Genealogical Photograph Restoration - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: How to protect and keep old documents

diskoverit — 2013-05-10 01:47:54Z

Use acid free products to store documents and photos.

Re: Does anyone know where or how to create a picture of someone using photos of the children and spouse?

juliepio — 2013-05-03 12:18:31Z

Thanks, I am stuck for now... when her husband remarried the new wife destroyed everything of hers. Have not been able to connect with anyone in Poland yet, that is the only hope!!

Re: Does anyone know where or how to create a picture of someone using photos of the children and spouse?

RobinBMc — 2013-05-03 10:59:07Z

Images created of unidentified bodies are usually built from the structure of the skull and I'm guessing you don't have your great grandmother's skull on hand, lol. Furthermore, it's probably expensive since an artist who specializes in that field can take months to complete it.

There is technology that will merge one or more faces to create another. I did this once in a photo booth with a boyfriend - it was supposed to merge our faces and show what our kids may have looked like. But I wouldn't say it's accurate because there is no way to predict which features any individual may inherit. It was supposed to just be a bit of fun, not realistic.

I would keep looking for distant relatives who may have a photo of her. Don't rule out relatives who didn't descend from her - in one branch of my tree, I have photos of all my 2nd great grand uncles and there was one person on ACOM who had descended from one of them but didn't have any photos of him so she was thrilled to find that I did. So if your great grandmother had any siblings or perhaps even cousins, I would try to get in contact with any descendants of them.

How to protect and keep old documents

EJRoguski — 2013-05-02 22:42:09Z

I recently came across some photographs, slides and documents which date back to around 1938. I was wondering if anyone can tell me the best way to keep these documents safe? I know I am able to make digital copies of them but I am more concerned about keeping the physical documents safe.
These are from the Higham, Heath, and Noble Family descendants.
Thanks in advance.

Re: Does anyone know where or how to create a picture of someone using photos of the children and spouse?

falsterden — 2013-05-02 13:52:16Z

Can't be done - as disappointing as that is. The children's faces do not lead to a portrait of her; traits are not evenly inherited and there is no way to predict which traits in their faces may have been inherited from her.

Have you tried speaking to other descendants and descendants of her siblings? Most people who lived to 1918 would have had a photograph taken at one time or another.

Another route is to pursue her life connections. For example, was she confirmed in a church? I have a beautiful group portrait of my grandmother and other children in her confirmation class. As another example, she may have attended a school with a photo archives or yearbook. I have portraits of some family members that came from college yearbooks ca 1890-1920 - and I have no other photos of them.

In the 19-teens, before your grandmother died, a popular way to communicate long distance was to send a postcard with a photo of oneself as the picture. I have several of these - strikes me as very modern, but they are circa 1910-1918. In other words, a long-distance relative might be more likely to have saved a photograph than someone close at hand.

Just brainstorming. It's possible there are no photos and you're stuck. I have many many photos of one set of great-great grandparents, and none at all of another. Photographs are the most important (in my mind) part of our family history, so - I feel your pain. :D

Re: Scanning Equipment

pseggelin — 2013-04-08 23:59:11Z

Thanks for the info but I don't have an iPhone. Looks pretty cool though.

Re: Scanning Equipment

fmbns99 — 2013-04-04 02:45:17Z

I found this great desktop scanner that can scan prints, negatives and slides to my iPhone and is portable so I can take it to libraries and other archives:
http://shop.holgadirect.com/products/holgadirect-iphone-film...
Hope it works for you:-)

digital archiving

maff1368 — 2013-04-02 23:27:38Z

Here is a link to advice from the Library of Congress on maintaining your records.

http://blogs.loc.gov/digitalpreservation/2013/03/announcing-...

Does anyone know where or how to create a picture of someone using photos of the children and spouse?

juliepio — 2013-04-01 18:51:44Z

Sounds weird, but there are no known pictures of my moms grandmother who died in 1918. I have pictures of all her children and the father of the children. Is there somekind of service that can create a likeness of what she may have looked like, I'm thinking some kind of place that does it for missing people or unidentified bodies??

Re: Faded writing on back of photo/postcard

timtracker — 2013-03-31 19:09:11Z

I don't think the date is '13', I think it is '/3'.

Possibly '....3/3'. March 1903, possibly.

Faded writing on back of photo/postcard

albatrossVII — 2013-03-20 14:14:40Z

I've scanned this side in using 400dpi and played with the levels a bit, can almost make it out now.
Date .... 13
Name is Ridout

any help reading this would be appreciated

Re: Scanning Equipment

pseggelin — 2013-03-19 15:32:12Z

I'll have to check it out. Thanks.

Re: Scanning Equipment

pseggelin — 2013-03-19 15:31:16Z

Thanks for the input. Most of what I have is 35mm slides and neagtives. I think your scanner is more than I will ever need.

Re: Scanning Equipment

teri_dillon12 — 2013-03-19 14:26:45Z

I have had good luck with the Epson V600. It is reasonably priced and it takes several sizes of negatives.

http://dillonsphotorestoration.com

Photo Restoration Service

teri_dillon12 — 2013-03-19 14:24:32Z

If you are looking for someone to repair and/or enhance cherished family photographs, visit:

http://dillonsphotorestoration.com to see examples of my work.

My prices start at $5 for a simple edit. Most prices range from $20 - $50, depending on the repair.

Be sure to look at the attached photo restoration. I love helping people restore photos and memories!

Re: Scanning Equipment

vincentdavidjohnson — 2013-03-13 06:00:52Z

If you only have 35mm negatives & slides I suggest looking at Costco. Recently they had a 35mm scanner for about $70. they currently have one for $150 that even has a small area for 4x6 prints.

If you family collection spans over the last 100 years, chances are you'll have negatives as large as 4x5, to as small as 110, in which case I suggest an EPSON V750 Pro. It's what I use. It's expensive ($700-$900), but considering what you'll be charged per scan professionally it might be worth it. The best thing about the V750 is it has a glass plate, so if the pre-set negative holders don't work with your film type, you just use the glass plate and go free style.

Scanning Equipment

pseggelin — 2013-03-09 19:36:25Z

I would like to get some recommendations on a scanner for negatives and slides. I want to start digitizing some old slides from family members.

Re: Flatbed Scanner Suggestions

vincentdavidjohnson — 2013-02-07 18:31:09Z

If you just want a decent scanner, just make sure you find one that has a table size to fit your largest prints and can be adjusted to scan at a higher DPI (dots per inch).

Stay away from most printer/scanner combos, since they rarely allow you to scan in at a higher resolution that the size of the print.

Personally I use an Epson 750 Pro, but that's because I'm a professional photographer so I need it for work. One of the biggest advantages to it is that it can do negatives and slides from just about any camera ever made. It's about $600 to $900 depending on where you buy it from, but as a photographer, I know the negatives are what you should be scanning not the prints.

If you are lucky enough to have all the negatives as well and they are 35mm film. look into buying a negative scanner (costco has one for about $70) you won't regret it. The quality is night and day.

Re: Flatbed Scanner Suggestions

lgonzale67 — 2013-01-24 17:24:25Z

i purchased an epson v600 about 2 years ago. I have been extremely pleased with it's performance. I've scanned approximately 2000 photo and have just begun to scan some old negatives i've recently acquired. The results on the negatives have been good to excellent. plus it comes with a version of photoshop elements which has been a fantastic addition.

Re: Flatbed Scanner Suggestions

timtracker — 2013-01-12 02:29:14Z

About 9 months ago I bought a new combined printer/scanner for £60 (about $100 US). Most major manufacturers do this now, though some models are a bit more expensive. I have scanned my family photos with what I regard as excellent results. I also use Windows 7. The printer comes with a disc that includes this system, but you can check with the retailer to make sure. Windows 7 is standard now.

Doubt if we are allowed to recommend particular makers, but I think the major manufacturers are much the same really. So I went cheap and don't regret that.

Unless you are doing it professionally I doubt it is worth paying much more than what I paid.

Flatbed Scanner Suggestions

brianbdb1 — 2013-01-11 01:53:26Z

Does anyone have any suggestions for a decent yet affordable(under $200?) flatbed scanner. As I'm sure everyone does, I have lots of photos I'd like to scan.

I've found a few possibilities but I worry about driver support for Windows 7 with some of these older (less expensive) models.

Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

gen_bug — 2013-01-08 01:56:44Z

Your welcome :)

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

copet1 — 2013-01-08 01:16:14Z

Wow! Her hair looks so pretty. Thank you very much!!

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

gen_bug — 2013-01-07 22:08:01Z

Jack,

Hope this helps a bit

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

gen_bug — 2013-01-07 16:11:28Z

Dan,
I like to play around with old photos when I have free time, I thought Id give yours a whack! The Hair gave me some problems, but I tried to clean up the image as best as I could.

Re: Can old photo negatives still be developed?

lgonzale67 — 2013-01-06 04:36:35Z

i have an epson v600 photo scanner than also scans negatives. I had never really tested this feature until today. i must say i was really impressed with the results. my oldest negatives date back 60 years. it will scan any size negatives into a jpeg (or whatever format). it also comes with a version of photoshop elements so if you want to do additional touchups, it can be easily done.

in some instances, my scan is better that the original pictures developed 60 years ago which i found impressive.

I high recommend this scanner for any photographic type work.

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

DanOlson83 — 2012-12-30 21:11:46Z

Thanks Tim. The author, who was a distant family relative, basically gathered the photos in the mid-70s, and filled out family group sheets for each person. She then bound them and sold them to to family members for a small nominal fee.

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

cyndi308 — 2012-12-30 20:04:57Z

Please report back on how it goes. Tim is probably right that it won't make a difference but it's free and takes 10-30 mins to try it out, so it's worth doing.

Good luck,
Cyndi

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

DanOlson83 — 2012-12-30 19:51:11Z

Thanks Cyndi - I'll try that.

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

timtracker — 2012-12-30 16:11:49Z

I am pretty sure that the dots are caused by the reproduction method used to print the books. They are in the book, so they are in the copies. So changing the DPI probably won't help get rid of them, though it will create a generally better copy. Generally you are always better off using a higher DPI, it just takes longer and uses more memory.

What you can do is photoshop them or get them amended digitally by someone who knows how. There are companies that do such clean ups, but they can charge quite a lot. You may be better off asking around techie types that might do you a favour. If you send them a copy of the file, they won't do any harm even if they fail to eliminate the dots.

You mention that the author is dead. I am not sure if you say this because of copyright concerns, but copyright lasts about 70 years after the death of the author. Additionally, the author may not own the copyright of the photos but either got the consent of the owner, or used the pictures with no permission obtained. Technically any photo is treated in the same way as a book, with copyright expiring 70 years or so (depending o country) after whoever took the photo has themselves expired. In practice most old pictures have no known photographer, but some companies won't touch pictures if there is doubt over copyright ownership.

search

Darlene1712 — 2012-12-30 12:52:16Z

Search Photo by Ezra maurice Martin, parents and siblings

Please Help Me

Hope for photos and some news about my dad and family

Thank You

Darlene1712

Re: scanning photocopies of photos

cyndi308 — 2012-12-30 07:13:53Z

This may be the best you can do under the circumstances. But try to increase the DPI when you scan. The default is often pretty low and it can make a real difference if you increase it. Keep in mind that this will also increase scanning time and the size of the file. You can experiment with these variables.

Cyndi

scanning photocopies of photos

DanOlson83 — 2012-12-30 03:25:03Z

Hello - I found some photos of my ancestors from a book that was done by a family member in the 1970s (the author is no longer living). The photos are photocopies of the original photos. I tried to scan them and a lot of the scans have "dots" over the faces of the people in the photos (see attached). Anybody have any suggestions for what I can do, or do I just have to live with the photos this way since I don't have the originals?

Image 911

danmmcgrew — 2012-11-29 00:59:55Z

I'm a Graphics Artist and Photographer. In my own genealogical work, I've restored and enhanced many photos. I'd like to be of service to you too! Please visit my website http://www.foto-grafyx.com for more information and to see my work. You can also visit and please "like" my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/FotoGrafyx .

As always, my cousin and I are interested in information on Deep South McGrews

- Thanks,
Dan

Re: Can old photo negatives still be developed?

glitteringgem — 2012-11-14 23:30:39Z

Thanks for the tip. I will check out Costco and I also read that office supply stores can help too.

Re: Can old photo negatives still be developed?

HarperAC — 2012-11-14 18:28:24Z

Hi,

If you can see the images on the negatives then the film is already developed, if you want prints then you can take them to a lab, assuming they are a standard size.

Standard size or not a simple negative scanner will do the trick. Once scanned you can get prints easily. If you are looking for actual dark room prints, then you'll need to contact a photographer who works with analogue photography.

I know Costco has a lot photographic services, they can likely help you out.

Source: Photographer specializing in analogue photography

Re: Glass Photographic Plates

RobinBMc — 2012-10-29 11:22:03Z

They're call ambrotypes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ambrotype

1940s would have been quite late for an ambrotype except as a novelty maybe - they went out of style in the mid to late 19th century, replaced mostly by tintypes.

Photo Restoration Service(s)

fadedjoe — 2012-10-29 01:16:29Z

I have been restoring 100's of photos for my family (Phillips, Fasline,Yanno and Carano) over the past months and have since started a website offering my service to anyone interested. You can see my work at www.fadedjoe.com or feel free to "friend" me through Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/joseph.sarigianopoulos
I look forward to your business and appreciate your time!

- Joe

Re: I need help adding Photo Descriptions!

ron_mesnard — 2012-10-20 21:05:10Z

Your link crashed by browser.

I think Adobe Illustrator will let you do what I think you want to do. You want to write on the photo?

Re: Glass Photographic Plates

ron_mesnard — 2012-10-20 20:59:52Z

What would you want to know? You should have included them with your query.

I have boxes of 19th century glass photos. Glass is far more permanent than paper. You can print to either or metal. Those are called tin type. I have never hear of the glass being called by anything other than glass photographs. My g-grandfather also used paper but those are very yellowed by now.

Re: Vintage photographs - DPI?

lgonzale67 — 2012-10-17 12:18:43Z

I've been scanning at 1200 dpi. In many older, smaller photos, there is a surprising amount of detail that just sn't seen when the photo is small. When scanned in at 1200 dpi, you are able to increase photo size quite easily. If the detail is there, you will see it in the enlargement.

Should you decide to turn your photos into video family trees, the 1200 dpi photos work fantastically. If you use 300, many times you see pixelization in the photos

Pencil Portrait Artist

herbalistccaton — 2012-10-03 14:18:50Z

Old photo's can be transformed into a pencil portrait. Lovely heirloom or gift www.donavancaton-portraitartist.co.uk www.facebook.com/donavancatonportraitartist Tel. 07760159826

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

copet1 — 2012-09-03 17:34:08Z

I have not been able to try this process out. How much do you think it would cost to colorize and capture her red hair?

Re: Water Damage

teri_dillon12 — 2012-09-02 13:49:12Z

If you are looking for someone to repair and/or enhance cherished family photographs, visit: http://dillonsphotorestoration.com My prices start at $5 for a simple edit. Most prices range from $20 - $50, depending on the repair.

There is probably a good chance of restoring them.

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

teri_dillon12 — 2012-09-02 13:47:33Z

Re: Can old photo negatives still be developed?

teri_dillon12 — 2012-09-02 13:46:46Z

Re: Can old photo negatives still be developed?

deingham1 — 2012-08-06 23:51:04Z

Hi,
Any photo lab should be able to print your negs. The only problem might be that they may not have a scanner (all labs scan the negs now)that matches the format of older cameras. Independent shops would probably be the most helpful.

Re: Removing photos from album

VintageCards — 2012-07-23 06:39:45Z

First of all you need good quality scans of all the pages. Then take it to a professional conservator for advice.

Generally the only option for heavily glued photos is to split the actual pages down the middle with a scalpel and then remove the page from the photo, rather than the photo from the page!

It may be a better idea to scan the images, store the old album in a protective box, print the digital files and then sort the new prints.

Good luck.

Re: Colorization with Photoshop?

copet1 — 2012-07-13 23:13:06Z

Thank you!

Re: Removing photos from album

ClanDestined — 2012-07-13 16:07:51Z

If there are any photos that are not important to you, I'd suggest experimenting with one of those.

I'm not an expert at all but if it were me, I'd take it to a place that restores photographs since they'll probably be familiar with the types of materials that were used back in the day and what can remove the adhesive.

On my own, I might try waxed dental floss. If you can get a corner of a photo up, slip the floss between the photo and the album page and "saw" back n' forth to see if it can cut through the adhesive and loosen the photo.

Or try using a hair dryer set on the lowest setting possible and move it all over the photo, perhaps the heat will break the adhesive. Just don't keep the dryer in one place too long or too close to the photo.

Or you might even try cutting out a photo and soaking it in water and see if it comes away from the page. This is where selecting a test photo is a good idea, you don't want to risk damaging a significant photo.

There are adhesive removers too. Maybe take the album to a crafts & hobby store like Michaels since they deal with scrapbooks and such. See if someone there could recommend an adhesive remover. Try it out on a test photo.

If none of this works, I suggest taking a digital camera and making copies that way. Be sure to lie the book flat and have lots of good overhead lighting. Line up the image to fill the camera frame and make copies.