SCC Research Guides: Finding &amp; Using Images: Finding Images

Finding Images

You always want to make sure you have the appropriate permissions whenever you reuse an image that you did not create. Images (and other works) are automatically protected under copyright the moment it's done. Even images that are not marked with a copyright can be protected by copyright. In order to avoid any questions about whether you can use images, look for images that have an open license or are in the public domain.

Normally, even when you use this type of image, you'll need to do a couple of things:

Add an attribution statement with the creator, title, link, and license information for the work. Check the requirements of the image license to see specifically what the requirements are. This is for legal reasons under copyright law.
Cite the images to avoid plagiarism.
You'll also want to add alt text to images so that they can be understood by non-visual users.

Note: Most of this content was shared by Amy Hofer from Open Oregon Educational Resources. Please check OOER for the most recent version.

Recommend Sites for Open License/Public Domain Images

Wikimedia Commons
A media file repository making available public domain and freely-licensed educational media content (images, sound, and video clips). Note: you need to give credit to the original source (not Wikimedia Commons) when you use images (example: "Image provided by Virginia State Library").
Pixabay
All of the impages you will find in this repository can be reused, modified, and shared for free; more information about the Pixabay License.
Noun Project
Creative Commons licensed icons.
Unsplash
All of the images you will find in this repository can be reused, modified, and shared for free; more information about the Unsplash license. AllGo collects free plus-size stock photos in Unsplash.
Pexels
Free stock photos shared under the Pexel License.
PICNOI
Stock photo library of diverse multi-racial images licensed CC-BY.
Images of Empowerment
Photo library of women's activities from around the world licensed CC-BY-NC.
Disabled and Here
Photo collection featuring disabled Black, Indigenous, people of color (BIPOC) across the Pacific Northwest licensed CC-BY.
The Gender Spectrum Collectoin
Stock photo library featuring images of trans and non-binary models licensed CC-BY-NC-ND.
nappy
Photo library of Black and brown people licensed CC0.
American Education: Images of Teachers and Students in Action
Repository of original print-quality photos of real preK–12 students and teachers licensed CC-BY-NC.
Flickr
Use license dropdown menu in search results to limit your search to images with Creative Commons licenses. Flickr has special collections of openly licensed images that can help you represent the students in your classroom (example: #WOCinTech).
Google Images
General image search engine. *Note: Google does not maintain a library of images, instead it searches the web for images. This would not be a recommended source for education. From your search results, click on "Images" and then find the usage rights drop-down under search tools.
The Doodle Library
Creative Commons download options.

Finding & Using Images

Finding Images

Recommend Sites for Open License/Public Domain Images

Questions? Ask a Librarian