Restoration or Retouch...?

[Veralisa]

If I had to pick a category it would have to be a combination of the two. A dear friend asked me to "do something" with a drawing of her daughter as a young girl, done as a sketch on the boardwalk in 1974.
If I had not been exposed to the talent on this forum I never would have had the guts to say yes to her. The helpful questions, tutorials, participation, conversations gave me courage to try.
It's not great but a heck of a lot better than it would be without my involvement with RTP.

Texture - to text or not 2 text, that is my question. I used the hard chalk brush for most of the color. Nothing I have at home looks good enough. Suggestions?
Thank you.

[0lBaldy]

Just my thoughts... I like the warmth that the original color adds to the picture the restore seems very cold to me and has lost the faint chalk marks that add to the ambiance

Usually, the textures seem to flatten out the image and when viewed from a normal viewing distance will not be very visible except for the flattening effect,

If it is going to be printed on canvas.... no texture

If not then it's all subjective and hopefully has been added in a non-destructive mode, so could be shown either with or without or both depending on the frame and/or paper used for the final print... if it adds to the desired effect then use it... if it seems over the top or distracts, don't

[TommyO]

Originally Posted by Veralisa

Texture - to text or not 2 text, that is my question.

I'm not sure what you are asking here.... however I like most everything about the restoration. I agree with OlBaldy that it should be printed on canvas to make the texture real. I don't favor simulated texture on flat paper.

Why the change in the eyes? Were the originals not recoverable?

[Cupcake]

I kept it almost the same.
Large file:
http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/8916/monicak.jpg

[Veralisa]

Old B, TommyO and Cupcake...Where to begin?

OB, I'm glad to see your name on entries to the Monthly Contest. You are a very active contributor here. I agree with you completely about the warmth of the original color. Why I chose to stay with the coolish grey, I don't know. After desaturation I ran through Levels adjustment. Personally I did not like the cheap-looking typing paper it was drawn on. Maybe a neutral buff? Maybe. Thanks for responding so quickly, I mean that, it is very appreciated.

TommyO, Hey, I've seen your posts around, you're good. Thanks for also taking your time out to help. Yeah, I'm agreeing with you and OB about the texture. Better not if it's fake. I should know better by now. "Why the change in the eyes? Were the originals not recoverable?" Humph, mmm-m-m-m, I changed the eyes because the uneveness disturbed me. Before I made the right sided eye smaller, my husband thought I'd actually emphasized the lopsidedness. Did you also mean color? On the paper they are green. since the paper is yellow I painted them blue. Thank you for even noticing the differences. I had to question whether to change anything from the original. The eye color was a sensible choice I feel. But maybe the size was not.

Cupcake! HOW DID YOU DO THAT PERFECT WORK? I'm not kidding. I would be jealous of your talent & know-how but I know you've got skills I crave. I'll keep coming and hopefully I'll keep learning. How, really, did you do such flawless work?

[aartist]

Veralisa, nice job.
Texture would be nice, either in the rendering or in the printing.

Cupcake, your renderings are superb! Always...

Thought I'd give her some blue,
since I'm getting the blue screen of death under the new Windows7 upgrade.

[Veralisa]

Oh, you folks put me to shame. So great these versions look, aartist yours are over the top. Really up close I love your blue framing. Can't appreciate it in a small version. And you beveled the script, too! Fantastic!

For anyone interested, this young lady in 1974 was approx 12-15 yr old. The woman she is today is an extremely troubled person, ill with demons meds nor therapy can cure. Her mom is such a perky, giving, friendly person...Monica is her joy. I thought her young eyes were very sad, too sad to be those of a child. I know Monica as she is today and, yes, her eyes still look sad.

[TommyO]

Aartist,
I especially like the framed one, the colors are very rich and accurate....like new. The blue frame seems to bring to life to the colors as well, working with the eye/brain very well.

[aartist]

Thanks TommyO, the blue seemed a natural choice.
Anyway, its an alternative idea.

The woman's eyes are sad, like Veralisa says
but I've always been a sucker for big beautiful sad eyes!

[chillin]

I think the original was drawn on a yellowish paper.

[Veralisa]

Thanks, Chillin. I especially like how you emphasized the white pastel ... looks sharp.

Well, I'm back tonight hard at work, looking at all of your contributions and trying hard not to claim any one as mine! I am picking up pointers from each of you... and is "thank you" adequate? We'll see tomorrow.

[Cupcake]

Cupcake! HOW DID YOU DO THAT PERFECT WORK? I'm not kidding. I would be jealous of your talent & know-how but I know you've got skills I crave. I'll keep coming and hopefully I'll keep learning. How, really, did you do such flawless work?


Wow, thanks for the wonderful comment on my work
I'm so glad you like it.

I like your web site. You have some nice pictures.

[Janet Petty]

Given that the pencil is right around middle gray, it was pretty easy to set that point and adjust from there. I also factored in the fact that over time, the paper had yellowed a bit. All work was done in levels. I did no cloning or healing to get rid of the lines or holes in the paper.

I hope you have fun with this one. It is in pretty good shape overall and should be easy once you set the color balance.

Janet

[Veralisa]

Ah, thanks Janet. You're a sweetheart. I'm aware that the idea of restoration is to keep the result as close to the original as possible, no? I faced this task as a combo of both...and went more toward retouch instead. Monica's mom is a sweet old lady who haunts antique stores, sends notes in victoriana style and has precious little else in this world. I plan on getting printed the retouched one as well as a restored one, as is yours. The paper really is an orange (marigold?) typing paper. Initially I changed EVERYTHING. Then after watching & listening all these great people of the Forum my finished result seems to be a compromise/combination of what I've newly learned. The hardest part (and it took the past five hours) was not to overdo. As I look back to the first 'finished' image I think it looks like a deathmask, now she looks like a lovely young lady. I think.

This was a most exciting project for me. And gratifying because of RTP.

[aartist]

Veralisa, beautifully done!
Monica's Mom will love it.

Enjoyed every detail of this particular project,
as I think most everyone else did too.

[Veralisa]

I needed to share this with you, and those of you who were here to help me.

Thank you to those who gave advice and helped me along the way with the restore/retouch of Monica. Her mother was tearful when she opened the tube with the finished prints. And here she is, Shirley, with Monica displayed on the universal easel, her refrigerator.

Before I started I thought I had enough skills to carry it off by myself. One thing learned was the realization that I didn't.

[aartist]

We may have helped inspire you but your skills
are what carried you through to completion.

Very nice!!!

[0lBaldy]

Beautiful final outcome!

Thanks for sharing this precious moment with us!

You did GOOD!!!

[Cupcake]

Thanks for the update!

[Kraellin]

Beautiful final outcome!

Thanks for sharing this precious moment with us!

You did GOOD!!!
__________________
~.~0lBaldy~.~

my sentiments exactly