Photo Restoration Jobs: Increasing or Decreasing?

[Doug Nelson]

The photo restoration business landscape has changed a lot since we went online back in 2001. Possibly the biggest change has been...well, us

But there's also lots more books and publicity, but also outsourcing, but also more markets, but also more do-it-yourself, but also more big retailers getting in, but also more public awareness, etc.

So, just your own experience only, are you seeing more photorestoration work in the past several months, or less?

[jadams007]

actually about the same, not much has changed in software for restoring old images, ok, a few upgrades in photoshop, but not significantly. Places like walgreens and wal-mart may start to hog this market but at cheap prices and lower quality...just my opinion.

[Vikki]

I would say the work has increased.

Surprisingly, I think the increase in work is due, in part, to the "do it yourself" books, and online tutorials, that promote the idea that this sort of work is easy to do yourself, fun, and profitable. Many discover there is a great deal to learn, a lot of drudge work, and for some, it's just not worth the effort and frustration.
As with many "do it yourself" projects (just ask me about a bathroom remodel), we gain some insight into the profession and an appreciation of the professionals.

[Sanda]

I have to agree with Vikki, the number of restoration and retouches I've had this past year has almost doubled. With a lot of return customers who appreciate the amount of work that goes into each job. Maybe that's because some of them have tried it themselves and found it not as easy as they thought, and it's not just pushing a button on the computer afterall.