PhotoSearch is the National Archives’ photographic database. It contains 160,000 images.
You can use keyword and date searching in PhotoSearch to locate image titles on topics as diverse as Australian soldiers at Gallipoli, the funeral of Sir Robert Menzies, the last camel mail delivery from Oodnadatta to Alice Springs, and the closing of the arch on the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
You can browse a selection of image titles and images under hundreds of subject headings relating to Australia, including Antarctica, ballet, botanic gardens, cities and towns, conservation and environment, cricket, demonstrations, elections and referendums, lighthouses, natural disasters, pearling, police, Royal Flying Doctor Service, and royalty.
You can find images by searching for keywords or phrases in the title, the date on which the image was taken or reference numbers of the images. After entering your search terms, click the ‘Search’ button.
Search for keywords and phrases in image titles by entering one or more words in the 'Search for' box. You need to select a search option from the dropdown box.
You can use an asterisk (*) to find all variations of a word. For example, Malay* will find image titles containing the word Malay, Malays, Malaya, Malaysia, Malaysian etc.
To search for images taken in a certain year, enter a single date (eg 1964) or a date range (eg 1960-1964) in the Date box. You can combine a date with a keyword search, eg VFL grand final in the 'Search for' box and 1976 in the 'Date' box will locate images of the 1976 VFL Grand Final.
You can browse titles and images from collections of the former Australian News and Information Bureau (later the Australian Overseas Information Service) by subject. See Fact Sheet 47 – Australian Overseas Information Service photographs for further information.
Click on one of the browse options and an A–Z subject page is opened. Click on one of the letters and a list of primary subject headings available under that letter is displayed (eg clicking on B displays the list Beaches, Belgium, Birds, Botanical Gardens, Bridges, Burma). Click on a primary heading to display secondary subject headings (eg clicking on Bridges displays Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria).
To display images and other descriptive information click on either the primary or secondary subject heading.
Not all images in PhotoSearch are listed by subject. To ensure you find all relevant images, supplement browsing with a keyword search using the 'Search for' box.
A thumbnail (a small picture) is displayed beside the description of an image. Click on the thumbnail to view a larger version of the image. Use the back button on your browser to return to the list of images.
Each image description contains information about the subject headings under which it is indexed and about the collection (or series) it comes from. To locate other images from that series or with the same subject headings click on the relevant link.
See the PhotoSearch home page and the ‘Search tips’ located at the bottom of each screen for more information.
To purchase copies of images (as prints or digital images) select the ‘purchase images’ option at the foot of the PhotoSearch homepage.
Comments or other feedback can be sent to archives@naa.gov.au
Updated March 2007