WikiMedia Commons

This free resource contains images and maps on almost any conceivable subject. As with the main Wikipedia site, nearly all of this material is contributed by users. Also, most of the images and maps are in the public domain, meaning that anyone can freely use them.

The site keeps a running count of the number of available free files, and when I checked today, the count has reached more than 2.4 million. In addition to images and maps, the material also includes photographs, diagrams, animations, music, spoken text, and video clips. This is an amazing resource for anyone looking for free images, photos or video to put on their website or blog. And the treasure only continues to grow as people upload new material.

According to the site’s guidelines, you are free to use any of the files on the site, provided that you credit the source and the authors, and also release your copies/improvements under the same freedom to others. To this end, the database and the texts in it are licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. More details about this license, and about usage guidelines can be found on the site.

Wikimedia Commons is almost wholly supported by the public, since it depends on contributions of material, on volunteers, and on private donations to pay for the tremendous expense of operating an image resource site. Check it out today.