Citing Images
When you're writing about an image or multimedia piece in a paper or presentation, you should provide the following pieces of information in the caption and in the bibliography...if you have a list of works of art cited:
- creator(s)
- title
- year(s) of creation
- materials or format
- current owner (such as a museum or private owner), if applicable
- address of the Web site where you found it if you did not see it in person
Refer to Chicago Manual Style 18th ed. 14.133: Citing paintings, photographs, and sculpture. It calls for: artist, a title (in italics) or a description, and a date of creation or completion, followed by information about the medium and the location of the work. To help readers locate the item, a museum accession number may be included; for works consulted online, add a URL.
That's for the first time you mention it in the text; just the creator and title thereafter.
Examples for how to cite an image using the Chicago Style, from Simon Fraser University
Chicago Style Citations
The Chicago Manual of Style, 18th Edition (PRINT) by Call Number: Olin Library Reference (Non-Circulating) Z253 .C453 U558 2024ISBN: 9780226817972Publication Date: 2024-09-19- Chicago Manual of Style OnlineCall Number: OnlineThe Chicago Manual of Style Online is completely searchable and easy to use, providing quick answers to your style and editing questions. The Q&A content is fully searchable along with the content of The Chicago Manual of Style. The Chicago Manual of Style Online also provides convenient Tools, such as sample forms, letters, and style sheets.
- Purdue Online Writing Lab gives excellent examples (for footnotes/endnotes and bibliographies) on how to cite using the Chicago citation style: books, periodicals, web sources, film & television, and much more.
- Examples for how to cite other formats in Chicago Style, Notes & Bibliography
Note that in CMOS 18, a place of publication is no longer required in book citations - Cornell's Citation Help pages
Please note that another significant change in Chicago Manual of Style 18 is that the page range for a chapter in a book is no longer required in bibliography entries. In notes, however, cite specific pages as applicable.
Example:
Note
1. Sylvia Wynter, “Rethinking ‘Aesthetics’: Notes towards a Deciphering Practice,” in Ex-iles: Essays on Caribbean Cinema, ed. Mbye B. Cham (Trenton, NJ: Africa World Press, 1992), 258.
Bibliography entry
Wynter, Sylvia. “Rethinking ‘Aesthetics’: Notes towards a Deciphering Practice.” In Ex-iles: Essays on Caribbean Cinema, edited by Mbye B. Cham. Africa World Press, 1992.
Managing Information
Use citation management/PDF organizing software to save time and energy when organizing and citing research materials.
The library has compiled a list of citation management tools, including Zotero and ZoteroBib. For advice choosing a citation manager or managing information, contact us for a consultation!
​Zotero is a free, open sourced, web-based tool for managing citation, organizing PDF's and creating bibliographies. It is a downloadable software program designed for humanities and social sciences research. The Library offers workshops to teach you how to use it. If there are no upcoming workshops, request a consultation using the link above.
ZoteroBib is a free, quick and easy online bibliography and citation maker that saves time and trouble. Add sources using the ZoteroBib search box. Then copy and paste the complete bibliography (or footnotes or in-text citations) into your paper in the citation style of your choice. (As great as ZoteroBib is, it isn't perfect. Check your citations carefully using citation style guides or ask a librarian for assistance.)
