Tips for Using Google Image Search

There is a good chance that you have used Google to search for images. Google has really improved their Image Search utility and added a number of features that have made my image searching much more powerful. Here are a few tips I found that work really well.

Standard Text

The classic method where you type in keywords Google uses to search images. A useful tip is to use the singular version of a keyword versus a plural. With the singular, you will also pick up the plural references too (ex ladder vs ladders).

Image URL

To the far right of the search field is a camera icon. Click it and a window opens up with some additional search options, one being image URL. Paste the URL for an image and it will find similar images that are all over the internet and websites that are hosting them.

Below is an example of image search results from a recent post we did on Marvel Tron. You can see the diversity of results including links to sites and other images.

Upload an Image

If you have an image on your computer, you can use this feature. Click the camera icon in the search field, then click the “Upload an image” link. It will bring up your file browser and you can select an image to search with.

Drag & Drop

This is the easiest way to search an image that you have on your computer. Be sure to have the Google Image Search page up, then just drag an image from your computer right to the search field and release.

Search for Image with Browser Extension

The easiest way to search images while browsing the web is to use one of the browser extensions for Google Chrome or Firefox.

After you have the browser extension installed, just right click on an image and select “Search Google with this image”. You can also change the extension settings so that the camera icon appears when you hover over an image. Then you will be able to simply click on the camera icon and search with that image.

You can see from the image below that sometimes you will even give results for a mobile app if the image is related to it.

SafeSearch for Google Images

Want to filter out adult or offensive images or content? You can adjust your SafeSearch settings by clicking the SafeSearch drop down and selecting a different setting, moderate filtering is the default. The video below details how SafeSearch works and what sorts of features it has.

Do you use any of these tips regularly? Do you have any additional tips that you use that we haven’t listed here? Leave us a comment if you do.