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Archive for Restoring Your Old Photographs – Page 9

Please Don’t Try This At Home….Don’t Find Out The Hard Way!

I received this email from John P which I have to admit, because of his clever writing style, I actually found very amusing –

“I recently found an old photo of my Grandfather, 5 x 3 inches. It was in remarkable condition except for an orange stain under his nose which extended across his face towards his left eye. Under a magnifier this looked like surface food material which I thought I could remove by gentle washing with minimal quantities of water wet tissue. I appeared to be winning, then horror. I noticed that small specks of the image had been removed – see under his nose and to the left and left lower cheek. I was extremely lucky that was all that was damaged, it could have been much worse.
Then, I stupidly thought I could repair this “slight” damage by applying scrapings of pencil lead!!! What an idiot. Anyway this photograph now desperately requires the attention of an expert.
I attach a digital image of the photo so that you can see what is required. Please note there is a very small scratch, me again, on his right shoulder which also had my lead pencil treatment.
If I send the photograph to you can you restore the damage and clean the image up  i.e. remove the stain and repair the bits I removed and include taking the lead pencil material away? I would also like you to make digital enhanced reproductions, on paper, of the same image. Thank goodness there are experts like you that twits like me can turn to.

Here’s the evidence and the results after restoration-

Photo Restoration  - Before and After

Photo Restoration – Before and After

I am pleased to give you permission to use my plea for your help. It will hopefully make others decide to leave the required expertise to the experts like yourself. Thanks for asking.

Thanks for everything. I have other photos which are in a far worse state, not due to any of my doings this time, for you to consider their rescue. I will be in touch in due course as I need to search them out.

What To Do When Your Favourite Photograph Is Lost or Damaged

This is Jennifer and Frank’s Story as told by Jennifer

“I first contacted Richard at Photographs Forever to see if there was anything he could do with a photograph that had huge sentimental value to my partner Frank as it was the only one he had of his two daughters at that age. The photograph had accidentally been very badly damaged by falling from a car window in the rain and being repeatedly run over by several cars, here’s the photograph in question.

Richard said that unfortunately there was nothing he could do as the photograph was too badly damaged to restore.
I knew there was one other photograph of the two girls that was one of those tiny photographs in a key ring fob.

So I sent this to Richard to restore and also to ask if there was anything he could do to recreate the original photograph of the two girls with hi-vis waistcoats and hard hats. This is the resulting photograph that Richard created and sent to me

Richard sent this photo of the girls, to be signed for, and as I am at work, I missed the postie, got a card through the door to pick it up from the sorting office in West Bromwich. I did not know where it was so I asked Frank to take me. (I have not lived in West Bromwich very long). When I collected it he could see it was photos by the packaging, I told him that I had got you to do “something” to the picture of his girls but I would not tell him what because it was to be a surprise for his birthday, he seemed quite uninterested.  He has since told me that he thought you had just made the photo bigger and made it oval, why he thought that I will never know! ANYWAY, when we got back home I opened it, I got goose pimples!
I said “You have got to see this, I cannot wait for your birthday”
He replied “No, put it away somewhere and I will have it for my birthday”.
I pulled it out the envelope again and said “No I cannot do it, you have to see this”.
When he saw it, well……………….. He is SO HAPPY, his bottom lip started to quiver and I have never seen him like that, he was astounded.  I was afraid that he may not like it as it has been manipulated, it is not actually a memory, as photos normally are but no  – he LOVES IT! We cannot believe the attention to detail, I thought that the girls were wearing hi-vis COATS on the original photo but they were not, they were actually waistcoat hi-vis’s, and the hard hats -on the original  – the oldest girl has a blue hat and the youngest a white one, Richard is SO GOOD. AND the pen in the hi-vis on the youngest, AMAZING. WHAT MORE CAN I SAY……….. WE ARE SPEECHLESS, totally, I cannot thank Richard enough, he has made Frank’s day, his year, his birthday! I told Frank I would buy him a frame for it for his birthday, he said “No way, we are getting a frame on Saturday”.

Any ideas what I can get him for his birthday now please Richard??????????????????”

Photographs Forever Featured in Newspaper

Last week I sent out an email to my customers and this was seen by Sam Satchell of the East Grinstead Courier and he thought the story of Lucy Dixon’s photographs was a very interesting one and consequently called me for more details.  The full page article was published today!

EG-Courier-Article

Photograph Restoration Montage – A Special Gift

I recently competed an interesting request to combine two photographs in order to include and exclude all the right people.

Here are the two photographs beside the finished photograph montage . My customer’s touching story is below

Photographs Forever Montage

Photograph Restoration Montage

“Earlier this year my husband and I made the decision to put our house on the market. It wasn’t just any old house. It had belonged to my grandparents since 1957 and we bought it from my mum and her brothers after Grampy passed away in 2008. Over the last few years we renovated the house and garden, but with a growing family we felt it was time for a change.

When we told my parents the news they were so upset at the thought of saying goodbye to the house, that they decided to sell up themselves and buy (back!) number 10!

My husband remembered an old photo of mum and dad outside the house and we thought it could make a wonderful housewarming gift. We trawled through album and eventually we found it! Only it wasn’t quite how we’d pictured it. There were 2 photos of the whole family, neither was perfect and we really only wanted mum, dad and my grandparents in the frame. Enter Photographs Forever! Richard restored one of the photos to it’s original condition and colours, removed the other family members and pets, took Grampy from the other photo and popped him right in behind nanny as if he’d always been there. He even gave him a body! My parents loved their gift, they couldn’t believe that it wasn’t an original photo. It now takes pride of place on their mantle piece. Thank you Richard!”      Lucy D.

60 Year Old Wedding Photograph Restored

This charming photograph was taken on this couple’s wedding day 60 years ago this year. The restored version can now be printed and enlarged to virtually any size whilst keeping the colouring and feel of the original. David M and his wife were very pleased with the result and he emailed to say “Thank you so much for your patience – so pleased with your excellent service and will be more than happy to recommend you”

Restored Wedding Photograph - Photographs Forever

Restored Wedding Photograph – Photographs Forever

 

 

 

New Photograph Restoration Video

Colourise-1

 

Take a look at the new 1 minute video showing some examples of photograph restoration and how to make the most of your precious photographs

CLICK HERE

Together Again!

Couple-Before-and-After

I was asked recently to restore these two individual photographs. I then provided a new image with the happy couple in the same photograph for the first time. The scale had to be altered as the girl was larger than the man in the original photographs

Comic Strip Cartoons Added to Bluebell Enterprises Vintage Picture Range

A selection of Vintage Comic Strip Card and Prints

A selection of Vintage Comic Strip Card and Prints

I have recently restored images from comic strip books such as Dan Dare from The Eagle, Dennis The Menace, Desperate Dan, Bash Street Kits, Beryl The Peril and in conjunction with Ian Berry of Bluebell Enterprises. Ian has created from these images a series of greeting cards to complement his huge range of other vintage images which are available in local shops as well as on line.

Go to www.VintagePics.co.uk   to see the full range of handmade greeting cards and mounted prints, ready for framing, all with a nostalgic theme.

Over 2000 images available including Art Nouveau, Art Deco, early Vogue and Vanity Fair covers, Vintage Adverts, Motor and Travel Posters and a wide selection of town and village views from the 1700’s to the 1960’s.

Unique Photograph of World War One Red Cross Hospital Restored

Oaklands The Grange Red Cross Hospital 1918 Photograph Before and After Restoration by Photographs Forever

Oaklands The Grange Red Cross Hospital 1918 Photograph Before and After Restoration by Photographs Forever

This photograph of Oaklands The Grange, Clevedon – Red Cross Hospital was taken 18 November 1918

This residence was kindly lent to the Red Cross by Mr. & Mrs. Ernest Wills, of Ramsbury Manor, Wiltshire, completely free of charge for use as an auxiliary hospital in August 1914.

It came under the jurisdiction of the 2nd Southern General Hospital, Bristol, later being affiliated to the Beaufort War Hospital. The members of the men and women’s sections Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD), Somerset 33 (Clevedon section) and Somerset 2 worked arduously in its preparation and by the time it was opened on November 9th 1914, they had furnished ten wards and a total of 45 beds, and also equipped the offices and kitchen.

Wonderful Photograph Restored To Former Glory

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

 

Dancers-After