a reference, a published book of high regard. Wikipedia has erected too many barriers to that objective. I object to the use of "automatic filtering". This then produces an automatic and persistent bias in development of subject material.

I will be using the above referral. As you can see,I have been in contact with other Wikipedia members that have given direction, but there are a number of nonsense barriers that present. Please advise JohnEAllenDDS (talk) 21:21, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

---

The discussion above is closed. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page. No further edits should be made to this discussion.

Adding awards

Hi - I am creating a new page for a notable surgeon - and wonder if it is appropriate to include "Honors and Awards" - and if so, does a photograph of the actual award that she received suffice as a good reference? Plentyw (talk) 04:57, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi @Plentyw: You're at the help desk for Wikimedia Commons, a Wikipedia sister site that hosts freely licensed media. It sounds like you're asking about writing a Wikipedia article. I recommend heading over to the English Wikipedia's Teahouse to ask your question there. ~Kevin Payravi (talk) 05:18, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

thank you! Plentyw (talk) 05:27, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Two images tied to the same artwork

Hello! This inscription appears on the back of this oil sketch (source: this archived page of the Met's website).

What is the appropriate way to connect the inscription to the oil sketch? Would they each need a "other version" field entry connecting one another, or is there a better way? Thank you for your help! Chao Garden 🥀 (talk) 06:34, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

@Chao Garden: have a look at how I handled a similar (though not identical) situation at File:3rd Ave. and Jefferson St. after the fire, July 1889 - DPLA - 227f785cfb73ecb721aa18ad32396224 (page 1).jpg. - Jmabel ! talk 22:06, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

@Jmabel Oh perfect, I love that! By the way, it's such a fun coincidence that you shared a photo of that particular street in Seattle. I recently toured the Seattle underground, which was originally built up from that area. Chao Garden 🥀 ~ hello 04:04, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

A block or two west, but yes. - Jmabel ! talk 04:19, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

Hello, I have numerous press article concerning a subject I am writing

Hello, I have numerous press article concerning a subject I am writing, how can I integrate them as credible source? OxydeMX (talk) 16:34, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

@OxydeMX: That does not sound like a question related in any way to Wikimedia Commons, the site where you've asked it. Maybe you meant to ask this on the English-language Wikipedia? en:Wikipedia:Help desk. - Jmabel ! talk 22:08, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Request for file renaming

Hello, seems that File:PXL 20240129 220744939.jpg should be renamed to a more appropriate name. Could any administrator or file renamer help? Also, I would be happy to know where I should report such files to? Karacehennem (talk) 20:06, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

@Karacehennem: {{Rename}} is the tool you're looking for. That way, you're making a formal renaming request and notifying the renamers too. Regards, Grand-Duc (talk) 20:14, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Meanwhile, I took care of the renaming. Regards, Grand-Duc (talk) 20:19, 6 January 2026 (UTC)

Add Picture

so i am currently translating the wikipage of the fab four(tribute) into german and i want to add a picture of the fab four or just their logo to the translation but i cant find any on wikipedia does anyone know any pictures i can add or any place where i can find pictures? PVPTonii (talk) 15:06, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

@PVPTonii If these [3] are your guys, you can take a screenshot from that video. It may not be very good, but it has the right license. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 20:14, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

Fwiw, I was told that they're not your guys. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 11:29, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

i meant these guys [4] because they had an english wikipedia and i just wanted to translate it into german PVPTonii (talk) 15:41, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Yeah, you can't use that video. I've nominated the en-WP pic of them for deletion per rulez, and I'm fairly sure it wouldn't be allowed on de-WP either. If you want, you can try to contact the band and point them to Wikipedia:A picture of you. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 04:18, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Importation of published financial results of a company

Hello.

How can I import published financial results of a company, it is a public information given to stock holders and financial institution and customers. OxydeMX (talk) 16:04, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

@OxydeMX: Unlikely to be uploadable to Commons, unless it is very old. The fact that a work is available does not make it freely reusable. And it is unlikely that the financial statements of a company would be licensed to be freely modifiable by anyone. -- Asclepias (talk) 19:41, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for your reply. The financial documents have been published in 83, Would it be sufficently old?? OxydeMX (talk) 10:19, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

1983? Certainly not. These documents are under a copyright for at least decades. Yann (talk) 10:30, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Φόρτωση πολυμέσων

Με ποιον τρόπο μπορώ να ανεβάσω φωτογραφία ΑΣΠΙΔΑ ΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ (talk) 21:08, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

@ΑΣΠΙΔΑ ΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ: Commons:First_steps/el (Πρώτα βήματα). - Jmabel ! talk 03:57, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Imagens

inserir imagens na wikipedia Marcos José Evangelista (talk) 23:41, 7 January 2026 (UTC)

@Marcos José Evangelista: pt:Ajuda:Guia de edição/Como usar imagens. - Jmabel ! talk 04:07, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Can I use a picture taken from a 1944 publication?

I want to use a picture taken in 1944 which appears in a publication I own. The book was publish by Penguin Books in 1944. I have requested permission and Penguin have replied to say :

Unfortunately, the rights position to the Work are not set out clearly on our systems; this is most likely due to the fact that much time has passed since the Work was first published. This means that we are not in a position to formally grant you permission to include an extract from the Work in Your Publication.

However, in the circumstances, we can confirm that we have no objection to your use of the material from the Work in Your Publication.

Does this mean I have permission - and can I fromwhere do I upload it ? Many thanks -- Jonathan Coejonathan (talk) 12:54, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

• You'll need to ascertain a few things... where was this book published? If in the US, does it have a copyright notice? If it has a copyright notice and was published in the US, was the copyright renewed? If it was published in the UK, who was the photographer / illustrator? When did they die? If they died any time after January 1, 1926, or the image is anonymous, then copyright would have been extended in the US by the URAA and the image would be non-free. — Chris Woodrich (talk) 13:43, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

And personally I would not read this as a release, as required by OTRS.  — Chris Woodrich (talk) 13:45, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

"Published in the U.S." would include simultaneous (within 30 days) publication in U.S. and UK. If we have that then we can ignore the UK case, which is often more restrictive for this publication date because of URAA. - Jmabel ! talk 19:33, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks both. . this was in a UK publication (Penguin New Writing) .. however I chase the picture back to it's current owner which could be the Tate Britain and take it from there.. learnt a lot about Creative Commons in the process. Coejonathan (talk) 20:24, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for the advice.. I agree .. I shall try and find the owner of this picture which could be a British art gallery like The Tate. So if I do find the original do I ask them to permit use under the licence held by Wikipedia?? Thanks again ~2026-16680-8 (talk) 20:40, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

@~2026-16680-8: Prior to approaching rights-holders, please read COM:THIRD. However, it is relatively unusual for a copyright to be owned by a gallery, so that last post may show some confusion on your part. Also, are you the same person as Coejonathan? If so, it gets very confusing when you participate in a single conversation both as a logged-in user and not. - Jmabel ! talk 02:19, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Yes -- I am the same person - a Wiki novice - but learning fast. Yes I read Commons:THIRD but I am not clear about the following : This page : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Burra (this subject is related to my work on the entry for William Chappell - dancer) carries a picture with the following written in the copyright permissions section:

This UK artistic or literary work, of which the author is unknown and cannot be ascertained by reasonable enquiry, is in the public domain because it is one of the following:

• A photograph, which has never previously been made available to the public (e.g. by publication or display at an exhibition) and which was taken more than 70 years ago (before 1 January 1956); or
• A photograph, which was made available to the public (e.g. by publication or display at an exhibition) more than 70 years ago (before 1 January 1956);

Therefore - re bullet point 2 - Can I use the picture because there is no reaonable way in which the author can be found and the publisher of the work - Penguin - has been asked and has no objection?

Also - re the US issue -- it is remotely possible (but I have no means of proving it) that Penguin Books published this edition of New Writing from its offices at 245 Fifth Avenue New York USA at some contemporaneous point.

Also NB: The link on the above Edward Burra page back to Lefevre Fine Art is broken.

Also NB - re Tate Gallery London. It appears to hold an extensive archive of pictures relating to my subject - and has a permissions system. I have made a permissions application - I will see what happens. Coejonathan (talk) 17:23, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Tate will quote you a price, under terms that will still not allow usage on Wikipedia. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 17:26, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Yes -- I realise that and am prepared for that answer - I have made it clear to them what I am after and why - they must be slightly persuadable in the public interest.. there must be a way around this - Wiki must have lots of experience on this issue -- any suggestions? Coejonathan (talk) 17:39, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

The experience is that institutions, especially major museums, are almost never actively helpful on this front unless you have already spent a lot of time and effort cultivating a relationship. For example, a museum where I have offered several dozen corrections to their site which they have accepted, might do something like this as a favor. Otherwise, it's rare. Even then, it's not a given. - 00:13, 12 January 2026 (UTC)

It would be far easier to advise you if you were to tell us which book, and which image. Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:22, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

The book is: Penguin New Writing No 19 October - December 1944. Published in London by Penguin Books. The picture is a portrait of William Chappell in uniform. I am revising and improving this entry. Coejonathan (talk) 17:05, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Just going to add a general comment: regardless of whether an image has entered into the public domain or who its original copyright hold was (is?), there have been numerous claims of copyright being re-stored or a new copyright be created for a digitalized version of a public domain work by someone who felt they could monetize the work. For the most part Commons will ignore such things since once a work has entered into the public domain and considers them to be non-copyright related. There have been some high-profile cases involving the Wikimedia Foundation and this type of thing like the en:National Portrait Gallery and Wikimedia Foundation copyright dispute, but you should assume you're going to need to sort this out on your own if you deal directly with a entity like en:Tate Britain. Any (contractural) agreement you enter into with Tate regarding the image you want to use will be between you and it, not between you, it, and the Wikimedia Foundation; so, you probably want to be very careful and make sure you understand the implication any type of agreement (e.g., a user's license) Tate presents you before signing it. It'll probably also be prudent to assume Tate's been there and done this type of thng before (inlcuding having its legal people look it over) and also has gone after those it sees as violating such agreements when it felt it was in its benefit to do so. -- Marchjuly (talk) 21:48, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Offhand, I cannot imagine any route which a photo taken and published in 1944 in the UK and not simultaneously published in the U.S. could possibly fall out of copyright in the U.S. any earlier that 1 January 2040. Can anyone else? - Jmabel ! talk 00:16, 12 January 2026 (UTC)

Video fails to transcode

I have uploaded the video File:Construction of the 600-cell.webm on 6 January. Transcoding to the low-resolution versions up to VP9 480P was successful. However, the transcoding to VP9 1080P has been in the queue for two days now (I have pressed Reset transcode 33 hours ago in the hope that this would have an effect, but to no avail). I am wondering why the transcoding to VP9 1080P is not being performed and what can be done about it. Any hints will be much appreciated. Carsten Steger (talk) 17:53, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

37signals Logo

Can this logo from 37signals be uploaded per WP:TOO? AverageWikiContributor (talk) 22:38, 8 January 2026 (UTC)

@AverageWikiContributor I can't access that link, but if it's the same one as in the corner of 37signals.com, I believe so. The text itself isn't copyrightable, and the shape is simple enough that it doesn't involve enough originality. File:Basecamp logo19.png has a similar shape. It's only when it gets to something that involves creativity, like faces and coloring in en:File:Basecamp corporate logo.png, that you need to consider a fair use version. HurricaneZeta (talk) 00:28, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks. The icon is the same one that is in the corner of 37signals.com. AverageWikiContributor (talk) 01:26, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Flag of Latvia

I'm trying to revert the file description to https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Flag_of_Latvia.svg&diff=prev&oldid=1027944942

This is before a string of vandalism to the file description that led the flag to be described as the flag of Nazi Germany. These edits cannot stand. BalticEditor47 (talk) 03:16, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

@BalticEditor47 Thanks, I reverted these edits. You can use COM:TWINKLE for this in the future - it adds a [restore this version] button on old revisions so you can revert it back to there. Make sure to re-add intermediate edits that are not vandalism and are constructive, though. HurricaneZeta (talk) 04:06, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Thank you so much. How this nonsense got approved in the first place is beyond me. BalticEditor47 (talk) 04:11, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

@BalticEditor47 This is a mostly open wiki. Things don't get "approved", they get done and then if necessary corrected by observant users like yourself. It's not a perfect system (!) but it makes things happen. Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 04:25, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

True. But when I tried to correct it I got auto-filtered as "unconstructive edit" even though... Nazi Germany?! and so I escalated to here. BalticEditor47 (talk) 04:28, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

 Comment I blocked Chinese gaming (talk · contributions · Statistics · Recent activity · block log · User rights log · uploads · Global account information) (assign permissions) who added these description, indef. as vandalism only account. Yann (talk) 08:53, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks. I think a few of the edits until 9 January need to be removed as well as the "Nazi Germany" file description is still visible before it was finally edited out by Zeta. BalticEditor47 (talk) 14:57, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

 Done I also semi-protected this file for one year. Yann (talk) 15:25, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Thank you. My work here is done. We can consider this resolved. BalticEditor47 (talk) 15:46, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Personality rights

Hi, I am currently going through a Good Article review for wikipedia page Katy Marchant [5]. The main infobox photo has been flagged by the reviewer for featuring a personality rights warning. The photo has been taken by a user whose photos dominate wikipedia pages for track cyclists. Some of these photos have a personality rights warning and some do not. For instance Katy Marchant photo File:2024 UEC Track Elite European Championships 087.jpg has one (this is the one that has been flagged) whereas an older one File:Katy Marchant (GBR) 2016-17.jpg does not even though they are taken by the same photographer, in a very similar setting. We sought a second opinion and an experienced reviewer thinks it's okay but suggested checking here to be sure. Can anyone give the reviewer and I some clarity as to whether there is any issue with using the File:2024 UEC Track Elite European Championships 087.jpg? I really appreciate any help that can be given. Thanks, Canary757 (talk) 11:41, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi, you are talking about File:2024 UEC Track Elite European Championships 087.jpg, right? Well, the "personality rights"-template is (or should be) added per default to all images showing identifiable living persons. It has no direct relevance for use in Wikipedia, except when it would be used to smear or defame the depicted person, which shouldn't happen on Wikipedia anyway. It is more directed to external re-users. So, it's perfectly o.k. to use it in the article about the person. --Túrelio (talk) 11:58, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Yes, thanks so much for your informative response. Canary757 (talk) 12:04, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

How can I upload a PDF old magazine with useful articles for my page?

How can I upload a PDF old magazine with useful articles for my page? Forest E. Johnson (talk) 18:24, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Are you sure that the whole magazine is out of copyright, or under a free licence? If so, how? If not, then you cannot upload it (but maybe individual articles are out of copyright or free?) Andy Mabbett (Pigsonthewing); Talk to Andy; Andy's edits 19:12, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

@Forest E. Johnson: if you are going to be uploading any sort of third-party materials, you should almost certainly read COM:THIRD.

As that page will explain in more detail: almost everything from the last 35 years or so is still copyrighted, along with the vast majority of works going back 70 years. At that point it begins to tail off more, but there are some works even from the late 19th Century that remain copyrighted in many countries. - Jmabel ! talk 01:47, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

Deletion of photographies in Category:Photographs by José Luís Ortiz Villard

Good afternoon, I was checking the category I had made 2 months ago about José Luis Ortiz Villard's photographies, he, José Luís Ortiz Villard was a XXth century photographer who had photographed key moments in the Mexican Revolution and I found out that the category where all his photographies that I had uploaded taken by him were had been blanked, I checked my contributions and the page's history and the pictures that I had uploaded which were around 30 were all absent as if I hadn't ever uploaded anything, can someone explain what happened? No content I uploaded there violated any copyright law. Jerryacutedoggy (talk) 18:53, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

@Jerryacutedoggy I believe you are talking about files like File:Mexico city in 1920.jpg and others listed at [6]. These were deleted as "No ticket permission since 30 November 2025". You might have added a {{Permission pending}} tag.

The photographer died in 1965 according to this page, so COM:Mexico#Term extensions has the guidance. Assuming he registered his copyright for images taken during the needed time periods, between 1963-1982, it was life + 30 years, so it would have expired in 1995, but in 1982 it was extended to life + 50 years, making it expire in 2015. In 2003 it was extended to life + 100 years, so the pictures published in Mexico won't expire until 2065.

However if you are or know the legal heir or beneficiary of the copyright, or you have evidence that he released it into the public domain during his lifetime, you might be able to get it released and upload it under a free license, but you will have to email COM:VRT for that (that page has the instructions). HurricaneZeta (talk) 19:27, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

This needs to be case-by-case though - were they already in the public domain under a previous version before his death or before the law changed? {{PD-Mexico-1918}} exists for "artistic or literary works" published before 1918. HurricaneZeta (talk) 19:42, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Oh I see, I have authorization from the legal heir which has a familial connection to me to publish them, and for what I know some of the pictures that I published which were the original versions of photographs he took, copies of those are now in some museums in Mexico City I assumed that since that was the case there would be no problems uploading them here since they could be viewed by anyone and the photographer had died a long time ago, I will email COM:VRT and see what I can do, thanks for replying. Greetings, Luis. Jerryacutedoggy (talk) 20:23, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

It's alright, copyright law is complicated and I'm also not sure where the line is between public domain and still under protection. In that case the VRT responders will help, and best of luck. HurricaneZeta (talk) 20:37, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

adding company logos

Hi, I'm looking to add a logo for an IBM product but an not sure how to do that due to the file upload guidance. Are there specific parameters to be taken in those cases? Dlkingbe (talk) 21:04, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi @Dlkingbe, it depends on two questions:

• What is the logo?
• Which country was it published in?

There is something called the threshold of originality. In the US, many logos that are made up of simple shapes and/or text are not eligible for copyright, like File:IBM logo.svg, since they are considered too simple to be protected by copyright. Posting a URL to what you want to upload would help. HurricaneZeta (talk) 21:12, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

Como carregar uma fotografia

Como carregar uma fotografia MemoriaMedicaMG (talk) 23:28, 9 January 2026 (UTC)

@MemoriaMedicaMG: Commons:First_steps/pt - Jmabel ! talk 01:51, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

I took this photo. However, I am unsure if I own the copyright to it.

Let me give better context.

Today, I visited the Pennsylvania Archives to research election results from the 60s and 70s. There, as part of the results of one election, I noticed Forest County did not have any results for the amendments on the ballot, as they said they had a printing error that they didn’t notice until 10 AM. I thought this was interesting, and a bit funny, so I took two pictures: one, a direct scan, and another, one with a bigger background including other, non-related results.

Btw, when I asked if pictures of things there were allowed, they said yes, so long as no personal information is included.

I would assume the first one, the scan, I do not own the copyright to since it is too closely related. But, what about the second one? I wasn’t sure how to share them to Commons without uploading them, but if I did that, I’d need to add copyright info. Please let me know if you need photos to make an answer, and if so, please let me know a good way to share them. Thank you! Delcoan (talk) 02:18, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

• While I'm not clear on specifics from your description, see derivative work - taking a photo or making a scan of someone else's copyrighted work does not transfer copyright to the person who made the photo or scan. So it the status of the original is probably a determining factor. -- Infrogmation of New Orleans (talk) 02:31, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

  Yes, but what about the second one? Delcoan (talk) 02:37, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

  • Did you read COM:DW (linked above)? This is discussed there. Assuming the ballot results document was copyrightable, and that there was enough else to your work to also merit copyright, then there are two copyrights involved. For Commons to host this work, we would need licenses from both copyright-holders. On the other hand if the ballot results document was not copyrightable, then only your copyright exists and you do not need anyone else's permission. - Jmabel ! talk 05:37, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

Hi. I accidentally submitted my image to the wrong category. Is it possible to change the category of it?

This is my submitted image: File:Limited Infinity.png As it is computer generated, i think it belongs to Non-photographic media, but i accidentally submitted it to general images. what should i do now? Jasonw901 (talk) 16:54, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

@Jasonw901 COM:HOTCAT is a tool you can use for this, but I have removed it. You can add the category you want now. HurricaneZeta (talk) 17:06, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

thank you so much for replying, i have already enabled the tool, but how should i change the category? should i edit the page directly by pressing edit on the top bar? Jasonw901 (talk) 17:14, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

You can do that and link to the category (for example, type [[Category:your category here]] and it adds to that category). Or you can click the (+) button on the right side of the line that says "Category" and type in your category, then hit OK. HurricaneZeta (talk) 17:26, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

Importing a YouTube video authored by the Wikipedia channel

Can we import a Wikipedia-authored video from YouTube to Commons? I came across a great explanatory video about plagiarism and copyright on Wikipedia on YouTube, authored by the Wikipedia YouTube channel. I tried searching for it on Commons, but I couldn't find it. This video would be very helpful on several Help or Wikipedia project pages dealing with copyright and plagiarism at Wikipedia. Is there a way to import this to Commons? Mathglot (talk) 20:42, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

There's a few free youtube video downloaders but I'm not sure if they actually work, won't hurt giving them a try though. If you have premium it allows you to download directly. HurricaneZeta (talk) 20:45, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

@Mathglot: Try Commons:Video2commons, it can work without actually downloading anything on your PC. Otherwise, the en:JDownloader can grab YouTube videos. You don't need premium accounts for that. Regards, Grand-Duc (talk) 20:52, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for rapid replies. Not sure if I understand them, though. Are you saying that to get the youtube video onto Commons, I need to do two things: download it to my computer, then upload it to Commons? Wouldn't that make it look like my work, which it isn't? Who controls the Wikipedia channel, and couldn't we get them to do it, so when it is uploaded here, the author will appear to be some WMF group (if it is a group) or individual that created the video in the first place? It would seem awkward to have my username as the creator of it here. Also, the doc at Commons:Video2commons says that YT videos fail, for some reason. Mathglot (talk) 21:02, 10 January 2026 (UTC)

If you come through video2commons, no you do not need to download to your machine.

But what makes it not look like your own work is that you cite your source, correctly name the author, and people can see where you got the video.

Either way, you will be the uploader to Commons. Probably the majority of Commons files are not uploaded by their author. E.g. I definitely did not take this photo in 1945. - Jmabel ! talk 01:40, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Doesn't video2commons fail on YouTube videos? HurricaneZeta (talk) 02:15, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

I believe (though I'm not certain) that the current state of that is that video2commons can pull in a certain amount of content from YouTube per day, so sometimes it will succeed and sometimes it will fail. But I may not be fully up to date on the status of that; my video uploads are overwhelmingly from my own computer. - Jmabel ! talk 05:34, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks; this is clearer now. Mathglot (talk) 07:31, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

It worked!

Update: After one glitch (bug report), I was able to get a task entered, now pending:

Workers:
Capacity: 10 / 10
Worker Utilization: 100%
Pending Tasks: 22
Your tasks:

followed by the details of the video copy request, and a rotating barber shop pole progress bar. I presume this means that 22 other copy requests are queued up prior to mine, so I'll check back in a few hours and see if there is some progress. Mathglot (talk) 20:41, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Yay, it worked! Thanks, everybody! I notice the software picked a still image from within the video (not the very beginning) that it must have thought was representative of the topic. The choice is not bad, but if I wanted to change that image to a snapshot of some other time point within the video, is there a way to do that? Secondly, and somewhat o/t, I am a jargon fan; is there a word for that still you see in a video thumbnail on a webpage? Thanks, Mathglot (talk) 23:07, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Kalanchoe deficiens

The pictures in this category have the names of Kalanchoe integra, a different species? Can somebody clarify for me please? Regards. Oesjaar (talk) 06:36, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

@Oesjaar: according to species:Kalanchoe deficiens Kalanchoe integra is a synonym for Kalanchoe deficiens. MKFI (talk) 08:28, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

@MKFI: , thanks for your response. Not according to Plants of the World Online. I think Wikispecies is wrong. Oesjaar (talk) 12:07, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

File:Шикування особового складу 114 БРТА.jpg

There are issues with this image; please crop it. S. Mochar (talk) 13:30, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

@S. Mochar I cropped it and then reverted it - does [7] look good? HurricaneZeta (talk) 17:21, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

I think so, let it be. S. Mochar (talk) 17:38, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Переклад українською творів Сведенборга

Як я можу завантажити ласний переклад творів Е. Сведенборга українською мовою? Michael Kot (talk) 15:39, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

Cropping images

Hey! I know this is probably a really basic question, but I’m a native Wikipedian and have no clue how to navigate Commons help pages, so I was wondering if cropping other people’s pictures and then uploading them is allowed if you don’t say it’s your own. I’m looking to crop File:Satellite image of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in April 2002.jpg to just include England (because we don’t really have many good satellite pics of England) and don’t know if that’s allowed.

Cheers, Shadestar474 (talk) 23:11, 11 January 2026 (UTC)

@Shadestar474: Yes, allowed, and I recommend Commons:CropTool for this purpose. - Jmabel ! talk 00:19, 12 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks! Shadestar474 (talk) 00:23, 12 January 2026 (UTC)

Can I upload from the site Pexels, which says pictures are free for use

Pictures are free to use under the pexel license. Dolpina (talk) 06:36, 12 January 2026 (UTC)

I searched and found my answer already. Seems like largely no, execpt early images that met CC0 licence. Dolpina (talk) 06:40, 12 January 2026 (UTC)