There is a growing library of reference material right here in Drawspace in the Irspirational Gallery. But there are also other sources that you can make use of when looking for inspiration or reference material for drawing.

Here are a few that I know of and use. Please add more to the list and share the information.

WetCanvas Reference Image Library

Morgue file

Deviant Art There are lots of resouces here but you have to sign up to access them fully. Its free.

FreeFoto

Art Morgue

Public Domain Images

Stock Xchg

There are lots more out there and they all vary in quality and terms of use. Make sure you read the fine print and acknowledge the contributer in any image that you use.

Enjoy

Good links Islander, Thanks.
Eric

Thank you so much IslanderNL for this tread i was gonna ask you about this one!

are thesse photos on thesse links copyright free at all???

UK, most of these sites don't have copyright on their images, but having said that I wouldn't lift them and put them on other sites. I'd say you can use them for your own use, to create drawings or paintings.

However, you should check the fine print in each site and see if acknowledgement is required to use an image; if the creator wants to know who is using it and for what, or if you do need permission.

Its always safer to ask first and always quote your source when using the image as a reference for a drawing.

Thanks!

any images i post will be ones I have taken myself to clear myself from the copyright thing .

Here is another source where the photographer is exceedingly generous. As Jeanette said, always read the terms & give credit where credit is due. Oh, & if they have a home page, be sure to link to that as web masters change pages around on a regular basis. The actual photo page may get moved and the link lost otherwise.

http://pdphoto.org/

And this lady is an internet friend and has some pretty nice photos with very few strings attached:

http://home.comcast.net/~lauras-here/index.html

J

Here is another site I've found but, to tell the truth, I found the terms of use a little confusing. You all can check it out and decide for yourselves whether to use the images or not. It would be a good resource for checking colors or general forms if nothing else.

http://www.imagetemple.com/

Thanks for the additional link J-Lynn. Yes the terms of reference are a bit wordy and really don't tell me a lot.

The photos are high quality but numbers are limited.

here is my reference photo, what do you think jeanette do you think this will be good? i got it from the wetcanvas reference library. and i am THINKING of doing the circlular method. not sure yet though. and i did the field trip. armin (i think thats the name of the first field trip) is wonderful. i dont think there is a word to decribe the art. it looks so real. wow is all i could say.
Lori

That looks like a great reference Lori. Could you post it in the Portrait thread please? Remember to quote where you got it and the name of the photographer too.

Just a quick note on the Stock Xchg - I've noticed that there are no longer many (if any) "no restriction" photos so be sure to read their terms of use again.

J

J-Lynn - I have recently downloaded a handful of pics from Stock Exchange and you are right, however, I will note that I contacted the owners of the pics and all but one has given permission to use their photos! I would also note, that I was contacted fairly promptly by all but one.

The same applies to morgue file

J-Lynn

Thanks for the links

Hi all.

Here is a great resource with tons of photographs in many categories!
The photographs mostly are very large (VERY large... I often have to minimize it for 1200x900 pixels )
and there is no copyright.

But it is in german language and you have to register.
I think it is not so difficult to register and please feel free to ask me for help.

Martina - I think you forgot the link hun....?

*loooooool* Yes I did. So sorry!

Here it is: Tons of photographs

Thanks!! I just checked it out quickly and there are a lot of amazing photos there! Lots of inspiration for us just starting out. Thanks again!!

This is a website with a lot of reference images.

http://wp.li.ru/

Wow...there are a lot there...are they free to use?

I just saw this question. I assume we can use them as practice. I am also sure they are copyright protected against all other uses.

http://www.fotosearch.com has a ton of stuff too.

As with all photos, if you want to use them as something you'll post online or potentially sell, a simple email to the owner works wonders. I haven't been refused permission yet.

I originally posted this in the General Discussion thread. It was suggested I re-post it here. So….here it is…

“I was surfing the internet for photos from the twenties. Originally, I was looking for photos from the great depression. That era was intriguing. The looks on people’s faces reflected what a hard time it was. Anyway….I came across this site Doctormacro.com. It has some nice photos of classic actors and actresses. The photo file sizes of these are a decent size and the photos have great lighting. I just wanted to share this discovery with members who may be looking for a challenge”.