Wikipedia:Graphics Lab/Resources/Illustration Advice

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Advice to requesters

All requests:

  • Please make sure your request is "legit" by copyright. If the image(s) are in the public domain or freely licensed, you are fine. If the image(s) are "Fair use", there are only certain things we can do with them without falling afoul of Wikipedia's fair-use policies.
  • If you are requesting assistance with a copyright or fair-use image, don't display it on this page; place {{GLNF|Name.ext}} to create a link to it. Do not add the File: extension. Our fair-use policy does not allow displaying fair-use images out of their articles under ANY circumstances.
  • Please check back regularly to see if progress has been made or if any additional questions needs to be answered before the request can be completed.
  • If a request is done to your satisfaction, please mark it with {{resolved}}.

SVG requests:

General SVG requests:
  • Make sure your request can actually BE vectorized. Note that vector drawings are not suitable for certain applications. We generally use SVG format for icons, logos, drawings, maps, flags, and such. Certain things, photographs especially, are totally impossible to vectorize.
SVG conversions of company logos and other non-free images:
  • The vector versions of non-free images like company logos and other items need careful handling. Graphists at the lab cannot always convert a raster file (JPEG, GIF or PNG) to vector (SVG) because a manual re-draw of the logo is likely to result in an inaccurate version of the logo and may look like a cheap imitation! Thus, searching for an official version of the vector image is very important.
  • Often, the vector image already exists - so please always try these steps first: The vector version may be on the company's website as an SVG, AI, CDR or EPS file. It may be found embedded within PDF documents which support vectors. Using the advanced search option in Google can help finding PDFs (Use the "File type" and "Search within a site or domain" tools). To confirm the presence of a vector in a PDF, zoom several times into the logo and check for the absence of pixels. Upon finding any of the above, make a request here at the lab and include the URL (link) of the vector source, and graphists will be happy to help!