Crowborough | Photographs Forever

There has been a very big increase in the number of photographs I have received because going through the masses of old family photographs is a job that is so often put off by many people due to lack of time and for these past few months have provided the time and the environment to tackle the task. It’s always much more fun than people expect. And the rewards are huge.

I am now very excited to be able to offer you a top quality bespoke framing service. This means I can offer custom size prints, mounts and frames to show off your restored photographs in the best way possible so they can receive the attention and admiration they deserve.

The most popular moulding is the solid wood satin black or mahogany with single or double mounts.

Satin Black Frame

Mahogany frame

I can also provide multi aperture frames – the one below is 20in x 16in with two landscape format 8in x 6in prints and two portrait format 5in x 7in prints. There are several multi aperture options available and the frames can be any size you choose. Heavier mouldings are available for larger sizes.

I can even show you what your photograph will look like before you order including all the relevant dimensions. This is particularly useful if you want a specific frame size to fit a specific space in your house.

A representation of your own photo with dimensions added

Further details are available here

With Christmas now on the horizon here are some ideas for a unique gift that’s ideal for those who can be tricky to find something a bit different.

Here just a few examples of the many ways I can transform your photographs….

If you have a photograph that has faded in its frame, it can be restored and re-coloured.

Two or more photographs can be combined and you can choose the people you want in the finished photo

Family groups can be ‘adjusted’ to include or exclude people!

Couples can finally be together in the same photograph.

Snapshots of pets can be made into portraits or montages

Treasured photographs that have suffered years of damage can be restored to their original state.

Combine a favourite photograph with a more interesting background.

Create a family montage from a selection of favourite photographs

Not sure which photos to use but can see the potential?
A Photographs Forever Gift Voucher of any value could be the answer.

Photograph restoration is very popular, although you may be interested to know that I also scan and restore many other things

For example I restored a drawing that, over the years had become torn, dog eared and generally in very poor condition. I restored the artwork and made an enlargement on archive paper and mounted this in a plain black wooden frame.
Here’s the before and after:

Do you have precious unique documents such as Birth Certificates, School Reports, Qualification Certificates, Death Certificates, Wills or any other documents that should be digitally preserved and restored shared with other members of the family? If you are creating your family album or your family tree, you could add images of important documents.

What about the children’s artwork? Their wonderful creative drawings and paintings are nearly always done on the cheapest paper, the paint fades, they get crumpled up and torn. Save them now. I will scan them and then you’ll images you can print, put into photo books and share with the family

Do you have negatives of possibly precious photographs and lost the prints?
Do you have a collection of negatives and you’ve no idea what the images on them are of?

I can scan your negatives whether they are 35mm or 127, 126, 120 roll film or even the really old glass negatives and provide you with positive images as data files, which I can then restore if necessary or just print or enlarge your favourites.

You may have a large number of 35mm or 6cm slides from the 70’s and 80’s but no longer have a projector that works. Let me scan and improve them so you can enjoy them again. They are often really high quality and make great enlargements.

So don’t delay, wherever you are, whatever town, city or county, look out those precious documents, drawings, artwork, negatives, slides and of course those fantastic old family photographs and let me restore them, repair them, retouch them so you and your family and friends can enjoy them forever.

I was sent this very old photograph that had been rolled op for many years and had become so dry that became cracked and torn and of very limited use to enjoy. With some care and attention this is now digitally restored to its original condition

Here are just some of the many things we have restored, retouched and manipulated recently – do you have something similar that will benefit from a bit of attention?

Photograph Restorations, Retouching and Manipulation

Photograph Restorations, retouching and Manipulation

Favourite Photographs Scanned and Optimised

This is a great opportunity to get a quantity of your favourite photographs scanned and optimised for just 99p each.

The normal cost of this service is £3.50 each or £2.50 each if there are more than ten photographs.

Other Scan/Optimise Packages Available
50 Photographs @ £1.35 each
25 photographs @ £1.75 each

WHY YOU SHOULD I GET MY PHOTOS SCANNED AND OPTIMISED?

It brings your photographs to life
Share the photos in a single album with other members of the family
Make prints and enlargements
No longer the only photos in existence!
Share your photos with others

You can show the finished images on your computer screen and TV

This is an example of before and after scan and optimisation

RECENT TESTIMONIALS

“My goodness, they look amazing! Very many thanks, how clever you are!” KC

“The photos are fab! You are a genius! Many thanks” PC

“Excellent and thanks! I’m actually really thrilled with them and will promote you to everyone” SW

“I’ve just received the photographs, they are perfect thank you very much indeed, you are a gentleman.
As I said before I shall be back to you in the future with some more work” JC

This is a great way to save money on your photograph restoration so get in touch now!

I received an enquiry from a professional photographer in Mexico recently. He sent a scan of the image and, after I’d responded, he replied:

“A friend tried to restore this photo before, but it was AWFUL, they looked like plastic figurines! Please go ahead with the restoration. I will be very happy if you could do it fast, only if you can and it doesn’t affect the quality of the restoration. Please don’t make them like Toy Story!”

9 hours later he had the restored image for approval and replied:

“WOW, that was waaay faster than I expected. I am very happy with the result!”

I was intrigued to know how he found Photographs Forever:

“I Googled photo restoration… I found a LOT, some in the US, some in India and a lot in the UK. And your site is the one I liked the most because your examples look natural, not as CGI as most.”

So in recent months I have carried out restoration work for customers in Canada, Spain, Australia, South Africa, Isle of Man, Germany, USA, Italy and now Mexico!

I recently was asked by Simon, accordianist with the folk/dance band Bof! to manipulate graffiti he had photographed to produce CD cover artwork for their forthcoming CD.

Here’s Simon’s story:

“I play traditional French and Breton dance music in a band called Bof! We have been going since 2000 and in that time have made three CDs. Earlierthis year we decided to make a fourth recording and, having recorded the music, we looked around for a suitable CD cover image. We looked at dozens of photos – some of idyllic scenes of the French countryside and others of people dancing. But then we came across a photograph I had taken while on a holiday in France some years ago. It was a picture of graffiti on a wall in the ancient, picturesque city of Quimper in western Brittany. The image expressed strong traditional Breton themes using the medium of spray painting favoured by graffiti artists the world over. The music Bof! plays is traditional but with a modern flavour, so this image seemed perfect for us.

Somehow, however, we needed to superimpose text on the image. How could we do this without spoiling the artist’s work? We came up with the idea of manipulating the image to include the name of the band, Bof! and the title of the recording, Bal (the French for dance).

So I sent my image to Photographs Forever to see if they could do what seemed like an impossible job. I have to admit I wasn’t very optimistic, but you can see the results for yourself. Needless to say we are delighted with how it’s turned out and this image will be the cover of our new CD which we hope to release in June.

You can hear samples of Bof! music at: http://www.myspace.com/bofanost

If you’re a regular user of Genes Reunited, you may already have investigated our Keepsafe feature, which allows you to upload treasured family photographs and documents. It’s a great way to ensure your digital legacy – a carefully curated and preserved archive that you can share with your family. But what about all those old photos that you keep meaning to scan in, but just haven’t had the chance? Photos, like any archive material, can degrade over the years – have you checked on those shoeboxes and old albums recently?

Richard Haines of Photographs Forever specialises in restoring old photographs, and says “Unfortunately photographs don’t age well and over time their quality deteriorates. Because photos are printed on paper, things such as handling, light, moisture, dust, and scratches often affect them. Regrettably, these factors can ruin our photos and prevent them from lasting through future generations. Poor storage, such as keeping photos in attics or basements or allowing photos to be exposed to sunlight, have all contributed to the poor condition of most of our photo collections.

“It is a very good idea to restore your special photographs or even entire photo collection in order to stop the unavoidable destruction that will take place no matter how carefully the photos are stored. Once you have digital copies you needn’t worry about further damage because digital images do not change at all.”

Faded photograph restored

You can even get enlargements made of restored photos – perhaps you’d like to present your parents with a framed version of their favourite photo on their first holiday, or give all the grandchildren a copy of an old (but badly scratched and folded) family photo. Richard comments “Since old photographs have a tendency to degrade over time, professional photo restorers have developed digital techniques for restoring your old photographs and they can eliminate scratches, cracks, tears, and fading as well as repairing other damage. Many precious old photographs, often the last copy in existence, are good quality but too small to see the detail. Restoration not only captures the image electronically but then allows the restored photograph to be enlarged so prints and enlargements can be made or framed so they can be truly enjoyed in all their glory.”

Tattered portrait photograph of soldier rescued

Once you can see the detail in those old photos more clearly, they may even hold valuable clues to aspects of your family history – who’s that woman standing on the edge of the family group? What’s that landmark in the background? Richard says “Deteriorating photos may provide important historical links in your family or possible clues about your ancestors. When rebuilding your family tree, it is possible to determine certain aspects of your ancestry, such as weddings, landmarks of geographical nature and important occasions. Enhancing your old photos may reveal details you had not noticed before.” Remember, when you upload your photos to Keepsafe, you can choose to make them public to other Genes Reunited users and invite others to help you investigate them further – someone else might have the answers you’ve been looking for.

Take some time this week to look over your old photographs and create safe digital copies of them – you may even find precious photos you’d like to see restored. And if you have any questions regarding preserving old photographs then Richard would be happy to help you.

Try Keepsafe now

by Richard Haines of Photographs Forever

Click HERE to see the Blog entry on Genes Reunited’s own website

Archive for Crowborough

Top Quality Framing For Your Restored Photograph

9 Great Ways To Transform Your Photographs

Restoration of Photographs, Artwork, Certificates, Children’s Artwork, Negatives and Slides by Photographs Forever

Wonderful Photograph Restored To Former Glory

Recent Photo Restoration Jobs Undertaken…

100 Photographs Scanned and Optimised for Just 99p each – September Promotion

Order 2 Photograph Restorations and Get a 3rd FREE – Hurry, July Only

This is a great way to save money on your photograph restoration so get in touch now!