What's old is new again

[LindaJ]

Hi - my stepdaughter wants me to give the attached photo what she calls "the old seventies look where pictures were all red". Well OK...but it seems to me that there is a little more than just adding red. I thought I'd seen a tutorial for that look somewhere but can find anything. Unfortunately I don't have an example photo but I do have the photo she wants me to modify. I have PS 7.0. TIA to all.

Linda J

[DannyRaphael]

Hello, Linda, and welcome to RetouchPRO,

Do you think she had something like this in mind? (This is just a shot in the dark to get the conversation/ideas going.)

~Danny~

[LindaJ]

(I hope this isn't a duplicate post. I've been waiting for the first one to show up but must have not sent it after all.)

Hi Danny - how fun! Thanks for taking a shot.

I should probably elaborate more on her intended use...she has purchased an oval piece (slab) of wood that has the bark around the edges. She wants to place the photo on it - she's even thinking of burning the edges. Then she wants to put a glossy topcoat on it....not the old thick stuff but probably a Krylon top spray. Soooo.....if you can envision Uncle Joe's fishing cabin in the 70's, this object would have been made by his daughter and hanging on the wall. I *think* she is looking for an effect that most restoration folks would perceive to need some some work and represents the colors shifts found with Kodak prints from that era. I've taken a shot at it by

1. Using variations, beefed up magenta.
2. Added HSL adjustment layer and increased saturation.
3. Selected light colors of house/bricks - put on adjustment layer and fiddled to make look dingy.
4. Added noise.
5. In desperation, added empty layer, filled with yellow @ 23%.

I dunno...I just don't have an eye for this type thing. Thanks for helping me get my head around this!

Linda

[Leah]

The general principle is to flatten the contrast, tweak the reds towards magenta, tweak the blues towards cyan, and add grain.

I think you've done a really great job. The trouble with getting this to look authentic isn't in the photo manipulation side - I think you have that spot on - but in the details. Fundamentally they (clothing, hair, accessories) just don 't look like a couple from the 70s, so whatever you do to the colors your brain is going to keep telling you that this is a modern couple with strange colors, not a 70s couple. Making a photo look 70s is always much easier to do if there aren't any people in shot.

[Flora]

Hi Linda,

I took a shot at your picture .... I included a picture I dowloaded from Katrin Eismann's site as an example of the result I think you are aiming to.

I agree with Leah on "flattening the contrast" and on the fact that you did a great job!

I worked on the individual Channels and if this is more or less what you are after, I'll post a detailed description of what I did ...

[LindaJ]

so whatever you do to the colors your brain is going to keep telling you that this is a modern couple with strange colors, not a 70s couple

Good take on the problem, Leah. I don't remember many guys wearing ballcaps and earrings in the 70's, and Alicia's hair is not nearly big enough! On the other hand, I'm thrilled that Alicia is branching out in her thinking - she has always gone with the current fashion flow and anything old was, why......just old.

I appreciate you taking the time to go over the characteristics of prints from that period.

Linda

[LindaJ]

Flora said

agree with Leah on "flattening the contrast" and on the fact that you did a great job!

Thanks, Flora! Yup, Alicia said that is what she is looking for. If you could just tell me the basic steps, I'd appreciate it. It never occured to me to change the contrast and, alas, I've never done much with channels so this will be good practice.

It is interesting to me that both my stepdaughter and my Daughter-in-law keep saying they want pictures that look OLD so I guess I'd better develope some "reverse restoration" skills.

I have Katrin's first book - should have checked it. I need to get her second one.

Thanks,

LindaJ

[Flora]

Originally posted by LindaJ
It is interesting to me that both my stepdaughter and my Daughter-in-law keep saying they want pictures that look OLD so I guess I'd better develope some "reverse restoration" skills.

I have Katrin's first book - should have checked it. I need to get her second one.

Thanks,

.... Just like with the songs of the '60s ... (my time....)

Anyway, here are the steps I took with your picture:

1) Duplicate layer
2) Gaussian Blur: Radius: 0.3 pixels
3) Add Noise: Uniform, Monochromatic, Amount: 1%

In the 'Channels'Palette:
4) Select red channel :Image>Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast
Brightness: 25
Contrast: -60
5) Select green channel:Image>Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast
Brightness: -40
Contrast: -25
6) Select blue channel :Image>Adjustments>Brightness/Contrast
Brightness: -51
7) Select RGB channel (composite view).

Back to the Layers Palette:
8) Create a Levels Adjustment Layer:
Composite Channel (RGB):
Input: 0, 1.1, 208
Red Channel:
Input: 0, 0.7, 230
Blue Channel:
Input: 0, 0.88,242
Output: 5, 250