Photos

True to the old adage "a picture is worth a thousand words", meaningful images are among the most important tools of good communication. On this page you will find support and advice on the use of visual material at the University of Kassel

Photo databases

Image: Fiona Körner

Media portal of the University of Kassel

The database is managed by the picture editors of the Communications and Marketing Office.

Image: Guajillo Studio / Adobe Stock

Adobe Stock image database

All employees of the University of Kassel have access to free images in the Adobe Stock image database as part of the Adobe software package.

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Image rights

If you use images in your communication, you must ensure the following points:

Licenses: What needs to be considered?

A copyright arises automatically as soon as a work is created (e.g. photo, graphic, drawing).

Term of protection

  • Artistic photos: 70 years after the death of the author ( 64 UrhG)
  • Snapshots: 50 years from creation (72 UrhG)
  • Drawings: protected as soon as individual-personal ( 2 UrhG)

When using image material, the author, e.g. photographer / illustrator, must be named (photo: Sonja Rode). If the image originates from an external image database such as Adobe Stock, the database or company must usually also be stated(Photo: Urheber - adobe.stock.com).

Instructions for entering authorship in Typo3

  • Click on the image in the backend
  • Select the Metadata tab
  • Enter author:in in the "Copyright" field
  • Author:in appears in the frontend at the top right of the image

AI: What needs to be considered?

see also entry: Licenses: what to consider

Tools such as Stable Diffusion create images based on text input. They use training data with image-text pairs (e.g. LAION-5B). The use of copyright-protected images in training or as prompt content is problematic.

Input (e.g. prompt, training data)

  • Do not use copyrighted material in prompts
  • Training data must not simply be taken over
  • Observe the terms and conditions/terms of use of the AI tools

Output (generated image):

  • Check whether the image contains protected works or is very similar to them
  • License obligation possible if third-party rights are affected
  • Height of work determines protectability
  • Responsibility also applies to artificially generated content. (Press Code, amended 2024)
  • AI-generated images must be labeled as symbolic images. Example: "This image was created with the help of AI."
  • Was protected material used in the prompt?
  • Does the AI image contain recognizable third-party works?
  • What are the terms of use of the AI tool?
  • Is labeling required?

Uniform rules for artificial intelligence in the EU

From 2026, anyone who creates, edits or publishes images with AI must clearly label and document this.

Mandatory information
1. Prompt (text command)
2. AI model & version (e.g. Midjourney v6, DALLE 3)
3. Style reference / source material
4. License status of references
5. Post-processing (e.g. Photoshop, Topaz AI)
6. Rights check (recommended)
7. Creation & publication date
8. Context of use (website, social media, print)
9. Reference to AI generation

Declarations of consent

By signing the forms below, the persons depicted confirm that they consent to their use in the listed communication channels (print, web, social media).

You can find more information in the data protection information of the University of Kassel on the production and publication of photographs in accordance with Art. 13 EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

Data protection: Read More
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