Suppose I have a bmp or jpg I think is stolen, or there is an image I believe is being represented as something it is not. Is there some sort of search function or service that you can upload the image to and do a search for it?
Google’s similar images feature isn’t the same thing, though. Google’s is based (at least partly, and I think almost entirely) on context, using the words around the image to describe it, while Tin Eye’s is based on the content of the image itself. One consequence of this is that if you just have an individual image stripped of its context, Google can’t help you, but Tin Eye can.
Another nice thing about Tin Eye is that it’ll help you to find the highest resolution version of the picture.
TinEye is a meaningful name if you’ve read the Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson…
If you have an android phone, Google Goggles seems to be what you need.
It is surprisingly good at identifying pictures.
http://www.google.com/support/mobile/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=166331