LibGuides: Theatre: Scenic Design


Library Research Guides

Image & Font Sources

Copyright Considerations

While Fair Use guidelines do allow for some reuse of copyright-protected materials within an academic/classroom context, if you plan on using the work of others in a public performance or publication (including on the web), you will need to seek out the permission of copyright holders or make sure to use images that are either in the Public Domain or that use Creative Commons licensing. See LITS' Copyright Research Guide for more information about Copyright, Fair Use, the Public Domain, and Creative Commons:

Image Sources

Google Images
Run a search on a keyword or words describing the kind of image you'd like to find. Use the Tools menu item to refine your search further by Size (image dimensions) and Usage Rights.
Compfight
This tool allows you to search for images in flickr that use Creative Commons licensing. The results always show several for-fee professional stock photos at the top. Ignore those and use the filters on the left side of the page to select "Creative Commons."

ARTstor This link opens in a new window
The Artstor Digital Library provides over 1.6 million digital images in the arts, architecture, humanities, and sciences with an accessible suite of software tools for teaching and research. You need to register (free for MHC community members) if you wish to download ArtStor images.
AP Newsroom This link opens in a new window
AP Newsroom contains breaking news, feature stories, photographs, graphics and audio clips produced by the AP’s network of award-winning journalists, who operate in more than 250 locations worldwide. Includes 170 years of news stories, 12 million historical and contemporary images and an extensive collection of audio clips.

Books and magazines - Find an interesting image in print? Scanners are located in the Library Information Commons and in the Dwight Hall MEWS. You can get help with scanning at the Technology Help Desk in the Info Commons and from the student media consultants in the Media Teaching Area at the MEWS.

Font Sources

Photoshop comes with many fonts already installed for your use. It is possible to install additional fonts, but only on your personal computer. All campus public and lab computers are frozen (meaning users can't make changes to the software installed) in order to ensure that they run consistently all year. If you have Photoshop on your personal computer and want to install additional fonts, you may find these tools useful:

DaFont
Searchable database of freeware, shareware, demo and public domain fonts. License information is given above the download button for each font, but make sure to check the font's Read Me file, too. Installation tips are available in the site's FAQ page.
WhatTheFont
See an interesting font and wonder what its name is? WhatTheFont allows you to upload an image of some text using the font in question and returns examples of fonts that best match the image.

Photoshop

Where to find it on campus

Photoshop CC (Creative Cloud) 2018 is installed on campus lab computers
Pick a version and stick to it! CC is not backwards compatible with CS6 or earlier versions of the software.

Where to buy it

MHC Software Hub
You can purchase the entire Adobe Creative Suite at a student discount for your own computer. Currently it costs $19.99 per month. Make sure your computer meets the system requirements for this software package before you consider buying it!

Getting Help

Online

LinkedInLearning is a library of video tutorials for learning software, creative and professional skills. Instructions for logging in using your MHC username and password can be found in the Online Training section of the LITS Workshops and Training web page. LinkedIn Learning has multiple courses on Photoshop as well as Illustrator.
Photoshop Tutorials Adobe's own series of Photoshop video tutorials with accompanying text instructions. These are also accessible via Photoshop's Help menu.
Google Photoshop is an extremely widely used program. Chances are if you're trying to do something in Photoshop someone else has not only also tried it already, but written instructions (or even made a video) and posted it on the web.

In person

MEWS Student Consultants can help you with multimedia editing, including using Photoshop. Visit them during staffed hours in the Dwight Hall MEWS.
Information Commons Technology Help Desk The Technology Consultants in the Library Information Commons can also help with Photoshop questions.