How to use Google image search to identify old photos, that’s what we are covering today! These tech-tip videos are my way of sharing tips and tricks that will save you time and add to your genealogy and family history research success. You don’t have to love genealogy to put these tips into action! So join me as I share a little tech-tip on how to use Google image search to identify old photos on smartphone and tablets.
My new tech-tip video posted to the Genealogy Gems YouTube channel is all about how to use Google image search to identify old photos. You may remember, I posted a similar video on how to upload an image to Google on your laptop or home computer, run a search to find other images that match, and most importantly, identifythat image. After watching that video, Doris wrote me the following email:
“I just enjoyed your video about Google Images. It seems that it won’t work on my iPhone 6S +. I have to wait until I am on my laptop, later. What a great tip! Thanks for all you do to help us make our computer life easier and more fun.”
Well Doris, you don’t have to wait to get back home to do a Google image search! This video will show you, step-by-step, how to search for images right from your mobile device.
After watching this helpful video, Amie, our Content Creator here at Genealogy Gems, shared with me this tidbit:
“Lisa, I just wanted to share what I did after watching your video, “How to Google Search Images – Smartphone and Tablets.” When I had a little wait time, I went into my FamilySearch app on my phone and found the pictures I had saved to my FamilySearch Tree. Then, using your instructions, I looked to see if any of those ancestor photos were found anywhere else on the web. Guess what? I made a cousin connection with one of the photos. I found a cousin had put Great-Grandpa’s picture on her Pinterest page! Just another genealogy success story!”
And there you have it! By learning a few tips, you can use your smartphone or tablet for searching Google images just like Doris and Amie. A follow-up email from Doris after watching this video just made my day:
“I watched this video yesterday while I was riding in the car. What a fun surprise! I tried it and it worked! Thanks for doing this for me. I am grinning right now just thinking about it.”
You are so welcome, Doris. I hope that others will give it a try, too.
Thanks for watching and reading, friends…and keep the comments and emails coming. I love to hear from you!
Learn More About Google Image Search and Everything Google for Genealogy
Ready to learn more about how to use Google for genealogy and mining it for your own genealogical treasures? The Genealogist’s Google Toolbox, is your go-to resource! It’s available now both in print and e-book format. In its chapters–fully revised and updated –you’ll learn more about all these Google toolsand more. Better yet, after you learn how to use these tools for family history research, you’ll find yourself using them to find all kinds of things, from recipes to trivia, to a manual for your old car.
This free video on Google Books image search is another installment in Lisa’s tech tips for genealogy and family history. Find images fast by using the thumbnail icon in Google Books. It’s like speed reading for the genealogist!
I am a big fan of all things Google. I marvel at Google Drive, Google Books, Google Images, and even Gmail! Now, I am learning even more from Lisa’s short videos sharing tech tips for Google. This week, she posted “Google Books Image Search for Genealogy and Family History Research,” and it doesn’t disappoint!
A Reminder of the Power of Google E-Books
You may remember another one of Lisa’s free videos titled “Google E-Books for Genealogy and Family History.” In it, we learned about all the wonderful FREE books available as digital e-books online. Many of our readers are finding fun tidbits about the lives of their ancestors in the books found using these tips. So now, Lisa is sharing another trick for working within the Google e-books feature.
Finding Images Fast with Google
Several years ago, I learned that a book titled “Past and Present of Bureau County Illinois” written in 1906 had lots of information and possibly pictures of my husband’s ancestors. I quickly located the e-book online. I entered in each surname in the search field to find out which relatives pictures might be included. It took awhile.
Instead, I should have used the thumbnail icon to search all the pages at once! The thumbnail icon looks like a grid at the top of your e-book image. By clicking it, you can see a grid view of every page of the book.
Look how easy it is to see which pages have an image. You can quickly determine if the image is of a building, person, or even a map. Scroll through a book of over 500 pages in no time!
George B. Harrington, “Past and Present of Bureau County, Illinois,” 1906, Google Books, page 733.
Happily, I found just what I was looking for. There was a picture of my husband’s 2nd great-grandfather, James Coddington. What a great find!
With 25 million books online, we all have a lot of searching to do! Why not share this great tip with your genealogy friends? Let them know about the Genealogy Gems YouTube channel, too so they can view all the helpful tech tips for their family history research. And be sure to click the SUBSCRIBE button so you’ll get all the great search tip videos.
We are delighted to share genealogy tech tips with you each week in these new videos. It’s Lisa’s way to share tips and tricks for your genealogy and your overall internet research success. You don’t have to be a lover of all things genealogy to love a good tech tip and we think you’ll agree!
Our Google guru, Lisa Louise Cooke, has been busy creating short, informative tech tip videos for you. You will find these videos first posted to our Facebook page. Be sure to always see what’s new by “liking” The Genealogy Gems Podcast page.
Additionally, you can comment, like, and share directly from Facebook. This is a great way to share these tips with your genealogy friends and society members.
Each week, Lisa will share with you what’s new in the world of technology and especially those tips that will make you a better and more effective genealogist.
Lisa’s first video, Free Google E-Books for Genealogy and Family History, walks you through the steps of accessing free digital books from the comfort of your home. From county histories to family histories, Google e-books are a treasure trove of genealogical information. Using Google e-books helped me find several pictures of ancestors that I had never seen—and that was just the start.
We think you’ll also enjoy our most recent tech tip video entitled How to Use Google Chrome to Identify Old Photos and Images for Genealogy and Family History. Using Google Chrome for your internet browser can be an effective tool for identifying images that are more universally known. While this likely won’t be able to identify an unknown person in your ancestry, you may be able to figure out the location a postcard image was taken.
Join us each week as Lisa shares these great tips for genealogy and more! If you find the information helpful, why not share with your genie friends too!
