This picture made it through Katrina. Well, sorta.

[rainbowcarnage]

Hello everyone! I'm very new to this forum, this is my first post. I think I read all of the mandatory posts, but let me know if I do something that's not allowed.

I'm attempting to restore a picture for a family friend. It is the only picture they have of their sister when she was a baby, and it is very important to them. Their house was destroyed in Katrina, and this photo and a few other bits they managed to find in the debris is all that's left of their old life.

They don't have the money for a professional so when they asked, I readily agreed to try. I'm a student and have taken a Photoshop class, and I've restored a few of my own photos. (nowhere near this bad, though.)

I'm looking for help, tips, advice--really, anything. Once you see how bad this picture is you'll understand. I've started working on the plastic beads that the baby is holding, but it is severely damaged.

I know that the nose is gone, but luckily most babies have the same nose. (Seriously, is it just me or do they all have similar features?! Little and cute. Hah.) I'm going to "fabricate" the nose, and maybe the left arm.

I'd appreciate any help, advice or tips I can get. This is going to take me at least a few weeks.


The original:
http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y77...abysusiev1.jpg

Where I've tweaked the beads:
http://s3.photobucket.com/albums/y77...abysusiev2.jpg



Thank you!

[TommyO]

Well, first welcome to RetouchPro !

Wow, I cannot say that I have ever seen a photo damaged like this one. It actually looks more like a watercolor. I cannot see any evidence of an actual photograph in the facial area. Maybe near the beads and blanket.

I would suggest some of the better photo art, retouch, or colorization people have a look (maybe seeing if it could be posted in more than one forum.?) I think you are faced with recreating the detail, not in a restoration way, but an artistic way. Again, I will defer to those that are more skilled in those areas. That is not my specialty. A very interesting challenge though. I look forward to seeing what develops !

[rainbowcarnage]

Thanks for the reply, and the welcome to the site.

The photo is stuck in the glass. It looks like it shifted and the head is elongated--I'm toying with balancing it out now. I'm a fine art major so I feel somewhat comfortable recreating details. It also looks like the cheeks and chin shifted, as well.

I'm having a difficult time, honestly. I'm trying my best, because they said any improvement would be greatly appreciated. I will post my updates as they come. It's taking me a long time just to do simple tasks due to the nature of the damage.

Sheesh. It's a mess, isn't it? Hopefully I can do something to help them out.