Google Image Search and Digital Asset Management

Photographers, do you suspect that some of images are being used illegally on the internet? Do you know how to find out? There are several commercial tools and digital ID systems that can help identify your images across the net. However, the clever folks at Google have a free solution that can get you started in your search. The results are interesting.

To try this, go to Google Image Search in any browser. There you will see a small camera in the right hand side of the search bar. (Figure 1)


After you click the camera you will be presented with a “Search by image” box (Figure 2). Here you want to select “Upload Image.” Clicking this link will open a “File Open” Dialog where you can then select one of your photographs by clicking the “Choose File” button (Figure 3)


After  you select a file, Google will upload it and then begin searching on the data from within your image file itself. This search looks for images across the internet that Google has indexed that have a similar data pattern. If Google has indexed a image file that is similar to yours it will show up with a series of images, the web site they are located on and provide links to those images. (Figure 4)


If Google doesn’t have any results, this is a good thing. While this solution isn’t a replacement for proper Digital Asset Management, it’s a simple start and worth playing with. In checking my top images I managed to find two that were on sites where permission had not been obtained prior to using the image.  If you find any of your images used on another site without your permission (Figure 4) there are several things you can do.

There is a great blog post from aphotoeditor.com that covers this topic very well. I encourage everyone to take a look. Another great site for photography legal matters is PhotoAttorney.com

Finally, the Photoshelter blog has an great article on Digital Asset Management and the Professional Photographer that discusses (DAM) in detail as it pertains to photographers and has more insight into tools that you can use. I hope this quick post helps a bit. If you find any new or important information that pertains to DAM and its impact on photographers please leave a comment or post a link. Protecting our digital rights is a very important aspect of our business and craft.


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