Old Color Photos

These two photos started the same color influenced by the time of day of photo and era of processing.

The coloration of these original photos make it more complicated and require multiple adjusts of exposure, saturation, and temperature.

Factors of concern during the transition process: exposure and time of day/sun direction (see shadow that may/may not be left in photo); time of year and skin tone; clothing color; and sharpness of facial features as well as degree of sharpness of environment distance/depth. The time of year the photo was taken being winter, I chose to alter the sky tone and brought greater contrast bare ground to snow.

Since it is a family joke regarding how many pictures have been taken over the years, generation after generation, with the shadow image of the photographer also in the photo, I may leave the photographer's shadow as part of the photo. For family historical purposes (part of the story behind the picture theory), often the image of the photogragher can be identified.

Finding the balance between these factors impacts and reflects the quality of the restoration and much is personal preference.

To complete the restoration, note the film/paper aging showing up as spots on clothing. There are spots of color fading on the ground also but due to the coloration, exposure and saturation adjusts I made previously on this photo those seem to blend natural into the environment of ground and sky. But the clothing color fade/loss spots distract too much from the photo and decrease the appeal or value of the photo so those I would take the time to remove/color blend using a program such as Adobe Photoshop.


For additional Author's Photography, words and picture images.http://lakeontarioshoreline.blogspot.com/

Visit Author Website http://www.risingsparrowpress.com/ for writing and self-publishing resources. Also find Hard to Find Resources on history, travel, rare/old book finds, and arts/literature.
Rising Sparrow Press assists you to write, collect and restore the yesterdays and today.

Create the legacy others will treasure tomorrow...

Photos Then and Now In Process

This photo can be restored to this level with HP Photosmart

Notice the fingerprint smudge near subject right thigh.

With coloration and saturation adjusts the fingerprint smudge can remain in the picture but appears to fit more with the background, less intrusive.

Notice in both of these restorations the natural field setting has disappeared or becomes less pronounced or distinquishable. What was a picture taken in a natural field may in later generations be interpretted to have been a studio backprint photo. This young man was an immigrant landing on US soil and later years a farmer with few if any pictures available of him in his natural environment. How fitting that this picture setting is a natural field and how much of his life story can be felt through one picture? This is where writing the story of the picture, labelling place or setting aligned with the photo or on a separate paper secured in the back of the frame maintains the integrity of the original photo.

The above photo snapshot is also in process of restoration. This change was performed with HP Photosmart. The original photo coloration patterns and lighting (and by nature of the subject and environment) appear to be sun sensitive as to time of day the photo may have been taken. So, this feature I chose to expose and build upon for the final photo presentation.

To clear the remaining blemishes and or film-print aging on either photo a program such as Adobe Photoshop could be used.

For additional Author's Photography, words and picture images.http://lakeontarioshoreline.blogspot.com/

Author: Jane Marla VerDow, Dear Daisy copyright ©2004; Independent Publishing: Rising Sparrow Press, est. 2003.Visit Author Website http://www.risingsparrowpress.com/ to learn more about author’s upcoming titles or for writing and self-publishing resources. Also find Hard to Find Resources on history, travel, rare/old book finds, and arts/literature.

Rising Sparrow Press assists you to write, collect and restore the yesterdays and today.Create the legacy others will treasure tomorrow...