Guides: North Metropolitan TAFE Library: Finding & Using CC Images

Websites for Finding Creative Commons (CC) Images

Use CC licenced images wherever possible as they are free and easy to use. Listed below are CC licenced image repositories:

Burst Find free stock photos available under the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
Clker.com An online sharing service where users share free CC0 public domain vector cliparts.
CSIRO Science Image Library Contains science and nature images that are free to download under a CC licence.
Encyclopedia of Life Contains images depicting life on Earth. Most content is available for re-use under a CC licence.
Europeana Digital resources of Europe’s museums, libraries and archives. Not all the works are openly licenced so check for usage rights.
Negative Space A free stock photo website enabling photographers to gain exposure for their work by sharing their images under the CC0 licence.
Openclipart All clipart on this site is available under the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
Pexels Photos are licenced under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence for personal and commercial use. You may modify, copy and distribute the photos without seeking permission.
Pixabay All pictures are published under Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
StockSnap.io Features an easy-to-use search function and a huge collection of high-quality images released under Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
Stock Up Each photo shows the licence when you hover over it. Most are Creative Commons Zero (CC0), some are public domain.
Stockvault Provides access to photographs that can be used for personal and non-commercial design projects. They are available under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
Unsplash All photos are licenced under the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) licence.
Wikimedia Commons Provides images licenced under Creative Commons licences so are not subject to copyright restrictions.

Search Tools for Finding Creative Commons (CC) Images

Search for CC images using these search tools:

Openverse (CC Search) This is the main search tool for CC licenced materials. It allows easy and quick access to content that can be shared, used and remixed.
Flickr Advanced Search Type keywords into the search box. From the drop-down menu under "Any licence", choose "All creative commons".
Flickr CC Portal Flickr users have chosen to offer their work under a Creative Commons licence. You can browse or search through content under each type of licence.
Google Advanced Image Search Enter keywords in the search box. Scroll down to narrow your results to "usage rights", and choose "free to use and share".

Attributing Creative Commons (CC) Images

You should:

Provide the title of the image
Credit the creator or photographer
Provide the URL as text, or hyperlink the title to where the image is hosted
Indicate the type of CC licence it is available under and link to that licence

You can use:

The licence name in full e.g. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence
The abbreviated form of the licence e.g. CC BY 4.0
The licence button e.g.

Creative Commons Buttons & Icons Downloads

Search Creative Commons (CC)

Click on the Openverse link below to search for free images with easy attribution.

Image by Creative Commons under a CC BY 4.0 licence

Creative Commons Information Pack for Teachers & Students The pack explains what CC is, how to find CC material and the best way to attribute CC material.
About the CC Licences Fact sheets about the licences, including 'Creative Commons Licences Explained'.
Openverse (CC Search) This is the main search tool for CC licenced materials. It allows easy and quick access to content that can be shared, used and remixed.

Examples of Images & Attributions

Image from Flickr Advanced Search

Mt Fuji by Skyseeker from Flickr CC BY 2.0

Image from Compfight

Blossoms on Capitol Hill by John Brighenti from Flickr via Compfight CC BY 2.0

Image from Burst

Cherry Blossoms on Road to Temple by Marvin Laput Tenepre from Burst CC0 1.0

Image from CC Search Tool

"geisha"by Kate Nevens is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Image from Pexels

Woman Wearing a Kimono Holding Umbrella by Evgeny Tchebotarev from Pexels CC0 1.0

Image from CC Search Tool

"Japanese Garden 2" by Richard in Regina CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Image from Unsplash

Kyoto, Japan by Sorasak from Unsplash CC0 1.0

Websites for Finding Free Images (Not CC Licenced Images)

When using images from stock image libraries and freely available images from the Internet, always check the terms and conditions of each site for copyright and attribution requirements.

Flaticon The licence allows you to use for free Flaticon contents as long as they are attributed to their author.
Gratisography Offers copyright-free photos that cannot be found elsewhere. Ryan McGuire an artist, designer, and photographer founded the site and provided all its photos.
Morguefile Morguefile serves as a platform for community-based free photo exchange.
Pics4Learning Free, copyright-friendly images for education.