Liaison Librarian
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Citing Images
Citing the images you use is always good practice! Some images will say that they are free to use, even commercially, as long as you give credit to the source. To site an image properly, follow the example below:
Artist's last name, artist’s initials. (Year). Title of work. Retrieved from {Name of database}.
Asking Permission
Sometimes an image will be listed as copyright protected with the owners contact information. If you really like the image, contact them and ask if you can use it! They will want to gather some information form you, including how you plan on using the image. They may even have a couple requirements of their own for you to do so, such as cite the source.
Just make sure that you receive something in writing from them, like an email, saying that it is ok to use the image. Keep this on file as long as you are using the image.
Finding healthcare, biomedical images and UVA logos?
Home
This page is meant to be a guide to help you find healthcare and biomedical images.
Below is a list of resources for teaching, presentations, and patient education. Some are copyright free, while others have usage agreements. See the descriptions following each link for where to find copyright information.
Subscription-based Image Resources
- Clinical Key Multimedia
A collection of searchable images and videos is available through the library's subscription to the Clinical Key database. To search for Images, select "Multimedia" as your search filter. - AccessMedicine
A collection of searchable images for educational purposes. Type your search term in the basic search bar, click search, then filter by "images" on the the left hand side of the screen.
Healthcare Images
- ASH Image Bank
The American Society of Hematology Image Bank is a publically-available, comprehensive collection of images relating to a wide range of hematologic topics. Non-commercial use only - The Cell Image Library
The American Society for Cell Biology provides this public repository of reviewed and annotated images, showcasing cell architecture, intracellular functionalities, and both normal and abnormal processes. Under each picture there will be a "Licensing" description to tell you how it may be used. - Digital Histology
Digital Histology was developed by the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology and the Office of Faculty Affairs, Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine and the ALT Lab at Virginia Commonwealth University. All images have a Creative Commons License. Please see the "Credits" section of this webpage to view the Creative Commons Lisense Terms. Non-commercial use only. - NCI Visuals Online
NCI Visuals Online provides images from the National Cancer Institute. They provide a mix of both copyright and non-copyright images. - NLM Digital Collections
The Images from the History of Medicine (IHM) database is a catalog of the prints and photographs collection of the National Library of Medicine (NLM). Each image will have a "Copyright" description to tell you if it is free to use. - Open-i Biomedical Images
Open-i service of the National Library of Medicine enables search and retrieval of abstracts and images (including charts, graphs, clinical images, etc.) from the open source literature, and biomedical image collections. You will need to check for copyright restrictions on the images you select. To do this click the image to bring up the detailed view. Under the picture, if you see in blue text "Copyright Policy- Open Access License" then you can use the image. If it says "Copyright Policy" then you can not use the image without first gaining permission from the owner. - Public Health Image Library (PHIL)
PHIL is an online database of images from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. You will need to check the images you have selected for copyright restrictions. To do this, Scroll to the bottom of the page of the image you have selected. There you will see in bold Copyright Restrictions: and it will say NONE or tell you what the restriction is for that image. - Virtual Microscopy Database
The VMD database images may be used for non-commercial educational purposes as outlined by the Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Creative Commons License. For more information on this license please visit: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ - Wellcome Collection
Wellcome Images are provided by the UK's Wellcome Trust, with themes ranging from medical and social history to contemporary healthcare and biomedical science. Within each image description there are small Copyright (CC) icons. Click on the icons to display the copyright information.
General Interest Images
- Artstor
Artstor is a non-profit organization with a mission to enhance scholarship and teaching through the use of digital images and media. Each picture escription will display a "Rights" description that will tell you if it is copyright restricted. - Google Advanced Image Seach
Google advanced search allows you to filter by "Usage Rights." After you have filled in your search criteria be sure to select "Creative Commons License" in the Usage Rights drop-down at the bottom of the page. You will need to review the Creative Commons License to be sure you are able to use the image for your purpose. - New York Public Library Public Domain images
Over 180,000 freely available images. - Pixabay Free Images
Pixabay Free Image gallery is website used to find and share images that are free of copyright. All images are released into the public domain. - Unsplash
Photographs of nature, buildings, people, animals, and more, free for you to use or adapt.
UVA Images and Logos
- University of Virginia Brand
The UVA official brand site has logos, templates and guidelines for use. - UVA Health System Brand
Health System Logos, PowerPoint Templates, and Photos of people and places are available for download from the Health System Marketing Communications Department's website, uvahealthbrand.com. For first-time users, click on the Request an Account link in the upper right and complete the information to register for the site.
