I'm a Wikipedia editor and member of the WBCA.
One of my goals is to expand the coverage of women's basketball in Wikipedia.
As part of that goal, I've identified Wikipedia articles about coaches where a picture is non-existent, or could be improved.
I have taken some pictures of coaches at games and at recent WBCA conventions, however, there are over one hundred articles missing pictures, so it will take me years to get all the pictures if I continue to take them myself. Second, I'm a decided amateur, and have no illusions about my skills as a photographer. Some have turned out OK, but most are quite inferior to photos I'm sure you have.
Not everyone realizes that Wikipedia is careful about copyright considerations. I cannot simply copy a photograph taken from your official website.
I'm sure your media relations people have access to many photographs, other than the ones posted on the website. My hope is that you would be willing to provide one with an appropriate license, so it can be included on the Wikipedia site.
If you agree, there are two options.
- One is to upload the file yourself at Wikimedia Commons. There is a minor complication with this approach; you have to have an account to upload, which is easy, but not everyone wants to create an account for what might be a one-time use. If you create a user account, you can simply click on the "Upload file" on the left panel, and the software will walk you through what are fairly straightforward steps. The license required is Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, often abbreviated to CC BY SA 3.0. The key issue is that you are allowing subsequent use of the photo, including commercial use. The BY initials indicate that subsequent users are required to give attribution to the creator. If you upload it, and let me know, I'll take care of adding it to the appropriate page, the article about the coach when one exists, or the page about the program, if an article about the coach has not yet been written. I'll also take care of adding relevant categories.
- The second option is easier; email an acceptable photograph to me, and include in the email the licensing language as noted below, with the items in CAPS replaced by the appropriate information for you.
The email must come from someone associated with the program, so it should not be sent from a personal email account.
The wording below will ensure that the licensing is acceptable:
I hereby affirm that CHOOSE ONE: [I, (name here) am] OR [(copyright holder's name) is] the creator and/or sole owner of the exclusive copyright of the attached file(s).
I agree to publish that work under the free license "Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0" (unported) and GNU Free Documentation License (unversioned, with no invariant sections, front-cover texts, or back-cover texts).
I acknowledge that by doing so I grant anyone the right to use the work in a commercial product or otherwise, and to modify it according to their needs, provided that they abide by the terms of the license and any other applicable laws.
I am aware that this agreement is not limited to Wikipedia or related sites.
I am aware that I always retain copyright of my work, and retain the right to be attributed in accordance with the license chosen. Modifications others make to the work will not be claimed to have been made by me.
I acknowledge that I cannot withdraw this agreement, and that the content may or may not be kept permanently on a Wikimedia project.
[SENDER'S NAME AND DETAILS (to allow future verification of authenticity)]
[SENDER'S AUTHORITY (Are you the copyright-holder, director, appointed representative of, etc.)]
[DATE]
I realize you may not know me. I met with Beth Bass, the CEO of the WBCA this year to tell her about my plans, so I think she can vouch for me. You can also check out Mike Carey, an article I largely wrote, and my first example of a case where a professional photographer (Cheryl Vorhis) released a photograph under a suitable license, or Matthew Mitchell, where the Kentucky athletic department arranged for a picture, which I used to replace my photograph.
Following are links to read the details of the license: