The damage to old photos is irreversible.
Unfortunately, vintage photographs, both black and white and coloured have a limited lifespan. The photographic papers, inks and emulsions that were used, were not as good as the quality of those used today. As the years go by, deterioration will set in and cannot be stopped. The inks begin to fade and discolour, leading to a loss of image detail. The emulsions on early gloss finished photos, will begin to craze and crack. The papers and cards that were used will begin to stain going yellow or brown and, foxing will appear. As paper and card deteriorates with age, they become fragile and will begin to crumble. Old, framed photos left in the light, will have suffered the most from severe fading. Photos that have been in old albums that have been kept away from the light and handling for decades will still suffer the same deterioration.
Photos that have be handled often, are usually the most damaged. The oils on our fingers damage the inked surface and paper contributing to even quicker deterioration. They get covered in grease and grime, and they get scratched, torn, folded and tattered.
Professional Restoring and Colourizing
There is free Artificial Intelligence ( AI) software available on-line for the novice to repair old black and white photographs and too colour them. Despite advances in technology, the results you get from AI software will be very basic and disappointing (* View the slide show below to see the difference between AI and skilled manual colouring).
Digital Photo repair and Colourization is a manual process that requires, skill, patience, and dexterity to achieve the best results. There is no easy short cut when it comes to repairing damage in old images. This is especially true if you need to reconstruct missing parts of an image. Only a skilled artist can get you professional results
