Ok. So here's the thing. I am working on a restoration of a photo of my mom's boss's family. Her boss is like over 80 and this is a pic of his mom from before she was even married, along with her folks and siblings. Thign is that the one I have to scan is not the original, and they do not have it. This copy ws made from the original. So it is what I have to wrk with - no matter how much I would like to get my hands on the original it is a pipe dream. Anyways - there is alot of white. All the women's dresses are just blown out completely, and if there is any detail there you can't tell it because it is so splotchy. I have been able to get everythign lese right but those dang dresses. I hate to think it will just have to be that way or be completely white. What can I do? I am posting the original (only smaller) here so you can see what I mean. Thank you so much for any advice you can give me.

Sounds like a bad copy neg.... UNfortunately, from my experience it is next to impossible to get those details back unless you have the original and the detail is in the original. Otherwise if you darken white, it goes gray.

Id be tempted to duplicate the layer, mask out the white only, and try duplicating the layer messing with the layer mode- like multiply. That might bring a little back....

I am interested to see what others have to say, I hate to be a negative nelly.

Playing with it a bit, it does look like you have lost the details in the white fairly badly.

I wasn't able to bring out any details without it going very ugly myself.

- Noel

I truly appreciate your efforts. I know the detail is gone, I guess I will just have to live with that. But then there is the issue of the spots all over the picture. I have been able to pretty much get everythign the way I want except the dresses or other white(ish) areas like their faces. All those spots. I hate to think I am just going to have to clone out each individual spot. Though I guess with the detail on the dresses being gone anyway i can blur them away and mask all but the white.

I just downloaded neat image and as soon as I figure out how to use it I am going to see what it will do. lol

Hi 1STLITE,

Why not 'borrow' similar dresses, copy, paste and adjust them to your picture?

I did that with your picture .... found the dresses in our Archive (http://www.retouchpro.com/archive/showgallery.php/cat/1/password/)...

I strongly compressed the image so some details might not be visible .... but on the 'full size' you'll see them all...

:wavey:

Flora,
I really like how you did that - at least what I can see of it. lol How did you do that exactly? Just searched through page by page of the archive to find somehtign that you thought would work? Also I was wondering what did you use to correct the exposure. I can get it to look like that but not with just one tool and not without some burning etc. on the lighter areas around the edges. Was there a specific tool you used that made it right all at once?

Again that wsa really great. I have not been here long and already I am so in love with your work. If I had any money I'd pay you to teach me - lol.

Again that wsa really great. I have not been here long and already I am so in love with your work. If I had any money I'd pay you to teach me - lol.

There's a really long line for Flora's services 1STLITE, it forms over there to the right :wavey: :wavey:

Amazing job as always Flora,

Margaret

Well, here's what I am going to send her. Hopefully they will like it. I am sure there are thigns that coudl have been better, and maybe one day I will figure them out - lol. But I know they will be happy. Thanks so much and Flora if it were not for you - thank you so much!

Dawn

Hi 1STLITE, Margaret,

thank you so much for your kind words! :pleased:

1STLITE,

Great Job!!!

I know I'm a bit too late but the pictures I downloaded from our Archive are the following:

louisa-elsie1910
r-elsie-marie
11-a
1227
rose

What I remember is that they were on different pages .... but don't ask me which pages..... :sad: (if you are still interested, or maybe, for future references, you could make a search in the Archive for those names...)


..Also I was wondering what did you use to correct the exposure....Was there a specific tool you used that made it right all at once?
To correct the exposure, I ususally start with a Curves Adjustment Layer .... I find it gives me more control on 'what changes...where' .... than any other Tool .... but this is just my opinion...
If the changes affect areas of the image which didn't need them, I just hide/minimize them by painting on the Adjustment Layer's Mask.


..Again that wsa really great. I have not been here long and already I am so in love with your work. If I had any money I'd pay you to teach me - lol.
Thanks again for your kindness .... :happy: .... Whenever you need help, just come to RP and ask .... :wink: I might not be around regularly for a while .... but I'll gladly share my ideas and methods with you whenever possible!

:wavey:

No need to thank me for your outstanding abilities - lol. And thank you for the curves idea - never would have thought of that. What I ended up doing was using the burn tool some on shadows and some on midtones to kind of even it up. But the curves idea is brilliant. Never in a million years would I have thought of it. Thank you so much!

Dawn

YAY!! I am so excited. She loved the picture (mom's boss's wife) and was so happy with it. The faces she was just so thrilled about - said that her husband'd mom looked just like she did in another good picture she has of her. It made me feel so good tohear her say that.

She wants to know how much I charge, and I am just clueless on that. She has sent me another picture, bt she just wants some copies of it. No or very little retouching at all on it, as it is not an old one just one of her grandkids that they took and she wants some 8x10s done. She knows I am just starting out with this and is willing to help me fifure out some reasonable prices, asking others she knows what they would be wiling to pay and others still what they have paid for some other retouching that they have dad done. But too she said it was nothing like what I did and I was better than what they had done - YAY!! lol ANyways - THis is a small town and noone that I know of does this type of work, but too because its a small town and not a rich one I can't go all out with the prices. I woudl like ot be the one knows to do this so folks can get their old photos done without having to spend a fortune on it. Anyways - thanks again all!

BTW - what;s your opinions on the prices? Thanks :D