How to Cite a Picture or Image in MLA
Photograph – An image produced by a camera.
Citing a photograph or image displayed in a museum or institution (viewed in-person)
The citations below are based on information from the MLA Style Center.
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Creator’s Last Name, First Name. Image Title. Year Created, Museum/Institution, Location. |
| Example |
Cartier-Bresson, Henri. Juvisy, France. 1938, Museum of Modern Art, New York City. |
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| In-text Citations | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
(Creator’s Last Name) |
| Example |
(Cartier-Bresson) |
Citing a photograph or image from a museum or institution (viewed online)
Many museums have online collections of their work. The citations below are based on information from the MLA Style Center.
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Creator’s Last Name, First Name. Image Title. Year Created. Website Name, Numbers (if applicable), URL. |
| Examples |
Boudin, Eugene. On the Beach, Sunset. 1865. The Met, www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/438551. Gilpin, Laura. Terraced Houses, Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico. 1939. Library of Congress, no. LC-USZ62-102170, www.loc.gov/pictures/item/90716883/. |
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| In-text Citations | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
(Creator’s Last Name) |
| Example |
(Boudin) (Gilpin) |
Citing a digital image on a web page or online article
Digital Image – A picture that can be viewed electronically by a computer.
Here’s the standard structure for a digital image citation found on a website. It follows guidance found in the MLA Style Center.
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Image Creator’s Last Name, First Name. “Image Title.” Website Name, Day Month Year Published, URL. |
| Example |
de Jong, Sidsel. Photograph of Munch’s The Scream. “The Scream’ is Fading. New Research Reveals Why” by Sophie Haigney, 7 Feb. 2020. The New York Times, www.nytimes.com/2020/02/07/arts/design/the-scream-edvard-munch-science.html. |
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Image search: Do not cite the search engine (example: Google Images) where the image is found, but the website of the image the search engine indexes.
| In-text Citations | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
(Web page author’s Last Name) |
| Example | (de Jong) |
Citing a photograph from a book
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Image Creator’s Last, First M. Image Title. Year Created. Book Title, by Book Author’s First Last Name, Publisher, year published, p. page(s). |
| Example |
Ikemoto, Luna. Cat in Repose. 2017. Bodega Cat’s Adventure, by Wendy Prosser, Feline Press, 2020, p. 22. |
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| In-text Citations | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
(Creator’s Last Name Page #) |
| Example |
(Ikemoto 22) |
Citing a photograph you took
The photo would be considered as part of a “personal collection.” The example below follows guidance found in the MLA Style Center.
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Your Last Name, First Name. Image description or Image Title. Day Month Year taken. Author’s personal collection. |
| Example |
Doe, Jane. Tumbleweed Gulch. 3 Jan. 2019. Author’s personal collection.
Smith, John. Cats being fed. 11 Aug. 2001. Author’s personal collection. |
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| In-text Citations | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
(Your Last Name) |
| Example |
(Doe) (Smith) |
Citing a photograph from a database
| Works Cited | |
|---|---|
| Structure |
Creator’s Last Name, First Name. Photograph Title. Year Created. Database Name, Numbers (if applicable), URL. |
| Example |
Freed, Leonard. Holidaymaker Stuck in Traffic Jam. 1965. ARTstor, www.arstor.org. |
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Work Cited
MLA Handbook. 9th ed., Modern Language Association of America, 2021.
Updated April 26, 2021.
