User:Shokora/MarioWiki:Image Use Policy

=Image Use Policy=


 * Unused images
 * Shadow/non shadow versions

What to avoid
First things first, please do not attempt to upload images which include the following, as they will be deleted on sight.


 * Inappropriate or profane content, such as nudity, blood or violent weapons.
 * Personal information.
 * Potentially libelous content (that is, content which is made to disrupt or make fun of other users).

Uploading inappropriate images is a level four offense, and the uploader may be permabanned.

The following images are not permitted for use on the wiki's articles. Unless such images are claimed as a personal image, they will be deleted.


 * Fanmade, or "fake" images intended to be used on articles. Remember that we only cover official Mario content.
 * Being a duplicate or lower-quality version of an existing file.
 * Images that aren't vaguely related to the Mario series. For example; uploading picture of a real life dog and putting it on the Dog article.

Accepted file types
First, we need to check if the file type (sometimes referred as an extension) is acceptable to upload. The wiki currently accepts four different file types for images. You can what find out what file type an image is by looking at the letters after the dot in the file name. These letters may appear either capitals or lowercase. The Super Mario Wiki accepts the following; PNG, JPG (or JPEG), GIF and SVG. The difference of each type is explained below.


 * JPG/JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) - These file types are generally
 * PNG (Portable Networks Graphics) -
 * GIF (Graphic Interchange Format) -
 * SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) -

Any image extensions other than these cannot be uploaded here. When uploading a new version of a file, remember that they must be the same file type. The wiki also accepts OGG and OGA extensions, which are for media files.

Image transparency
Transparency is applied to images in order to get rid of an existing background, such as a white square which surrounds the object of an image. JPEG files do not support transparency. PNGs do, but we have a standard which must be followed. During [month] 2011, a proposal passed which restricts giving transparency to artworks unless it has no visible outline or pixelation when displayed at full size against a black background. Any poor transparency will be reverted. It is also not acceptable to replace JPG/JPEG artworks with PNGs which have been modified with transparency. This doesn't apply to PNG artworks which already have transparency when retrieved from an official source, such as a press kit - this is known as "official transparency".

Sprites and models
Game sprites are graphics which can be moved on screen and be made to look like an independent object. We recommend giving transparency to sprites, as the aforementioned transparency guidelines only applies to artworks. Sprites usually have larger and less detailed pixels; thus able to give perfect transparency.

File size
Another point that should be confirmed before uploading is the size of the image. Files should not exceed five megabytes in file size. The wiki's limit is actually ten, but it is still strongly advised that you keep to five or less. Image dimensions are restricted to no more than 5000 pixels in width or height. An image has cannot exceed an area of 12.5 million pixels (including transparent areas), as the file won't be able to be viewed through a thumbnail after being uploaded (the thumbnail error does not apply to JPEGs). If you have found an image that you wish to upload, but it goes beyond these limits, then you may need to optimize it.


 * If an images' file size is too large, then there is the option to compress it. This involves getting rid of unnecessary bytes from the file to make it smaller, without affecting the image dimensions or quality. Programs like GIMP and Photoshop automatically compress an image after being saved. There are also some programs available which are made especially for compressing images, such as PNG Monster. However, unlike lossless formats (PNG and GIF), JPEG is lossy, meaning that it sacrifices quality if compressed. Likewise, we advise you to not attempt to compress JPEGs.
 * If an images' dimensions are too large, then you may scale it down to a more appropriate size. Programs like GIMP make scaling easy. If you are scaling to avoid the aforementioned thumbnail error, then remember that the width and height of the image should multiply with a result less than 12.5 million. Also, please keep the dimensions below 5000 pixels in width or height.

File names
A name should be given which describes the image content. This can include the game where the image was taken from, as well as a short descriptive title which tells us what the image is showing. For example; NSMBU Bowser Artwork.png is clear and descriptive, being an ideal file name. Unless said content is in another language, such as the German Club Nintendo comics or Japanese names, please use English for file names, so everyone can understand. We advise against foreign characters and symbols, such as é, ü, [Heart], etc. Some users may find these difficult to type, and they may even appear as unicode, making the file even more difficult to understand and use.

In summary, please avoid vague, non-descriptive and otherwise confusing names for images. If you feel that an image could do with a better name, you are welcome to move the image title.

Cropping sections of an image
Sometimes official artwork of an article subject in a certain game appearance may only be known to exist within a group artwork or promotional image, rather than an official solo artwork. For example File:SMA3-Japanese Flyer.jpg contains unique artwork of many different characters arranged together as a scene. In such cases, users may have the incentive to crop the desired section of the full image to focus on a single subject, and then upload it as a separate character artwork. This is strongly discouraged. The reason being that it's not a good look when we have the full image being split up like a jigsaw puzzle and placed on pages as separate images. Unless the artwork can be properly and professionally edited to look like a solo artwork, then it cannot be used as an image separate to the scene it came from. For example, the Beanie that appears in Yoshi's New Island was not given an official individual artwork. However, it is shown in the Big Beanie character artwork. Because the background to the image was already blank, and because the Beanie was edited without affecting the original image, then it is acceptable to be uploaded as an individual character artwork.

In contrast, cropping an image is not allowed when the subject is the main or part of the main focus of the image. An example of this is the artwork of King Boo from Luigi's Mansion. Even though a Bowser suit can be seen behind King Boo, cropping the image to only show King Boo is not acceptable, as the image is already focused on this character.

Using image content from Prima game guides
http://www.marioboards.com/index.php?topic=34540.0

Use of images in infoboxes

 * Artwork of unreleased games
 * Recent art or more recent model