To cite an image in APA style (7th edition), follow these key steps:
Reference List Entry for an Image
Include the following elements in this order:
- Author's last name, initials (if known)
- Year of creation (in parentheses)
- Title of the image in italics
- Description of the format in square brackets (e.g., [Photograph], [Painting], [Map])
- Source (name of website, museum, or publisher)
- URL (if accessed online)
Example: van Gogh, V. (1889). The starry night [Painting]. Museum of Modern Art, New York City, NY, United States. https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79802 For an online photograph: Thompson, M. (2020). Canyon wren [Photograph]. Flickr. https://flic.kr/p/2icfzq4
In-Text Citation
Use the author and year in parentheses: (Thompson, 2020) or as a narrative citation: Thompson (2020)
Including the Image in Your Paper as a Figure
- Label the image as a figure with a number (e.g., Figure 1) and provide a descriptive title above the image.
- Below the image, include a note with copyright or permissions information if required.
- If the image requires attribution (e.g., Creative Commons license), include a copyright attribution in the figure note, listing title, author, date, source, URL, and license type.
Example figure note: Figure 1
Lava the Sled Dog
Note. From Lava [Photograph], by Denali National Park and Preserve, 2013,
Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/denalinps/8639280606/). CC BY 2.0. If
no attribution is required by the license, you only need the figure number and
title with optional descriptive notes
Summary of the Citation Format
Element| Format Example
---|---
Author| Last name, Initials.
Year| (Year).
Title| Title [Format].
Source| Website or Museum name.
URL| Direct URL if accessed online.
In-text citation| (Author, Year) or Author (Year)
Figure label & title| Figure 1
Descriptive title
Figure note| Copyright and license info if needed
This approach ensures proper credit to image creators and compliance with APA style guidelines
