What a Transformation

I'm not sure who this picture is, the back says "Mrs Butterfield, 1469 Coronado, Long Beach CA".  I'm thinking it might be Mary Indiann Butterfield.

The original photograph was bent, torn & covered in mold.  After I restored it, I decided I wanted to color it as well.  I think it's such a cute photo.

Original

Restored Black & White

Restored & Colored

Nice Recognition

In October I submitted the restored photo of my Grandpa Lender & my dad (as a baby) to Adobe Photoshop.  They had asked for people to submit examples using Photoshop & were going to choose 10 of those submissions to display in their office in San Jose.  Six Hundred & Fifty-Six people submitted projects, some submitted more than one.

Last week I received an email telling me that my photo had been chosen.  While I don't receive any "prize" for being chosen,  it's really nice to know that a huge company like Adobe likes my work.

Turning a black & white photo into a color photo

Earlier I posted this photo after I had repaired the damage.  Since then, I have added color to it.  Here I am posting the original photograph & the colored photograph.

Original 

Repaired & Colored

Ephraim Stockwell (Mark, Jack & Rick)

Hamilton Jr. High School Janitors

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This photo was taken about 1933.  Grandpa Lee is the 3rd from the right.

After

Dina?

I left the writing on this photo because it's the only clue as to who this is.  I can't figure out who it is but maybe someone else can understand the writing.  The only thing written on the back is "Ma" Mother-in-law.  Someday if someone wants the writing to be removed it'll be a very quick & easy thing to do.

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The Butterfield Family

This photo is of James Butterfield Sr., Myrtle Butterfield, Helen Winefred Butterfield & James Butterfield Jr.  It was taken in Long Beach, CA around 1916.

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Helen Winefred Butterfield

Every time I restore an old photo, I'm frustrated at the lack of info available about the photo.  This photo is one of the rare cases where they actually included more info than I would have asked for.  This is Helen Winefred Butterfield.  Taken on November 7, 1914.  Age 2yrs 2months & 8days.

Originally I thought that this picture would be a simple restoration but once I got in close, I realized that the facial damage was going to take quiet a bit of time.

I wish there was a way to zoom in on my blog so that you can see the before & after photos better.  I'm currently working on creating a website.  Hopefully when I do, you'll be able to see the damage clearer.

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Mr. F.M. Hopkins - updated

Ok, I'm finally back to working on this stack of old, old photos.  I've been working on a project for a client which has taken up all my time for a few months now but it's finished so hopefully I'll be able to work through these photos at a quicker pace.

This photo is of a Mr. J.M. Hopkins.  He's 40 yrs old & that's all I know about him.  Unfortunately, like most of the photos in this project, there are no dates.  I've searched through genealogical files & the closest I've come up with is a J.M. Hopkins born in 1934 but has no link (that I can find) to the Hopkins family line that this picture came from, or a J.F.M. Hopkins born in 1956 but I have no way to verify it's the same person.  It's made me see just how important it is to label ALL photos with a Name & a Date.  Other info would be nice, like what's going on in the picture but I won't get greedy.

I really enjoyed working on this photo.  It had liquid spilled on it and other paper stuck to it.  It had been mounted on cardboard so there were no bends or cracks.  I cleaned up the dirt & the spills but I didn't remove the fading.  It wasn't harming the photo but made it look like the old photo that it is.  I don't want these photos to look like the subject walked into a 2010 photo studio & asked for an "old fashioned" photo.

The frame has quite a bit of damage around the edges.  As I got in close, to fix it, I realized that the design was done by hand.  Each circle is unique & there is no pattern to it.  I cleaned the spill off the design but I didn't repair it.  I was afraid that in repairing it, I would lose some of the uniqueness of it.  I also had to hand draw the design on the left of the word "Paris".  There was a piece of paper stuck over the design so I had to fill in the blanks.

Although you may not be able to see it on my blog, Mr. Hopkins' face & body are covered in fine scratches.  In order to remove the scratches without losing the details, I had to remove one scratch at a time. It took awhile.

The photo itself was a Simple Restoration but the frame ended up being a Major Restoration

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After

*Update*  I've since learned that J.M. Hopkins was actually F.M. Hopkins (Francis Marion Hopkins).  I guess I need to brush up on my early 1900s cursive.  Anyway, I'm glad that I've figured out his name.  Now I need to dig through the pedigree charts to find out when he was born.  FamilySearch.com is a nice website but it's pulled up quite a few people with the same name.  I guess the search continues.

Back to School Photos

When I was in school, I remember always dreading getting my school pictures.  It seemed I always had that strand of hair sticking out funny or that ugly pimple that just had to show up hours before my picture was taken.  Whatever it was, there always seemed to be something I wanted changed about my photos.

Now there is something that can be done & for a very affordable price.  Let me help you make your school photos look the way you & your student want them to look.

 

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Photo Scanning Prices & Details

We offer 2 different types of scanning to fit your needs.

Use our Economy Photo Scanning Service for printed photos as a cost effective way to get your old photos onto a digital picture frame or website.  These pictures are scanned at a lower resolution so they are not ideal for preservation or printing.

Use our Archival Photo Scanning Service for printed photos when you want high quality preservation for future generations and to make photo books, digital scrapbooks, and reprints.

      *Each Archival Scan includes:

           1.  Cropping to the edge of the image to remove over-scan border

           2.  Rotating the image to the proper orientation

           3.  Image-by-Image correcting of exposure problems where possible

           4.  Image-by-Image correcting of color problems where possible

Economy:  $0.20/photo

  Archival:  $0.30/photo

*add $0.05/photo to have each photo labeled

    

Photo Scanning

I'm excited to introduce photo scanning as the newest product we have to offer.  Whether you're wanting to preserve your old photos or you want to compile a bunch of photos for Mother's or Father's Day, this is a fast & easy way to digitize your prints.

James Butterfield

This photograph was in really good shape except something had been spilled on it.  There was so much yuck on it that it was easier to place James on a new background.  Luckily, the portrait was originally on a solid background so I didn't lose any details by switching it.

 

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Make some extra money

Earn $5 by referring your friends or family.  Through the end of August, I am offering $5 for each referral that result in a $30+ sale.  Make sure they mention that you referred them.

The Bionicle Contest

Has anyone ever heard of a Bionicle?  I sure haven't.  I can't come up with a good description so I'll just have to tell you to look at the picture.

One of my clients sons is entering a contest to win a free Bionicle by using his current Bionicles to create a new one.  He took a picture of his creation but his little sister was in the picture & there was a yellow cup in the way.  The photo was also very grainy.   His Mom asked me to do what I could to make the picture look better & this is what I came up with.

Raymond

I think this picture is really interesting.  It's 3 separate photos developed onto one paper.  Doing this would have taken some time & it would have been extremely hard to square each photo.  If you look closely, the center photo is pretty even but the side photos seem to stretch up & out at the corners.

The photo was also folded accordion style, matted on a piece of black card stock  & then carried around in a wallet.  Because it had been stored in the dark wallet, it sustained very little fading but was very worn.

To fix this photo, I first corrected the discoloration & then squared up each photo & removed all bends & creases.  After that I worked on removing the scratches & the portions that had become worn.

 

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Photo #4 - Help

Okay, so as I'm repairing these photos, I've run across a dilemma.  Do I leave the photos as sepia tone or do I change them to black & white.  I really can't decide.  To me, both have their pros & cons.  Please give me your advice on how I should leave the coloring.

 

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This is a lightened Sepia Tone

 

After

Black & White

Photo #4 - Myrtie May Butterfield & Anne Hopkins

 

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Photo #3

 

 

This is the Butterfield Family.  My Great Great Grandparents, Myrtie May & James Butterfield.  The girl in the middle is my Great Grandma Helen Butterfield.  I don't know the names of the other 3 children. This picture was taken around 1922.  Helen was born in 1912 & she looks about 10yrs old in this picture.

This photo was colored by the photographer.  I was able to remove the yellowing that was caused by age while leaving the painted color intact. I find it interesting that the photographer chose to paint the one sailor suit yellow while leaving he other suit white.  I assume they were both white since the other kids are dressed in white. 

*I've since learned that the other 3 children are: James Irwin Jr, Woodrow Wilson & Mary Indiann Butterfield

Photo #2

 

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1 down 199+ to go

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Deal for June 23rd - 26th

Sorry this weeks deal is late but I've been very involved with a huge restoration project.  So far, I have around 200 photos scanned & most are in need of at least some restoration work.  It's a very time consuming job but one that I love doing.

Anyway, this weeks deal is 50% off one photo when you "follow" this blog.  For those of you who are already followers (thank you), refer a friends to follow & you'll both get 50% off!  Make sure you let me know that you referred them so that I can apply your credit.

Photos of the Past

I spent this afternoon & evening scanning some very old photos onto my computer.  Actually, I'd estimate there are close to 200 photos & I still have another box that needs to be scanned.  Many of these photos are near 100 years old & some are even older.  I look at these photos, with their cracked & faded images & I feel a reverence to know that these were real people who lived long ago.  In some cases, I know their names & maybe one or two things about their life but I will never know who they really were.  Their personality, interests, the day-to-day things about them are lost.  These photos are the only things, still on this earth, to help us remember them.  I want to preserve these photos so that generations from now, people can look back & see that these people did really live.

Father's Day

I never knew my Grandpa Lender.  He passed away when my dad was only 4yrs old.  My dad has a few pictures of my grandpa but almost no pictures of the two of them together.  Earlier this year, I ran across a picture of my grandpa holding my dad when he was only 3wks old.  Unfortunately, it had see a lot of rough years & was in pretty bad shape.  I decided to fix it up & give it to my dad as a Father's Day gift.  One of the challenges was that the original photo was only a 2inch square.  I wanted to give my dad a framed picture that he could enjoy so I had to alter the properties just right, so that I could get a larger picture without loosing quality.  There was also a lot of damage done to my dad's face which took a bit of time. 

In the end, I was able to print the photograph as a 7inch square & I framed it in a 8x10 frame with a black mat.  I can't wait to give it to him on Sunday.

 

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Giveaway & discount winners

This list is mainly for me, so that I can keep track of those who have earned discounts or free stuff from the DEALS of the WEEK.  It should also help those who have entered, see if they have won, if they happen to miss the winners blog.


Susan Ossola ... $30 restoration/edit        from May 23-30, 2010 drawing *redeemed*
Rebecca Gardner ... 50% off                     from beginning of May *redeemed*

Deal of the week

Suggest my Facebook page to your Facebook friends & receive a free Special Effect up to $20.  Please leave a comment here or on my Facebook page so that I know you've suggested the page.

Timeless Images Facebook Page

Deal of the Week

So this week I was thinking I'd offer a buy one get one free on all photo editing & restoration work.  Obviously, the free one is of equal or lesser value.  Use it to repair old photos from your grandparents or add a new look to your favorite family photos. 

Did you know that you don't have to live locally to have your pictures worked on?  You can email them to me & I can work from a digital copy.  Just scan the image with a 200 - 300 resolution.  That way, your pictures will have a high enough quality for larger prints.

Changing the look

I'm trying to dress up my blog but I still want it to look professional.  I used to have the page solid black but I decided to try a background.  I can't decide which I like better so I'm wondering what you think.  Do you like this pink & brown background or the black background better?

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

And the winner is .........  Susan Ossola!

Thank you to everyone who participated in this giveaway & have helped me to get the word out about my business.  I plan to do more giveaways in the future so keep checking back.

Only 1 day left

Well, tomorrow's the last day to enter to win a free restoration.  I'm actually surprised that more people haven't entered, but maybe nobody has anything that needs restored or edited, right now.  I guess that just makes the odds really good for those that have entered.  Maybe I'll try another giveaway, down the road, & see if I can draw more traffic. 

Good luck to those of you who have entered.  I'll announce the winner on Sunday (Monday at the latest).

Enter to win a free restoration or edit, up to $30

This week I thought I'd offer a free restoration or edit, up to $30, to one lucky person.  The $30 can also be used towards a larger job.  You have until Saturday, May 29th to enter.

There are 4 ways to enter so you can get up to 4 chances to win:

1. Follow this blog & I'll include your name in the drawing.

2. Become a fan of my Facebook page, then come back & leave a comment on this post.  If you're already a fan, just leave a comment here.

3. Post about this giveaway on your blog, then come back here & leave another comment.

4. Post a Facebook status about this giveaway then leave a comment on this post.

Gardner Photo

It's always a lot of fun to watch a photo come back as missing pieces are filled in.  This photo was particularly challenging to fill in the details in the arm & hair but at the same time rewarding when it's completed.

 

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Deal of the week

I just received a photo, from a customer, that is missing quite a few pieces.  It's going to be a challenging but fun photo to work on.  Because of it, though, I won't be posting any other photos for the next week.


The deal of the week is:  $10 off for each customer referral that results in a sale.  Have them mention your name & I'll keep a credit for you.  This offer will run through May 22, 2010.

HDR

I took this photo at the Thanksgiving Point Gardens & added an HDR Saturated effect.  I love this look.  I love the original picture but it's also fun to play with different options.

 

Original Photograph

 

HDR More Saturated effect

Too many people!

In April I took my kids to the Tulip Festival.  The gardens were so beautiful but there were way too many people.  Most of my pictures have at least 1 stranger in the background, so I decided to take them out.  It takes a bit of time so I don't know how many of my pictures I'll actually do, but here's the one I did tonight.

 

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New photos

So tonight I wanted to play around with my new Bamboo Craft.  It's a lot of fun & I can be so much more accurate when editing photos.  I found some old photos of my grandma (isn't she a hottie) & decided to see what I could do with them.  They were in pretty good shape other than being faded & turning brown.  Some of them had torn edges but that was about it.

 

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