LibGuides: Finding &amp; Using Images in Research: Finding Images

Introduction

There are great deal of images on the internet - and it's overwhelming! Before you start your search, think about:

What type of visual evidence will help support the claims in my paper or project?
How will the image help my reader better understand my topic or argument?
How will I incorporate analysis of the image into my work?

When using an image, do your due diligence to find its source so you can properly credit the maker in your work. This may entail some sleuthing if the image you found is on social media or reposted from somewhere else on a website.

Instead of first turning to Google Images, here are some good places to start your search for high-quality images that are okay to use for educational purposes:

Digital Public Library of America

Digital Public Library of America
Best for: Photographs, maps, documents, and artifacts related to U.S. history.

James H. Karales. Martin Luther King, Jr. 1962. Photograph. Digital Public Library of America.

Library of Congress

Library of Congress Digital Collections
Photographs, maps, objects, prints, audiovisual materials, and more with a primary focus on American history and culture.

H.R. Page & Co, and Burlington & Quincy Railroad Company Chicago. Chicago to San Francisco via the Burlington Route.1879. Map. The Library of Congress.

Newportal

Newportal
A collection of images, documents, and objects from cultural institutions in Newport, including the Newport Historical Society.

Charles Frederick Worth. Lady's ball gown. c. 1890. Newportal.

JSTOR/ARTSOR Images

JSTOR/ARTSTOR Images
Wide range of archival images for academic use, including JSTOR's ARTSTOR collection.

March To Impeach Nixon. 1974. Courtesy of the Richard F. Brush Art Gallery. JSTOR.

J. Paul Getty Museum

J. Paul Getty Museum
Strong emphasis on ancient art of the Classical world, includes European and American art from all time periods.

Unknown artist/maker. Bust of a Woman. c. A.D. 130. Marble. Getty Museum.

British Museum

The British Museum
Best for: Art and artifacts relating to Europe and Asia from ancient times to the present day. The collection is wide-ranging and also includes images from all corners of the globe.

Gold belt buckle, Sutton Hoo Ship Burial. c. early 7th century. Gold, niello. The British Museum.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

Tripod incense burner with lid. China. Early 15th century, Ming dynasty (1368–1644). Cloisonné and champlevé enamel. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/666573. Accessed April 17, 2025.

Europeana

Europeana
Image from cultural heritage institutions and museums in Europe and the world.

A Levite sacrificing. c. 1275-1300. KB, National Library of the Netherlands, Europeana. https://www.europeana.eu/en/item/9200122/BibliographicResource_1000056126711

Smithsonian Open Access

Smithsonian Open Access
Access to more than 3.9 million 2D and 3D digital items from the Smithsonian art, history, and science collections. This includes images and data from across the Smithsonian’s 19 museums, nine research centers, libraries, archives, and the National Zoo.

William Bradford. Whaler Off the Vineyard--Outward Bound. 1859. Oil on fiberboard. Courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Smithsonian Collections Search, https://www.si.edu/object/whaler-vineyard-outward-bound:saam_1978.72. Accessed April 17, 2025.

NASA Image & Video Library

NASA Images
An intergalactic media collection of images and videos from NASA.

Dumbell Nebula. 2011. NASA Images, https://images.nasa.gov/details/PIA14417.

National Institute of General Medical Sciences Image & Video Gallery

NIGMS Image & Video Library
This is a searchable collection of scientific photos, illustrations, and videos. The images and videos in this gallery are licensed under Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial ShareAlike 3.0.

CRISPR Illustration Frame 2. National Institute of General Medical Sciences, https://images.nigms.nih.gov/pages/DetailPage.aspx?imageid2=6486#.

NOAA Digital Collections

NOAA Digital Collections
The NOAA Digital Library collections reflect NOAA’s broad mission of advancing science “from the bottom of the ocean to the surface of the sun.”

A bobtail squid. NOAA OKEANOS EXPLORER Program; Our Deepwater Backyard. 2014. NOAA Digital Collections, https://www.noaa.gov/digital-collections/collections/4587/item?page=1.

Wikimedia Commons

Wikimedia Commons
90 million contemporary and historical images that are free to use. This is a great place to look for portraits, scientific images, contemporary images, or stock photographs.

Jose María Ligero Loarte. Old town of Buitrago del Lozoya (Community of Madrid, central Spain) from the northwest and Lozoya river. 2021. Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Reflejo_del_Casco_Antiguo_--_2021_--_Buitrago_del_Lozoya,_Madrid,_Espa%C3%B1a_01.jpg.

Finding & Using Images in Research

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