Attribution — crediting the photographer

When you hold an Unpinched licence, you have the right to publish the image. The photographer has the right to attribution. The byline is how those two rights meet on the page.

The byline

For most uses, a short byline beside the image is enough. The recommended form is:

Photo: {Photographer Name} © {Year} — uiiid.net/{ref}

For example:

Photo: Gavin Allanwood © 2026 — uiiid.net/AB212401

The 8-character reference at the end (AB212401 above) identifies this particular licence. It is also embedded invisibly in the image file itself. Anyone who reads it can type uiiid.net/AB212401 into a browser and reach the registry record for the licence, which confirms the photographer, the image, and the edition serial. That verifiability is the reason the reference is part of the byline.

If your licence document gives a different preferred byline, use the one in the licence document — it overrides this general form.

Where to put it

The byline must appear in sight of the image, at the size and density the image is published. "In sight" means a reader can see both the image and the attribution without having to navigate, hover or scroll.

In practice this means:

Print and web: caption directly under the image, or a corner credit on the image itself
Video: the byline appears on screen while the image is on screen, plus a mention in closing credits
Social media: in the post body, not only in alt text
Slide decks: on the same slide as the image

A "credits" page at the end of an article or document does not meet the requirement on its own — the byline must travel with the image.

What does not count as attribution

A photographer's name in IPTC or EXIF metadata. Metadata is helpful, but invisible and often removed during upload. It does not replace a visible byline.
A <title> or alt attribute on its own. Alt text is required for accessibility but does not satisfy attribution.
Tagging the photographer's social account without a written byline.

When the image is altered

You may resize, crop, colour-correct or convert format under your licence. The attribution requirement stays the same regardless of how the image has been altered. If you publish a heavily-cropped version, the byline still names the photographer.

You must not alter or obscure a byline the photographer has placed on the image itself. If the photographer has included a visible signature or credit on the file, it stays.

When in doubt