KEYWORD SEARCH:

Using the keyword search is by far the fastest way to find the images you are looking for. But knowing how to use the keyword search effectively helps even more. Our images typically have nearly 100 keywords per image. This can help you narrow your image selection down if you use it well or it can make it harder if you don't.

When you use just one word for a search, the results tend to be quite overwhelming. We suggest using more than one word to narrow your search. For instance, if you are looking for a photo of a lone flower in a field, if you search only for "flower" you will get photos of just flowers as well as flowers in a planter box in front of a building or a person holding a bouquet of flowers. To narrow this search we would suggest using "Flower but not building, but not people, but not animal.

You may also use a natural language complete sentence such as "woman in canoe with dog". This will translate to the search engine as "woman AND canoe AND dog".

Using Search Separators to Narrow your Keyword Search
Your best search results will happen when you use more than one keyword.

If you use keywords separated by "and" (e.g., man and fishing) your search will return only those images that contain both of the keywords "man" and "fishing". Therefore, no photos of women or photos without a person will show up.

If you use keywords separated by "or" (e.g., boating or fishing) your search will return images that contain either of the keywords "boat" or, "fishing".

If you use keywords separated by "but not" (e.g., fishing but not fly) your search will return only those images that contain the keyword fishing in which "fly" does not appear. So no fly fishing images will appear.

To really narrow your search use more keywords that will narrow the search. For instance: "man fly fishing in canoe and silhouette" will only give you images of just that, a man fly fishing with a canoe that is in silhouette. Where as "fly fishing in canoe but not silhouette" will give you images of men OR women fly fishing with a canoe but no silhouettes.

SEARCH BY CATEGORY

On the left side, use the drop-down list to search by category. Searching by category will give you a broad selection of subjects in that list. If you are searching by Category, please note that you are searching both rights-protected and royalty-free images. In order to distinguish the two, images have the RF & RP icons underneath them.

SEARCH BY IMAGE NUMBER

The standard image ID format on our website is a 16-character combination of letters, numbers and blank spaces.

• When searching by image number, you must enter it in this exact format or you will not find a match.
• Letters used in images IDs are not case-sensitive.

• Consult our more comprehensive Search Help section.
• Send us a Free Research Request and we'll do the searching for you.
• contact us by phone (800-487-4285 or 907-276-1343) or email.

SEARCH USING SIMPLE PHRASES

In the keyword box you can search by using simple phrases such as: "grizzly bear fishing in water" and it will bring up just that, bears that are fishing in water. The search engine will automatically use "and" between the keywords.

Using the THESAURUS keyword search is by far the most comprehensive way to find the images you are looking for. Our images typically have nearly 100 keywords per image. However, it is nearly impossible to include all keywords that any user might think of when looking for a photo. By using the thesaurus, you can search for a word and find similar words that might be even more relevant to your search and will facilitate finding your images.

	Start by entering any keyword in the "Quick Search" box at the top of the screen and hitting "GO!" You will see image results on the right side of the screen and two tabs on the left: "Image Thesaurus" and "Advanced Search." Click on the "Image Thesaurus" tab. A side frame with a list of keywords on the left side of the screen will appear. These words are similar in meaning or are related to the original search keyword.
		If you want to search for several of the words at once, check the box to the left of the word and click the button at the bottom of the list "show checked."This will do a "or" search and populate the search box at the top of the screen with your search. If you would like to search within your results, click on the "search within results" radio button directly beneath the Quick Search box and then click on any word in the Thesaurus. The Image Thesaurus provides you with multiple options for searching and may even give you new ideas or directions to go in your search!