At a growth workshop this Fall I urged congregations to invest in improving their websites including adding compelling photo and video.  One participant asked what photos the UUA had for congregational use.  I checked in with the UUA Information and Electronic Communications offices.

They shared that images from previous marketing campaigns are available for congregational use.

This is a fabulous resource, but I was hoping for more.  My dream was that there was a vault of images taken over the years that any congregation could use.  Not the case.

And that being the case,  I say we create one!

I’ve created a group on the photo sharing site Flickr called UU STOCK PHOTO.

Here’s the plan.  If you have photos you’re happy to  have member congregations of the Unitarian Universalist Association use all you need to do is

1. Create a Flickr account – I just did, it was easy.
2. Upload pictures to your account.
3. Join the UU STOCK PHOTO group and “add photos to the pool.”

There are some other UU groups on Flickr, but they are not designated as pre-approved for congregational use.  My goal is to make it easy for UU congregations to find images to enhance their websites.

I’ve added a few of my photos to get it started.  I am going to start inviting UUs I know with established Flickr collections to share some images.  If you are a member of a UU photo sharing group, please let them know about UU STOCK PHOTO.

Note that pictures can be of anything from chalices and churches to images of worship, rallies, and the many faces of our members.  Just make sure you ask permission before sharing someones smiling face with UU STOCK PHOTO.

Special thanks to the UUA’s Electronic Communications Office for sharing this project with the UUA websters list.

UPDATE:   Comments are already coming in regarding releases.  I  agree that ideally photos of recognizable images, with the exception of public figures,  should complete a release form before before sharing with our photo pool. Public figures tend to have lesser rights to privacy with photos falling more under the category of photo journalism.

Here are some resources on releases.

Model Releases on Wikipedia

A Digital Photographer’s Guide to Model Releases: Making the Best Business Decisions with Your Photos of People, Places and Things and Non-commercial uses of images: do non-profits need model releases? by Dan Heller

Do You Use ‘Real’ Pictures on your Organization’s Website? on discussion on Church Crunch