FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Registration & Using the Lightbox/Shopping Cart

SciSource_DA5826.jpg

 

Licensing & Pricing

 

General Questions

REGISTRATION AND USING THE LIGHTBOX/SHOPPING CART

Registration Form and Benefits
There are many benefits to registering with Photo Researchers. Registration takes less than a minute and will enable you to save and manage your light boxes, as well as subscribe to updates about new collections and services. It is also the first step towards approval for a hi-res download account.

Note: You will not be asked for any financial information to register. Click here to register.

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Registration status & password
If you are unsure whether you have registered with us already, go to the registration page . Upon filling in your email address and clicking submit, you'll either be brought to a status page if you have already registered, or to the registration form if you have not.

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Saving lightboxes.
If you are registered and have logged in, the lightboxes you create will be automatically saved. They will be available the next time you visit our site and sign in. If you don't wish to register with us, you can create one lightbox and email it to yourself or another email address in order to save it.  If you do not register and do not email your lightbox, it will be deleted once you leave our site.

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Viewing your current lightbox.
To view your active lightbox, simply click on "Active Lightbox" at the top of the page.

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Emailing lightboxes.
On the left-hand side of the lightbox page is an email form; once you fill it out and submit it, the recipients will receive a link to the current lightbox. To send to more than one recipient, click [+]Add Recipient.  Any changes made to your lightbox after sending will not appear in the lightbox the recipients receive.

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Creating new lightboxes.

At the top of any search page, search result page or lightbox page you will see a tab labeled "Lightbox Manager". If you hover your cursor over it, a "Create Lightbox" link will appear. Click it, enter a name for the lightbox, click submit and your new lightbox will be created, and become the “active lightbox”. You can also create a lightbox from the Lightbox Manager tab. On the left side of the page you will find a "Create Lightbox" box. Type in a name and click submit to create a new lightbox and make it active. You can also always hover over the "active lightbox" tab to access a pull down menu of all your lightboxes, and select "Create Lightbox" from there.

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Viewing all your lightboxes.
To view all of your current lightboxes on one page, click the Lightbox Manager tab at the top of any search results page. If you are on the home page, click "Log In". Once your are Logged in, the Lightbox Manager will display, showing you all your lightboxes with small previews of each.

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Deleting one of your lightboxes.
To delete your active lightbox, go to the "E-Lightbox Information" box in the upper right hand portion of the lightbox page, and select "Delete Lightbox" from the list of links. If you wish to delete multiple lightboxes click on the "Lightbox Manager" link in the "E-Lightbox Information" box. With each lightbox listed, you will see an option to delete.

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Sorting images in the lightbox.
By default, images in your lightbox are displayed in the order they were placed into the lightbox. If you wish to reorder them in the lightbox, select "Sort Lightbox" from the "E-Lightbox Information" box in the upper right-hand portion of the Lightbox page. A box will pop up with small thumbnails of the images in your lightbox. Reorder the images by dragging and dropping the thumbnails; when you close the box, the new order will be saved. Note: It is recommended that you only sort lightboxes with less than 100 images--larger lightboxes may not sort correctly. You can also select "Sort Images" for any lightbox from the "Lightbox Manager" page.

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Copying images from one lightbox to another.
Sometimes you may wish to add images from one lightbox to another. First, from the pulldown menu in the upper right-hand corner, select the lightbox to which you wish to add images, or create a new lightbox. Now go to "Lightbox Manager" and click on the "View Images" link for the lightbox from which you wish to copy images. When the images appear you will see that under each image you have the option of "add to lightbox". If clicked, it will add the image to your current, active lightbox selected in step one (and displayed in the upper right corner of the page). Note: Adding an image to another lightbox will not delete it from the lightbox it is being copied from.

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Keyword search tips.
You can search by image number (e.g. BN1519) or keyword.

When using keywords, remember that:

*To exclude images from your search, use the minus sign ("-") or the word "NOT". For example, to search for images that depict dogs but not puppies, enter "dog NOT puppy" or "dog -puppy".

*The search engine uses boolean logic and by default all searches are "AND" searches, meaning the resulting images will contain ALL search terms queried. To search for images with ANY of the keywords, separate them with OR: searching "cat OR dog" will pull up images that either have a cat or a dog in them, or have both.

*By this logic, if you are looking for white cats, but not medical cat scans in black & white, you would enter "white cat NOT scan".

*Use parentheses to further refine your search. For example, if you want white cats and white dogs, enter "white (cat OR dog)". If you enter "white cat OR dog" without parentheses, the search returns white cats and dogs of any color.

*Use quotation marks to search for specific phrases such as "wild cat", "college student", or "Easter Island". Searching without quotes will bring up any images that include both words in its keyword list, but not necessarily the phrase. So a search for Easter Island that is NOT enclosed in quotation marks could bring up images of an Easter celebration on Long Island as well as pictures of Easter Island. You can also refine such searches by combining the quoted phrase with whatever you don't want to see. For example, if you want big cats but not lions, enter "big cat" -lion.

*From the home page you can now restrict your searches to Rights Managed or Royalty Free images (the default search will look for both types); there is also a check box to exclude medical images. Note that these choices are in place only for the current search; you must return to the home page if you wish to perform a new search for only royalty free or rights-managed images at the current time.

Please feel free to contact our researchers if you need help with a search!

 

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Now thatI have an account with Science Source, how do I download a hi-res image file.
You must be logged in to be able to download high resolution images. Under the thumbnail of each image in your lightbox or on the search results page, you will see a link to "download image". This option also appears on the "preview" page (the window which opens when you click on an image to enlarge it). Clicking "Download Image" will open a window prompting you for information about usage of the image. When you submit the completed form, a download link will appear. At the present time, this process must be repeated for each high res download.

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TOPICS RELATED TO LICENSING & PRICING

Applying for a hi-res download account
You must first register and establish an account in good standing before you can down load hi resolution images directly from our site. The first step is to register by clicking on the link below.

Click here to register.

Once you have registered, you can license our content by e-procurement 24/7. To buy on account at a later date, email our sales department or call us at 800-833-9033 or 212-758-3420 to apply for a download account. Your download account will allow you to download high res images directly from our site. You will be billed only for images that you intend to use.

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How can I receive a hi-res image file now!
If you are a new buyer or a registered customer without a download account, you can pay the licensing fee for the image using a major credit card and we will then email you the high resolution file or place it on an FTP site for download. Call 800-833-9033 or 212-758-3420 or email us to get started. If it is outside of our normal business hours we will get back to you as soon as possible the next business day.

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Do you supply royalty free images?
Yes, we offer over 6,000 RF images on the Photo Researchers’ site, and that number continues to grow.

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How can I get pricing information?
RIGHTS MANAGED PRICING (RM)
From the search results page, click "get pricing" below the thumbnail, or from the preview window click "View pricing for this image" in order to open our easy-to-use pricing calculator. Pricing is based on usage parameters such as:

Reproduction size (1/4 page, 1/2 page, full page).
Print run or circulation.
Placement (cover or inside).

Once you have specified the necessary parameters, a price will appear below the image. If you are unable to match the usage selections to your job, please feel free to contact us to discuss pricing your project.

Rights Managed (RM) images offer the greatest pricing flexibility, as the reproduction fee depends specifically upon how the image is used. It also gives you the option of requesting exclusivity (for an additional fee). Exclusivity means that images you purchase may not appear elsewhere within a specified market. This is important when selecting images for corporate branding or other high-profile use. We can only offer exclusivity on rights-managed images

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What are the benefits of Rights Managed images?
Rights Managed (RM) images offer the greatest pricing flexibility, as the reproduction fee depends specifically upon how the image is used. It also gives you the option of requesting exclusivity (for an additional fee). Exclusivity means that images you purchase may not appear elsewhere within a specified market. This is important when selecting images for corporate branding or other high-profile use. We can only offer exclusivity on rights-managed images.

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Are unlimited and/or exclusive rights to an image available?
Yes, they are for many Rights Managed images. We can quote reproduction rights for any combination of exclusivity whether it be for a period of time, for a specific industry, territory, or media or for a complete "buy out" (any and all purposes in perpetuity). Just contact your sales representative.

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How do I get pricing for Royalty Free (RF) images?
RF (Royalty Free) pricing is based on the size you need for reproduction.
As with RM images, click "get pricing" below the thumbnail on the search results page, or from the preview window click "View pricing for this image" in order to open our easy-to-use pricing calculator.

There is no pricing flexibility for RF (Royalty Free) and exclusivity is not available.

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I have seen a Royalty Free image on the site of an agent or photographer who you represent but the image is on your site as Rights Managed. Can I license it as either Rights Managed or Royalty Free?
No, you would have to license it as it is offered on our site; there are various reasons why there may be a discrepancy between our site and the photographer's or agent's site, but in nearly all cases, we can only license the image as it appears on our site.

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I have licensed an image in the past that’s Rights Managed and it is now available as Royalty Free; can I now license it as Royalty Free?
Yes, you may re-license it as RF. Some editorial buyers may find it MORE economical to renew or extend the initial rights purchased for an image. We would advise you to speak with a Photo Researchers representative to see what type of license would be most appropriate for your job.

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When is a release required?
Model releases are only required if the subject matter includes a recognizable person and the image is used in connection with a COMMERCIAL rather than EDITORIAL purpose. Images without people or distinctive property can be used without a release for commerical or editorial purposes.

COMMERCIAL: Commercial purpose includes the use of an image to sell or promote goods and/or services or if the image is incorporated as part of commercial merchandise. It is your responsibility to determine if your use requires permission or not.

EDITORIAL: Editorial purpose includes the use of an image to illustrate a subject that is newsworthy or of interest to the public.

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GENERAL QUESTIONS

Do you sell prints?
Yes! We sell high quality prints at Fine Art America. We have a wide variety of prints available online now. If you do not find what you are looking for, you can request a print be made of an image from our site by sending us an email or calling us at 800-833-9033. To view prints currently online click here.

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Do you license video footage?
Yes! Our Science Source and Nature Source divisions have recently begun marketing video footage, and our collection is rapidly expanding. Please contact us for more information.

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Do you only have science and medical images?
No. Along with our world-famous collection of scientific and medical imagery, we also have one of the largest collections of wildlife, landscape and nature photography as well as files on education, lifestyles, business, world culture and travel. Begin a search for images now.

You can also view a collection of our most popular topics and images.

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What other methods of image delivery are available other than hi-res download?
We recommend you set up a download account with us. If you do not have a download account, we can deliver digital images by the following methods:

1) E-mail: we can email your high resolution image to you as a jpeg. Please let us know if you have any size limits for attachments that would block receipt of the email.

2) FTP: For multiple images or very large files, we can place the images on our FTP server and send you a download link. Note: some corporate firewalls block FTP; please contact your IT manager if you have a problem with FTP access. Images placed on our FTP server will be available for a 2 week period after the link is sent.

3)Shipping: Digital files can be placed on a CD or DVD and shipped to you via US Mail or UPS Surface at our expense; we can also ship disks by the courier of your choice if you provide an account number. We will also package disks for messenger pickup if you are in New York City.

4)Web site: You may use the thumbnails on our web site as well as the larger preview size for comp purposes only.

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Do you do free Research?
No time to search? Can't find the image you need on our site? Need to see a broader selection? Just run out of time and ideas? Whatever the reason, call, email or fax us. Our staff can help you find the right image for your job.

Along with over 300,000 images online, we have well over 200,000 images in transparency and print format ready to be scanned on demand. Our research team will email you a custom lightbox for your project. All you have to do is review and select!

Our offices are open Monday through Friday, from 9AM to 6PM EST. So call, email or fax your request now!

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What file format and caption information are in the hi-res downloads?
The hi-res download files are high quality JPEGs. Each image has an embedded IPTC caption. The following information is provided:

  • Caption
  • Copyright
  • Keywords
  • Credit
  • Image ID Number

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Is your content available outside of the U.S. & Canada?
Yes, we have partners representing our content in over 40 countries worldwide. If you are outside of the United States, please be sure that you have set your country so that you are only seeing images available to you in the search results. If you wish to use a credit card to license our content for commercial use or to buy a personal print, please contact us. We accept Visa, MasterCard and American Express.

For all non-credit car transitions outside of the U.S. or Canada, please contact our representative in your country by viewing our roster of International Partners.

Thank you for loving our images!

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