LibGuides: Research 101: Images

Finding images

Resources for Finding Images for Your Project

NOTE

If this project is going anywhere but in a professor's desk drawer or hard drive, you need to use public domain or open access images to avoid violating copyright law. Most open access images these days are under a Creative Commons license. You could also contact the copyright holder of the image and ask permission to use it.

Public Domain, Open Access and/or Creative Commons Image Databases

Flickr Creative Commons Images
Flickr's Creative Commons portal.
Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Online Catalog
NASA
NASA's website offers access to many of their images, audio files, videos and other media, which are generally not copyrighted and freely available for use.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
As government images, almost all of the images in this collection are in the public domain, though the website states that you must credit NOAA if you use one of their images. They especially encourage educational use.
Pixabay
A site that provides free, public domain images that don't even require attribution. Unfortunately, it also offers Shutterstock images, which aren't free, but they are clearly set off.
U.S. Department of Agriculture Image Gallery
The United States Department of Agriculture maintains a database of images pertaining to their work and areas of purview. Because the images were mostly taken for the government, virtually all are in the public domain. Any images that are not in the public domain are marked as such.
Wikimedia Commons
This site offers fully searchable access to media, including images, sounds and videos, that has been uploaded by users, mostly for use on Wikipedia. Most of the content is available under some sort of Creative Commons license and licensing information is clearly provided at the bottom of each piece of media's individual page.

Google Images

Google Images

Google Images & Creative Commons

Not all images on Google Images are Creative Commons licensed, but you can limit your search results to only images available under a Creative Commons license.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Begin your search. Today we are entering "protest" into the search bar.
First, select "Tools," which is located below the search bar.
Next, select "Usage Rights." If an image has been licensed for reuse, it means you can use it. When an image has permission for modification, that means you can also make changes to it. Giving permission for noncommercial use means that it can't be used in anything that is trying to make money.
Lastly, select the magnifier icon to conduct your search. You now have a collection of images to use for your project!

Image 01: Screenshot of the Google Image search bar with protest entered.

Image 02: Screenshot of the same search bar with Tools and Usage Rights encircled.

Image 03: A final screenshot of the same search bar with the usage rights drop down menu opened and "Creative Commons licenses" and "Commercial & other licenses" encircled.

New York Public Library Image

NYPL Public Domain Collections: Free to Share & Reuse
The New York Public Library has over 180,000 digital images that you can use for free!

Image 01: The Bronx Auction, 1917