Searching for prints and photographs in the Texas Digital Archive (TDA)
Searching for prints and photographs in the Texas Digital Archive (TDA)
There are three general ways to search for prints and photographs on the TDA: browsing online finding aids, keyword searching, and the “Explore Archive” button. You can use one strategy or a combination.
Browsing online finding aids
Browsing the online finding aids for each collection (when available) can help you to determine what types of images are in a collection. To begin, click the Prints and Photographs Collections icon on the TDA homepage (see Figure 1, below).
Figure 1.
The Prints and Photographs Collections landing page gives an overview of the collections. Scroll down the page to learn more about each collection, or choose a collection from the list of links at the top of the page (see Figure 2, below).
Figure 2.
If there is an online finding aid for the collection, you will see “Click here to access the online finding aid” (see Figure 3, below).
Figure 3.
Follow the link for more information about the types of images available for that collection.
Finding aids can also help you identify search terms to use when keyword searching. For example, the online finding aid for the J. R. Hunnicutt Collection lists names of individuals and places that appear in the images within this collection. An example, seen in Figure 4 below, shows a small excerpt from the online finding aid for the J. R. Hunnicutt Collection which describes several photographs using helpful keywords.
Figure 4.
Keyword searching
Back on the TDA, you can search the archive using simple keywords or phrases. Enter a keyword into the search box at the top of the page (see Figure 5, below).
Figure 5.
Based on the number of results, you may want to consider refining your results. You can make one or both of the following selections in the Refine Your Selections box:
- Under Type, select “Photograph”
- Under Content Type (Display) select “Image”
See Figures 6a, 6b, and 7, below.
Figures 6a and 6b. Types appear in alphabetical order. Click “Show more” then refine search results by type to show photographs.
Figure 7. An example of refining search results by content type (display) to show images.
Please note that refining searches by dates might eliminate relevant results. Many photographs are undated or have imprecise dates (for example, “186-” for a photograph taken in the 1860s).
When keyword searching, it can help to use alternate spellings and variations of the keyword or phrase. For example, if you were searching for prints and photographs of the Texas State Capitol, you might search for keyword phrases such as, “Texas State Capitol,” “state capitol,” and “capitol building.”
Our guides on conducting keyword searches and refining search results offer more tips on these topics.
Explore the Prints and Photographs Collections
You can also browse and search the Prints and Photographs Collections using the “Explore Archive” feature. From the TDA homepage, click the EXPLORE THE TEXAS DIGITAL ARCHIVE button on the search toolbar (see Figure 8, below.)
Figure 8.
Click the Prints and Photographs Collections icon (see Figure 9, below).
Figure 9.
You can conduct a search from the landing page (see Figure 10, below). This will search within the Prints and Photographs collection only.
Figure 10.
To continue exploring the archive, click on a thumbnail to enter that Collection and view its contents, or use the Refine Your Selection options on the left-hand side of the page.
Our Explore Archive guide provides additional help with this tool.
Still need help?
Contact the Reference Desk:
ref@tsl.texas.gov
512-463-5455
