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Images

Find images and learn how to properly use them

Different Types of Materials

Finding Images 

There are a number of ways to access images for free from the internet. Please see the Open Access Sources to find images for free. Information is available here on how to find and use images from databases.

Citing & Ethical Use of Images 

General Advice: Keep it Legal 

Read the "fine print" to be sure how to use an image.

Good sources for "public use" images are Creative Commons and Compfight.  Read the fine print there too.

Remember that images from our subscription databases are meant for educational use on our campus:

  • Term papers
  • Classroom presentations
  • Avoid public use such as blogs, Facebook, etc. 

Find more information on the library's Open Educational Resources guide.

Cite Images in Papers

Database Image Citations - Ebsco image search APA Citation example:

  • Artist lastname, first initial. (Date of work). Title or caption. Publication Place: Retrieved date from database name
    • Hewitt, C. (1955). A Day With Salvador Dali. Spain: Retrieved April 5, 2017 from Ebsco image database

More advice from Ebsco on How to Cite Images in various citation format

Print Image Citation

  • Name of artist, Name of item in italics [Art Reproduction]. Name of Source in Italics Volume Number. (Publication Date):Issue Number.

    • Voulkos, Peter. Sculpture From A Stacked Clay Form [Art Reproduction]. Ceramics Monthly 35.(1987): 43.

If the item is not named you could describe it, such as Teapot [Art Reproduction]

Website Image Citations - should include as many of these elements as possible: 

  • Artist. Title of Work. Date of Work. Image Source. Database/Web Site. Date Accessed. URL (optional)

Cite Images in Presentations

Creative Commons Image Example

photo

The image above is "later that day..." by  Paul Bica on flickr and reproduced under Creative Commons 2.0   http://www.flickr.com/photos/dexxus/3011841060/

Many Creative Commons images can be used freely with attribution given to the author & source.  Here are more best practices. 

Creative Commons License 

Creative Commons (CC) is a non-profit organization devoted to expanding the range of creative works available for others to use, build upon and share. 

Good sources for "public use" images are Creative Commons and Compfight.  Read the fine print there too.

Please click here for more information on CC licenses. 

The American Chemical Society's Scholarly Communication guide has information on best practices for using previous graphics and data.

Many times internet searches yield grey literature such as conference proceedings, government reports, and theses or dissertations. Even though they appear to be websites, these sources can be cited as documents. Additionally, poster presentations you produce may be discovered and used by others, hence proper citation is needed. Here is more information on how to properly cite poster presentations from UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences.