• Creative Commons Images
    (Courtesy of richard@byrne.media)

     

     

    Public Domain or Creative Commons?

    Media types

    Registration Required.

    Consideration for classrooms.

    Creative Commons browser extension. 

    (Available for Chrome, Firefox, and Opera)

    Both

    Images

    No

    The CC browser extension provides all attribution information in just one click. 

    Stockio

    stockio.com

    Public Domain

    Image, video, icons, fonts.

    Optional. 

    Image citation not required, but is encouraged. 

    Pixabay

    pixabay.com

    Public Domain

    Images, videos, drawings.

    Optional. 

    Sponsored images from ShutterStock may confuse some students. Make sure to enable safe search.

    Offers a PowerPoint Add-in.

    Pexels

    pexels.com

    Public Domain

    Images and videos

    Optional.

    Offers the ability to create collections of pictures and videos. 

    Unsplash

    unsplash.com

    Public Domain

    Images

    No.

    Offers a Google Slides Add-on. 

    PikWizard

    pikwizard.com

    Both

    Images

    Optional

    Provides clear directions for attribution.

    The Noun Project

    thenounproject.com

    Both

    Icons

    Optional

    Students must pay attention to the attribution requirements because the vary from image to image. 

    Reshot

    reshot.com

    Public Domain

    Image

    Optional

    Offers thematic “image packs.” 

    Wikimedia Commons

    commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

    Both

    Image, Audio, Video

    Optional.

    Search can be confusing. 

    Mix of Public Domain and Creative Commons images. Students must check licensing on each image. 

    Library of Congress

    loc.gov/collections

    Public Domain

    Image, Audio, Video

    No.

    Search can be confusing. 

    NPS Digital Image

    Archive

    nps.gov/pub_aff/imagebase.html

    Public Domain

    Image, Video

    No.

    Search can be confusing. 

    Flickr - The Commons

    flickr.com/commons

    Public Domain

    Image

    No.

    Students can easily end up on Flickr.com instead of The Commons. 

     

    Creative Commons Music

    (Courtesy of Richard Byrne - PracticalEdTech.com)

     

    • Dig CC Mixter offers thousands of songs that are Creative Commons licensed. The site is divided into three main categories. Those categories are Instrumental Music for Film & Video, Free Music for Commercial Projects, and Music for Video Games. Within each category you can search according to genre, instrument, and style. When you click the download icon on a file you will be prompted to copy the attribution information that is required to include in your project. A video overview of Dig CC Mixter is available at https://youtu.be/ISUN8hZ2wEQ

    • Musopen's collection of free recordings contains performances of the works of hundreds of composers. The collection can be searched by composer, performer, by instrument, or by form. You can stream the music from Musopen for free. You can also download five recordings per day for free from Musopen.

    • Bensound (https://www.bensound.com/) offers about 250 music tracks that you can download for free. Those tracks are arranged in eight categories. Those categories are acoustic/folk, cinematic, corporate/pop, electronica, urban/groove, jazz, rock, and world. You can listen to the tracks before you download them. When you click the download button you will see the clear rules about using the music. A video overview of Bensound is available at https://youtu.be/hO3m4dGQnOI

    • The Internet Archive hosts an extensive collection of music and other audio recordings that you can download for free. You should point out to students that they need to look at the usage rights closely when they find things on the Internet Archive. Not everything that is available to download for free is eligible to be reused for free.

    • The Free Music Archive provides free, high-quality, music in a wide range of genres. The content on Free Music Archive is used under various Creative Commons licenses. Anyone can download music from FMA for use in podcasts, videos, and other digital presentation formats. The music collections can be searched by genre or by curator. A video overview of FMA can be seen here https://youtu.be/HNeJgcmR7d
       
    • Sound Bible is a resource for finding and downloading free sound clips, sound effects, and sound bites. All of the sounds on Sound Bible are either public domain or labeled with a Creative Commons license. You can find sounds for use in podcasts, videos, slideshows, or other multimedia creations. A video overview of Sound Bible can be seen here https://youtu.be/MB0YLECHaj
       
    • The next time you need common sounds like doorbells ringing, dogs barking, or car horns honking to use in a multimedia project you could try to record those sounds yourself or you could turn to SoundGator to find free recordings that you can download. SoundGator offers free sound recording downloads. There are twenty-three recording categories that you can browse through to find the perfect sound for your project. You do have to register on SoundGator in order to download recordings. After registering you can download recordings directly to your computer to re-use in your projects
       
    • ZapSplat (https://www.zapsplat.com/)  is a website that offers more than 20,000 sound effects and songs that you can download and re-use for free. The licensing that ZapSplat uses is quite clear. As long as you cite ZapSplat, you can use the sound effects and music in your videos, podcasts, and other multimedia projects. ZapSplat does require you to create an account in order to download the MP3 and WAV files that it hosts. Once you have created an account you can download as many files as you like. ZapSplat does offer a "Gold" account. The benefit of a Gold account is that you don't have to cite ZapSplat and access to an expanded library of sounds.