Flood Picture Restoration

I thought I would share a picture that I was asked to try and restore.  This image was recovered from a home in High River that belongs to the parents of a good friend of mine. When they first called me about it, they said it was in sewage water and was all wrinkled.  They didn't know if anything could be done, but would I try?  So I dove in.  After washing it off, while being careful not to remove any of the fragile emulsion, I put it to dry under a weight. I scanned it in and then set to work in Photoshop. A lot of the detail was lost under the muck, and without having seen the original, it's hard to know how much was there in the first place.  But I think I was able to do a credible job of getting it back.  Here are the before and after shots:

 

xo

Jen

Clennan Coffee

Original Photo-lovely but needs some tlc to make it come alive!

I love love love when someone brings me an interesting project to work on.  Annika had seen this AWESOME photo at her father-in-laws house and just knew that she needed to have it on the family wall that she is building. But she wasn't sure what she could do with it, or if it could be brought back to life.  Well did I have fun with this one! I couldn't wait to get my hands on it's vintagey goodness! I wound up creating two versions because I couldn't decide which one I liked more! And it's a good thing that I did because both she and her sister-in-law liked different versions.  Annika got the black and white version on metallic paper - tons of depth and cool factor.  Corina fell in love with the toned and hand painted version and we printed it on watercolour paper for a truly authentic, vintage look.  Which on do you like best?

 

 xo

Jen

Restoration

Click to enlarge

For years I have honed my skills in Photoshop.  I've done some restoration work, but never really posted it or did anything with it.  And yet, every time I work on a piece, it fills my heart with joy for a number of reasons. I think about the memories that are connected to that image by the person who made it.  For the people in it.  And for todays viewers who are taken back in time by it.  Pictures tell the stories of our lives past and present.  And in some ways, help to shape our future as well by connecting us to what is important. I love that I can bring back a part of that history.  Make it current.  Digitize it and make it accessible.  What about creating a gorgeous coffee table book with the pictures from your past?  (I'm working on one for myself right now...) There are so many ways to remember where we came from. What our legacy is and will be.  This is the root of all that I do in photography and photo restoration is a lovely part of that. Check out the new gallery on ChipperfieldPhotography.com  ...not much in there yet, but keep checking back as there is much more to go in there!