Copyright-Friendly Material
Photos
Photos for Class - Start here! This site offers a great selection of Creative Commons-licensed photos that include the proper citation you need to comply with copyright law and to avoid plagiarism. The citation is part of the image itself so there are no extra steps.
Pics4Learning - These copyright-friendly images also include a citation for each photo. You will need to copy the citation provided each time that you copy a photo.
Pexels - A large collection of beautiful photos that have all been released into the public domain so that they can be freely used for any purpose.
Unsplash - Over a million, beautiful, high-resolution and copyright-friendly images to choose and reuse
Pixabay - More beautiful photos that are free to use for noncommercial purposes
Public Domain Images - Although legally you are not required to cite public domain images, the site owners ask that you credit Public Domain Images when using their photos. This site includes over 3,000 photos sorted by category (e.g., animals, landscapes, vehicles) for easy browsing.
Icons & Illustrations
Icons by Noun Project - Over 2 millions icons that are free to use if you provide attribution
CocoMaterial - a library of hand-drawn illustrations that can be customized and downloaded for free and used without attribution
Music
Incompetech - Search here for a wide variety of Creative Commons-licensed music that you are free to use as long as you credit the artist. This is easy to do because the proper citation is provided for you to copy and paste into your credits section.
Bensound - Another great collection of Creative Commons-licensed music. You should credit Bensound and provide a link, for example,
"Music: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music or "Music: Song title - Bensound.com".
Purple Planet - The free collection of music is organized into 20 different mood categories at the top of the homepage. (The collection lower on the page is not free to use but requires the payment of licensing fees.) Your credit should read "Music: http://www.purple -planet.com".
Musopen - A large collection of classical music that can be used for free without copyright restrictions. You can search by composer or by title. You do NOT need to create an account to search for music or to play it.
Videos
Pexels Videos - Videos that may be freely used for any purpose
Pixabay Videos - Videos that are free to use for noncommercial purposes
Free-to-Use Video Content - Curated by the Harvard Law School Library
More
Public Domain and Creative Commons Media - This guide from the Harvard Law School Library provides links to resources for public domain and Creative Commons images, audio, and video content.
Copyright Considerations
Students and teachers can often use copyrighted material under the educational fair use exemption IF the material is only distributed or viewed within a classroom setting. Educational fair use does not apply, however, if the material is posted online and can be viewed by anyone who has the link.
Students and teachers who want to share their projects or content with a wider online audience should generally include only works that have a Creative Commons copyright or that are in the public domain UNLESS another fair use exemption applies OR the copyright holder has granted permission for reuse.
Pics4Learning - These copyright-friendly images also include a citation for each photo. You will need to copy the citation provided each time that you copy a photo.
Pexels - A large collection of beautiful photos that have all been released into the public domain so that they can be freely used for any purpose.
Unsplash - Over a million, beautiful, high-resolution and copyright-friendly images to choose and reuse
Pixabay - More beautiful photos that are free to use for noncommercial purposes
Public Domain Images - Although legally you are not required to cite public domain images, the site owners ask that you credit Public Domain Images when using their photos. This site includes over 3,000 photos sorted by category (e.g., animals, landscapes, vehicles) for easy browsing.
Icons & Illustrations
Icons by Noun Project - Over 2 millions icons that are free to use if you provide attribution
CocoMaterial - a library of hand-drawn illustrations that can be customized and downloaded for free and used without attribution
Music
Incompetech - Search here for a wide variety of Creative Commons-licensed music that you are free to use as long as you credit the artist. This is easy to do because the proper citation is provided for you to copy and paste into your credits section.
Bensound - Another great collection of Creative Commons-licensed music. You should credit Bensound and provide a link, for example,
"Music: http://www.bensound.com/royalty-free-music or "Music: Song title - Bensound.com".
Purple Planet - The free collection of music is organized into 20 different mood categories at the top of the homepage. (The collection lower on the page is not free to use but requires the payment of licensing fees.) Your credit should read "Music: http://www.purple -planet.com".
Musopen - A large collection of classical music that can be used for free without copyright restrictions. You can search by composer or by title. You do NOT need to create an account to search for music or to play it.
Videos
Pexels Videos - Videos that may be freely used for any purpose
Pixabay Videos - Videos that are free to use for noncommercial purposes
Free-to-Use Video Content - Curated by the Harvard Law School Library
More
Public Domain and Creative Commons Media - This guide from the Harvard Law School Library provides links to resources for public domain and Creative Commons images, audio, and video content.
Copyright Considerations
Students and teachers can often use copyrighted material under the educational fair use exemption IF the material is only distributed or viewed within a classroom setting. Educational fair use does not apply, however, if the material is posted online and can be viewed by anyone who has the link.
Students and teachers who want to share their projects or content with a wider online audience should generally include only works that have a Creative Commons copyright or that are in the public domain UNLESS another fair use exemption applies OR the copyright holder has granted permission for reuse.
Copyright Infographic. GCFLearnFree.org. Goodwill Community Foundation, www.gcflearnfree.org/useinformationcorrectly/copyright-and-fair-use/full/.
Please note: Works under traditional copyright protection can sometimes be used without the creator's permission IF one of the four types of fair use apply.