How to locate the images you want

The database is designed to locate images very quickly and easily. To make this possible every image has been tagged with the following information:

We have an ongoing program of scanning and preparing new images for quality reproduction. These images are progressively added to the database. To check which images have been added use the third search option (C) which displays images added recently.

Keywords linked to the images

Knowing which keywords work is a great help in locating the right images. We have provided a PDF file (1.3MB) containing a comprehensive listing of these keywords. There is also have a barebones listing on a HTML page (60KB) within this site. Both contain sorted keyword lists for:

• Every category of images
• Place and feature names
• Subjects by common name
• Animals and birds
• National Park names
• Keywords relating to time, light, color or weather
• Other descriptive keywords (like atmospheric, delicate, graphic, etc.)
• Master Keyword List

We recommend printing out this PDF as it makes an extremely useful reference.

Singular and plural keywords

If you search for the singular form of a word whose plural is the same, except for the s at the end, the database will locate both forms. If the two forms are different, as with calf /calves, winery/wineries, etc., you should specify the plural form as that's what we used in such instances.

Multiple keywords

You can enter two or more unrelated keywords, so long as you separate them with commas. However, where we have entered strings of words into the database, such as Alice Springs, Kakadu National Park, Great Ocean Road, wide open spaces, etc., you can enter these strings the same way, without commas. You'll locate all such examples in the Keyword PDF. If you're not sure about the commas, it doesn't hurt to use them anyway.

Part words and whole words

Sometimes your keyword searches return unexpected results, for example, if you enter the word oats you will get pictures of oats, but due to "computer logic" you'll get boats and goats, since all contain the letters o a t s. This quirk could be have been resolved, but the remedy would have introduced complications, so for simplicity sake we left it as is.

Some examples to get you started.

Suppose you're looking for images of rainforests in Queensland. Click on the category box and select rainforests from the dropdown menu, then on state and select Queensland. Now click Search. The system will display thumbnails of all rainforest images in that state. Your screen probably won't display them all at once, so you'll have to click Next Screen to see them all.

You might need shots taken in Tasmania, but the category isn't so important. By specifying the state you'll locate all matching images. Bear in mind that our high resolution scans are of such high quality you can easily crop a vertical section out of a horizontal image and still get very good reproduction.

You're looking for landscape images of Western Australia and would especially like to see those with spinifex in them. Select category Landscapes, state Western Australia and enter the keyword spinifex.

You're working on a project for a fertilizer company based in Victoria and need good rural images taken in that state. By selecting rural as the category and Victoria as the state you'll be shown a wide variety of rural scenes in Victoria. However, you might prefer to narrow the choice. If you enter keywords such as wheat fields, potatoes, dairying, irrigation, beef cattle, the search engine will focus specifically on those aspects of rural Victoria. If the state isn't so important you might prefer to leave that out of the search.

An ad campaign calls for a moody, emotive image, one in which the mood conveyed is more important than the actual subject. A search using only abstract keywords like calm, remote, rustic, soft, twilight, dramatic, moody, atmospheric, cool, wide open spaces, might locate just what you're after.

An adventure travel client needs strong images for a brochure and web site to promote her tour company. She wants to show specific Australian places and features. Since most of our images include their location in the keywords, entering words like Broome, Alice Springs, Kakadu National Park, Cradle Mountain, Ayers Rock, The Bungles, The Twelve Apostles, etc., will take you straight to those images.

Sorted lists of all keywords used in the database can be accessed from the Keywords PDF we've provided or from the Keywords page.