Hard to avoid AI stuff right now, isn't it! I agree it doesn't make very good reference yet, at least that I've seen. One day it's probably going to get to the point we can't tell the difference... and I'm not sure how I feel about that haha. Interesting times... I like Unsplash for royalty-free images, and it's the first place I go when gathering references for most things. They have an extensive collection of art references as well, which I really like. Little to no AI on there that I've noticed. The reference packs on Proko here are outstanding for actual figures. With the variety in all those, I'm never wanting for anatomy or dynamic pose references. Other artworks to me are also just as good, if not better sometimes for referencing, too. Wikiart and ImagineMore are awesome for looking up art to reference. And Shot Deck is cool for film stills; another amazing resource. Honestly, a Google or Bing search isn't out of the question for me, either. I just ignore the AI that comes up... But if that bothers you too much, then you can turn the AI filter on for Pinterest, and that sorts all that out for you. Pinterest gets a bad rap, I think, but it's so handy for just grabbing photos and art and keeping your favorites all in one place. Love it. Of course, as you mentioned, taking your own pictures is probably the purest form of reference gathering, if you really want to boil it down and avoid the whole rigmarole. For a professional job, it's probably the best way to go about it anyway. Don't have to worry about copyright or credit that way, and you get exactly what you need.