Photographic Restoration

Below are some examples of photographic restorations that have been done at the lab. The process of photographic restoration involves scanning  (digitizing) your original photograph at high resolution and then repairing the damage a section at a time at high magnification. Sometimes this gets down to a pixel by pixel level of detail, whereas other times large areas can be repaired quickly. Generally speaking, if there is damage to critical areas of the photograph, particularly facial features or highly patterned areas, the process takes more time, and cost increase. I have included some pricing below to give the viewer some idea of the average cost. Restorations generally take from 2 to 4 weeks to complete, but are all performed in house.

This photograph was stuck to the glass, evident by the discolored areas. I scanned this in several sections, cutting the glass to eliminate some stronger lines, and then recombining multiple scans to help minimize restoration cost. This was still very labor-intensive. The image also received color correction from the very strong original blue cast .Total cost for scanning and restoration was $318.

This is a good example of a more extensive restoration. It was particularly difficult as the details were obscured and had to be created from imagination. This project with print was about $400. Size was roughly 8 x 10

This image had extensive creases in it, in addition to quite a few tears. The baby in the image is the customer as a child, who is sitting in his father's lap. This is one of only two or three image the customer had of his father, so it became a very important piece. The more difficult areas were the baby's face. Restoration cost was about $250.

This image arrived in nearly 2 pieces, and was taped back together with some archival tape for scanning. There is a wrinkle in the jacket that was particularly difficult to blend, and the blacks were quite weak from fading. Total cost on this piece was just over $100.

This is a good example of a lot of pieces I receive that are not in too bad of shape. Most of the damage in this case was in non cricital areas, which reduced cost greatly. This was about $30 in restoration cost. The final print was converted to a platinum color for a more uniform appearance.

This image had begun to desilver and had parts of the finish missing, and an overall splotchy appearance. Getting large areas to blend smoothly is quite difficult, and tends to be a bit of a compromise. The customer did not want to put a lot into this, and believe we were able to control the cost to under $40.

The blacks look a little washed out on the screen due to transmitted light of the monitor, but the final print was quite beautiful, and in keeping with the original without being overpowering.

This restoration was just $40. The price could have gotten into hundreds if the tear had been through the face instead of through the hair and background. The scratch through the shirt and letter jacket was actually more time-consuming in this piece.

As part of every photographic restoration, you'll receive ColorWorks recommendation on the best paper choice and also shown samples. In most cases, a small proof is done before the final, full-size image.

 All of the prints are produced with archival inks and paper to last a lifetime.

As with all printing services, ColorWorks can provide matting and framing to complement the final piece.

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