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Wikipedia Pages Wanting Photos 2021

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Wikipedia Pages Wanting Photos 2021

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Please do not add photos in a language you do not speak. Do not add images without a good caption. In your edit summary, add a good edit summary, and the hashtag #WPWP.

Wikipedia Pages Wanting Photos (WPWP) is an annual campaign where Wikipedia editors across the world, Wikipedia language projects and communities add photos to Wikipedia articles lacking photos. This is to promote the use of digital media files collected from various Wikimedia photography contests, photowalks organized by the Wikimedia community, on Wikipedia article pages. Photos help to grasp the reader's attention better than a wall of text, illustrate content, and make the article more instructive and engaging for readers.

Thousands of images have been donated and contributed to Wikimedia Commons via various advocacy programs, photowalks, and contests including international photography contests such as Wiki Loves Monuments, Wiki Loves Africa, Wiki Loves Earth, Wiki Loves Folklore, etc. Yet relatively few of these photos have been used on Wikipedia articles. Today, the Wikimedia Commons hosts millions of photo images but only a tiny portion of these have been used on Wikipedia article pages. This is a huge gap that this project aims at bridging.

How to participate

Before participating, it is important to read the participation instructions and rules below in their entirety. Failure to do so may result in disqualification.

  1. Sign in if you are already registered on any Wikimedia project, or if you don't have an account yet, create a new account for Wikipedia. You can create an account in any language of Wikipedia including your own. The list of all languages of Wikipedia can be found [[<tvar name="1>List of Wikipedias</tvar>|here]]: one account can be used on all different language versions.
  2. Find an article that needs a photo. There are many ways to do this. Here are some tips.
  3. Find an appropriate image on Commons. Search for the image using the correct title or category. There are several ways to do this. See this simple media reuse guide. Here are additional tips. Please note that the purpose of an image is to increase readers' understanding of the article's subject matter, usually by directly depicting people, things, activities, and concepts described in the article. The relevant aspect of the image should be clear and central. The images must be significant and relevant in the topic's context, not primarily decorative.
  4. On the article page, find a section where the image is relevant and helps the reader understand the subject. Click Edit and insert the image, and include a brief caption explaining what the image depicts in the article. Use the best quality images available. Poor-quality images—dark or blurry; showing the subject too small, hidden in clutter, or ambiguous; and so on—should not be used unless absolutely necessary. Think carefully about which images best illustrate the subject matter. You MUST provide an edit summary for all your edits, "Preview" and make any necessary changes. Include the hashtag #WPWP in the edit summary of all articles improved with images. Then click on "Publish changes". Please see: Guide on how to use WPWP Campaign Hashtags
  5. Please be mindful of the image syntax! If you are going to add images to the infoboxes in articles, the syntax is a lot easier — just the filename, so rather than [[File:Obamas at church on Inauguration Day 2013.jpg|thumb|The Obamas worship at [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]] in Washington, D.C., January 2013]] simply type The Obamas at church on Inauguration Day 2013.jpg.

Syntax of file names and captions

A white dog in a harness playfully nuzzles a young boy
A Siberian Husky used as a pack animal

Basic example (producing the image at right):
[[File:Siberian Husky pho.jpg|thumb|alt=A white dog in a harness playfully nuzzles a young boy |A Siberian Husky used as a pack animal]]

  • File:Siberian Husky pho.jpg The file (image) name must be exact (including capitalization, punctuation and spacing) and must include .jpg, .png or other extension. (Image: and File: work the same.) If Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons both have an image with the specified name, the Wikipedia version is the one that will appear in the article.
  • thumb is required in most cases
  • alt=A white dog in a harness playfully nuzzles a young boy Alt text is meant for those who cannot see the image; unlike the caption, it summarizes the image's appearance. It should comport with accessibility guidelines and should name famous events, people and things.
  • A Siberian Husky used as a pack animal The caption comes last, and gives the meaning or significance of the image.

See en:WP:Extended image syntax for further features and options. If the image does not display after you have carefully checked the syntax, it may have been blacklisted.

Campaign rules

Images must be used on Wikipedia articles between 1st July to August 31st 2021.

There is no limit to the number of files one can use. There are, however, different categories of prizes (see below). However, do not deface Wikipedia articles with photos. Only add a photo to an article that has no photo.

The image must be published under a free use license or as public domain. The possible licenses are CC-BY-SA, CC-BY, and CC0

Participants must be a registered user on any Wikimedia project. Sign in or Create a new account on Wikipedia. You can create an account on any language Wikipedia, for use in your own WP and on all Wikimedia projects. The list of all languages of Wikipedia can be found here.

Poor or very low-quality photos are generally not acceptable.

  1. The image caption and description must be clear and be suitable for the article.
  2. All image additions must include a caption that describes what the image is of.
  3. Images should be placed where relevant in the article.
  4. Do not add photos to articles in a language you do not speak fluently. Users who repeatedly add images without captions, irrelevant images, etc. may be disqualified.

Participants must include the hashtag #WPWP in the Edit summary of all articles improved with images in addition to a descriptive edit summary. for example I added the image of an elephant to this article #WPWP. Do not insert the hashtag (#WPWP) into an article. Please see: Guide on how to use WPWP Campaign Hashtags


How do you want to participate in #WPWP?

This section is designed to fit neatly with your level of participation in WPWP. Click the buttons below to discover the modes of participation.

Campaign timeline

The WPWP Campaign is annual.

  • Start for entries: 1st July 2021 00:01 (UTC)
  • Deadline for entries: 31st August 2021 23:59 (UTC)
  • Results announcement: 1st October 2021 15th October 2021

International prize categories

Winning prizes for the top three users with the most Wikipedia articles improved with photos:

  1. 1st prize ― US $200 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate
  2. 2nd prize ― US $150 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate
  3. 3rd prize ― US $100 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate

Winning prize for the user with the most Wikipedia articles improved with audios:

  • US $100 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate

Winning prize for the user with the most Wikipedia articles improved with videos:

  • US $100 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate

Winning prize for the new user with the most Wikipedia articles improved with photos:

  • US $100 gift card + WPWP Souvenirs + Certificate

Arabic community special prize(s) categories

Winning prizes for the top three users with the most Arabic Wikipedia articles improved with photos:

  1. 1st prize ― US $200 gift card
  2. 2nd prize ― US $150 gift card
  3. 3rd prize ― US $100 gift card

Winning prize for Arabic community with the most Wikipedia articles improved with photos:

  • US $50 gift card

Wiki Loves Africa prize categories

Winning prizes for the user with the most Wikipedia articles improved with images from Wiki Loves Africa. All WLA years are eligible... but the first prize will consider edits made to any language except English and French. More info and tracking here : Wiki Loves Africa 2021/WPWP

  • 1st prize – US $100 gift card
  • 1st to 3rd prizes – WLA souvenirs

To be eligible:

  1. you must add #WLA as a hashtag to your edit (as well as #WPWP)
  2. you must have registered your account before January 2021
  3. you must have made at least 300 mainspace edits to any language Wikipedia before 1st June 2021.