Many digital art creators and photographers look for opportunities to share their content because they look for exposure and recognition. For these creators copyrighting is not an issue they just want to share their work therefore they use a CC (creative commons) license that allows anyone to use their work in exchange for attribute the creator of the work.
This part is really important, when you use any CC material, you must: always attribute the creator of the work.
CC licenses allow the creator of the work to select how they want others to use the work.
When a creator releases their work under a CC license, members of the public know what they can and can’t do with the work. This means that they only need to seek the creator’s permission when they want to use the work in a way not permitted by the license.
Most images that are licensed under CC provide information on how to attribute the image to a creator.
For example, if I found an image of this website and it says I can use it, I publish it on my own website and indicate the source.
source: EducateTheUSA
If you are interested in sharing your images under a CC license, take a look at this list of websites.
Unsplash, Pixabay, or FreeImages are examples of websites that you can find free images for your new project.
These websites are also a perfect choice if you are looking for exposure and publicity for yourself and your photos.
They offer collections of very beautiful images that were donated by semi-professional and professional photographers. All images displayed here are labeled and authorized for free use, meaning you can use, copy, distribute, or modify these photos and images for free and in any way you like.
As I encountered these websites for the first time, I thought ’’Why on earth would photographers give away these amazing and professional images and photos at no cost?”
It wasn’t long before I realized that many photographers are impressed by the huge number of downloads on these sites and they hope that this kind of exposure will get them good publicity and lots of paid work.
Behance – The platform Behance is a cost-free social network targeted toward creative professionals employed in various industries. Behance is owned by Adobe and the platform aims to be a website where creative minds can promote themselves and their work.
Through Behance, many buyers and companies have the chance to access the beautiful and interesting works of highly professional artists from across the globe.
Flickr – The online platform Flickr is a social network and photo-sharing platform where users and members can their photos and other artwork for other users to see. Flickr members create a totally free account and then, they can upload their photos, images, or videos and share these online with friends and other followers.
What makes Flickr unique and sets it apart from some other photo-sharing apps like Instagram or Facebook is that Flickr is a true photo-centric platform especially developed for photography enthusiasts and professional and semi-professional photographers to show their work online while at the same time enjoying the creative works of others.
Flickr is more focused on photography and creative images than any of the other major social networks on the web. You can think of Flickr as a sort of Instagram for semi-professional and professional photographers.
DeviantArt – which is generally abbreviated as dA, is an online community where you can share your artwork. if your goal is to be found, make sure you use keywords in the name of the image and the name of the file.
DeviantArt can increase your presence and you should also get a good learning approach when you receive positive feedback from the users of this site. The platform is a haven for digital artists to showcase their work to the world.
Instagram is of course always a good choice but it’s a huge competition out there and it’s hard to get noticed without building your own audience.
Pinterest, as we all know, is also a good way of showing your work although you should link it to your own website.