How to Find the Original Creator of a Viral Photo or Meme

Viral images travel far from where they started. A photo gets screenshotted, cropped, reposted and captioned again and again, and within days nobody remembers who took it or drew it. If you want to credit the creator, ask permission to reuse their work, or check the image is genuine, you need to find the first post.

Quick answer: upload the image to our free Reverse Image Search, open it in TinEye and sort by Oldest, then check Google Lens for early posts. Look for watermarks, signatures and captions that name the photographer, artist or account that first shared it.

This guide is about finding who created a piece of content, such as a photographer, artist or meme page, so they get the credit. It isn’t about identifying people who appear in a photo.

Step 1: Get the cleanest copy

• Save the image or take a screenshot.
• Crop out captions, stickers and logos that reposters have added on top.
• If you have several versions, use the largest and clearest. Our guide on finding a higher-quality version helps here.

Step 2: Find the earliest copy

1. Upload the image to our Reverse Image Search.
2. Tap TinEye and choose Oldest from the sort menu. The earliest copies TinEye has found appear first.
3. Tap Google Lens and look through the pages that contain the same image. Older articles and posts often credit the source.
4. Try Bing and Yandex for copies the others missed.

Step 3: Look for clues in the image

• Watermarks and signatures in a corner often name the photographer or artist, even when they’ve been partly cropped.
• Usernames in screenshots of posts point straight to the original account.
• Style: artists and meme pages often have a recognisable style. Searching the style along with the topic can lead you to their other work.
• Captions on early copies may say “photo by” or “via” with the source.

Tips for memes

• Search the image without the text. The picture behind a meme is often a still from a film, a stock photo or an old post.
• Meme databases and fan wikis often document where popular formats started.
• Earlier versions usually have different captions, and the oldest one is closest to the source.

Tips for artwork and illustrations

• Artists usually post on portfolio sites and social media first, so early matches on those sites are good leads.
• Reposts often strip the signature, so compare several copies to find one that still has it.
• If you find the artist, link to their original post rather than a repost.

Found the creator? Here’s how to credit them

• Name them and link to their original post or profile, for example “Photo: Jane Smith via her website”.
• Ask permission before using their work on a website, in a product or in advertising. Most photos and artwork are protected by copyright.
• If you see your own work shared without credit, our guide on what to do when someone uses your photos explains your options.

Frequently asked questions

What if I can’t find the original?

Some images come from private messages or accounts that were deleted. If you can’t find the source, say so (“source unknown”) rather than guessing, and don’t use the image commercially.

Is the oldest copy always the original?

Usually it’s the best clue, but not always. Search engines don’t find every page on the day it’s published. Check that the earliest copy looks like the source, for example the full-size version with a signature.

Can this tell me if a viral photo is real?

It helps a lot. Our guide on checking whether a viral photo is old or fake goes further.

Want to give credit where it’s due? Trace any image with our free Reverse Image Search.