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Find Sound, Images, & Video

Resources to find royalty-free, open source, public domain and creative common resources that are free to use!

Image & Video Resources at MSU (requires NetID)

Online Image & Video Resources (MSU NetID not needed)

Google Images Search select Tools, then Usage Rights, then Creative Commons

Citing Image Sources

Generally, the following information, when available, should be included in your citation:

  • Photographer, artist, or creator's name
  • Title of the work
  • Date created
  • Repository, museum, or owner
  • City or Country of origin
  • Access date and web site address (URL)

Copyright Terminology

Copyright: A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. 

It is easy to find and download images from the Web. However, your use of these digital images downloaded from the Web or scanned from a print source may be restricted by copyright.

The Digital Image Rights Computator can help you figure out whether or not you can legally use an image.


Creative Commons LicensesCreative Commons is a non-profit organization that has developed a standardized ways for creators to determine which rights they reserve and which ones they waive. Even though you do not need to obtain permission to use these images, they still require attribution (citation) when they are used.

creative commons licenses explained

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Creative Commons Licenses explained, at a glance" by Reed Library (CC-BY-SA)


Public DomainCreative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds the exclusive rights, anyone can legally use or reference those works without permission.