Why Legal is Important
Not everyone has the time, resources, or talent to make their own graphics. So for those of us who fall into this group, below is a list of some incredible tools that will help you locate millions of free images that can be used legally. You may not know that an artist who takes a photo or creates a graphic has the legal right to share or distribute copies of their work. This legal right is known as copyright, and permission must be granted by the artist to legally use the image.
It is important to note that there are some limits to copyright, such as the Fair Use guidelines (details at copyright.gov). Nonprofit educational purpose is probably the most common copyright exception. For example, students may use images for a class paper and instructors are in most cases allowed to use images for class instruction since it is for educational purposes. Just make sure to cite where you found it so you don’t plagiarize!
Related AIDS Images
"AIDS Poster Boy, Bobbi Campbell." AIDS, New York and the 1980s. Source: Londonist.com
"Famous Last Words." Source: NLM.gov
Historically Underrepresented Populations
Openly licensed photo collections specializing in historically underrepresented populations:
- The Gender Spectrum Collection"The Gender Spectrum Collection is a stock photo library featuring images of trans and non-binary models that go beyond the clichés. This collection aims to help media better represent members of these communities as people not necessarily defined by their gender identities—people with careers, relationships, talents, passions, and home lives." License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
- Nappy"Beautiful, high-res photos of black and brown people." Creative Commons Zero (CC0)
- PICNOIA coop of stock image photography. We have created a space where publishers, bloggers, website owners, marketers, designers, graphic artists, advertisers and the like can easily search and find diverse multi-racial images." License: No attribution required.
- #WOCinTechFree photos of women and non-binary people of color working in tech. License: CC-BY
Suggested Image Sites
- Bing ImagesA major search engine that rivals Google. This site like most major search engines can refine results by license type.
- Google ImagesMajor search engines such as Google can usually limit results to specific usage rights (e.g. free to use, share, or modify, even commercially). These limits are typically found under the advanced search option
Other Image Sites
Note: Always check the license for each image to find out if the work can be freely used and whether you need to attribute the creator.
- Flickr Creative CommonsWith over 55 million images, Flickr is one of the largest photo-sharing platforms around. Use the Advanced Search to find photos with a Creative Commons license.
- PixabayOver 1.5 million royalty-free professional stock photos and videos are shared by the Pixabay community.
- PexelsThis site offers hundreds of thousands of high quality professional-grade photos. All photos on Pexels are free for personal and commercial purposes, and each picture has been reviewed for high quality.
- Free ImagesBrowse through thousands of professional photos, some of which may require attributing the photographer.
- Stock VaultThis is a free community where photographers and artists share their own high quality photos and illustrations. There are thousands of high quality images that range from people, animals, plants, buildings, landscapes, textures, and even concepts.
- UnsplashSimilar to Pinterest, the images on Unsplash can be browsed by keyword on a single ever-scrolling page of photos. All of the 550,000+ images are free.
- Photo PinPhoto Pin is an image search engine for the Creative Commons, and also suggests high quality for-purchase images.
- Ancestry ImagesBesides genealogical info, Ancestry Images includes historical maps, images, and prints, most of which come from around the 1800s.
- Ever Stock PhotoOver 29 million free photos from various organizations such as NASA and the Library of Congress.
- ArtSTORIAP images in Artstor that can be used free of charge in scholarly publications.
- Embed images for Blogs and Social Media with Embed | Getty50 million free embeddable images.
- Flickr: British Library Public Domain ImagesOver 1 million images available.
- Library of Congress Digital CollectionsAccess online collections: view maps & photographs; read letters, diaries & newspapers; hear personal accounts of events; listen to sound recordings & watch historic films.
- Open Content Program | The GettyFree access to the Getty's digital resources.
- U.S. Government Photos and ImagesIncludes public domain images that can be used free of charge. Some include the Library of Congress, NASA, and the National Gallery of Art.
- Wikimedia CommonsFree media files (images, sounds and video).
HeLa Cells
HeLa Cells Cultured Electron. Source: Pixabay.com
Cell Cuture (HeLa cells) (26117) -- Anaphase, Metaphase. Source: Wikimedia.org
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Photomicrograph depicts HeLa Cells infected with Type-A Chlamydia trachomati. Source: Public Domainfiles.com
HeLa Cells infected with Bacteria Germ V. Source: Pixabay.com
HeLa Cells used as a control for certain experiments. In this fluorescent image, blue indicates the DNA inside the cell nucleas, and the red staining is cellular actin cytoskeleton. Image source: Flickr.com