Christmas Surprise #2

Christmas Surprise #2 was crazy-fun! 

For years, the framed original had been displayed on a table-top, along with other photos.  One of the other photos had blocked the sun, which is what caused both the fading and the harsh line across the image.

A little digital magic of layering and blending colors of varying opacity, gave us a color image. Then adding a touch of a soft pink blush and lipstick resulted in an image that accurately reflects this woman's beauty.

Christmas Surprise #1

I've been eager to post the before/after of Christmas projects I was working on, but have had to wait until after all Christmas celebrations have passed since each of these was a surprise!!

Pictures were "snuck" (a universal Christmas activity) out of the unsuspecting surprise recipient's home and brought to me for some repair and restoration; and in this case, just a bit of imagination.

Perfectly Framed

I always appreciate the thoughtfulness of the folks I get to work with, and this was certainly no exception.  The project was brought to me by this gentleman's great-great-(great?)-granddaughter-in-law. She is a librarian, so  it shouldn't have been a surprise that she is  attentive to historical details.  But let's just say, I was impressed!

Love Is...

It was 1933 and he was 24 when they got married.  That is young by today's standards when marriages are delayed until we graduate from college, begin our careers, and check a variety of things off our to-do-before-we-have-children lists.

Katrina

2005.  Hurricane Katrina was one of the five deadliest hurricanes in our nation's history.  It caused over $80 billion in property damage.

This wedding photograph was just one piece of history, severely damaged during the storm, but lovingly salvaged and now carefully restored.

Little Picture - Big Job

Some projects are easier than others.  And some that don't seem to be big are actually huge.  That's the case here.  

The original is only 2" x 1.5".  The size, along with the amount of damage, made this photograph one of my tougher restoration projects.  I'd love to actually breathe a sigh of relief, but I have another project in the works that makes this one look like child's play.

Soulful Eyes

Some stories are happy.  Some are sad.   Some are silly.  Some  are completely make-believe.  And unfortunately, sometimes, the stories are nothing short of tragic.  So it is with this young boy with the deep, soulful eyes.

As I worked to uncover and brighten his young face, I kept wanting to rescue him.  To make it better. 

Home on the Range

I wanted to be a cowgirl.  You already knew that.  But my time as a cowgirl was, in reality, just dressing like a cowgirl.  It was make believe.

You see, I lived in town.  Even though Granddaddy bought a couple of old horses and a pony for the grandchildren to ride, there weren't any bandits or stagecoaches or herds of cattle to drive across the range.  We had no tumblin' tumbleweed.  We weren't cowpokes.  We were just kids.  

Not so for this young boy....

Like Father, Like Son

 I love days like today.  First of all, after so many days of excessive heat, humidity, and unrelenting sunshine, it rained.  A cool, refreshing rain that was heralded by glorious thunder and lightning.

Second, this football picture project is nearing completion and has been a total delight.

Hawaii Circa 1970

This turned out to be quite a project.  I merged three images taken in Hawaii over 30 years ago.  The color was so distorted in the originals that I had to decide on an artistic direction. 

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Lots of rain then.  Lots of rain now.  Lots. 

The year was 1979. I had  purchased my first SLR (Pentax K1000) and was in a photography class at Bellarmine College in Louisville.  Eager to practice what I was learning, I headed out with friends to The Great Balloon Race which kicks off the Kentucky Derby {cue  My Old Kentucky Home}.

But morning came early, and it was cold.  And it rained.  And rained.  And rained.

When I Grow Up

Somewhere I read that when we are toddlers, we interact in our world in a more genuine manner than we do as we get older.  As a toddler, we don't hesitate to laugh, to cry, even to have a tantrum - emotions perfectly appropriate for our current situation.

I also read that at about the age of three, we begin to understand that the important people in our lives expect us to behave in a certain way. We want to please them, so we try to conduct ourselves in a manner that we believe will make them happy.

What's the Point?

 When you look at this image, it's hard to imagine it began as....

  

Before and After: The New 'Do

The big reveal for the haircut was Sunday afternoon.  She was at our house for her brother's birthday dinner and after cake, I snapped these pictures of her new hairdo.  As soon as I uploaded them, I was reminded of a toddler version of my daughter with bangs and a bob haircut and a perky headband.

Grandpa's Cream Route

The original picture is from the late 1800's and was printed on a postcard.  It has been stored in one of those "magnetic" albums, but fortunately, there was no adhesive on the face of the image.

Sweet Smiles

I've had the opportunity to meet some really wonderful people through my business of restoring vintage photographs.  This little baby with such a sweet smile is now a mom whose son who has a personality and imagination that reminds me of my son.

Color Adjustment (2)

Like my last post, the greatest challenge in this restoration was the color.

Moderately simple changes in tone and contrast began to reveal details lost in the original. The best surprise in these details was her eyes.  They are spectacular!

Horses, Carriages, and the Derby

I have a special affinity for horses and carriages.  Maybe it comes from my little girl dreams, fueled by Saturday morning westerns, of becoming a cowgirl.  Or maybe it comes from growing up in Kentucky where once a year, the stage is set to watch magnificent thoroughbred horses compete in the Kentucky Derby. 

I Recently Learned

Lessons learned in making an oversized birthday card:

1.  Think about how you will ship it.  Not only think about it, but check to see what size boxes and/or shipping envelopes are actually available in your area.

2.  Keep the dimensions "standard".  (see number 1).

3.  Don't procrastinate (nor keep adding on to the project so that it doesn't get completed in time to mail)

4.  Bite the bullet and ship it anyway.  (see number 1, 2, and 3)

Gone Fishin'

One of the best parts of today's technology is that it allows me to enhance an original photograph, bringing out details and features so that the story is more clearly told.

In the original 2 x 3" snapshot from about 1945, the young woman displays a remarkable grace even while hauling in her catch of the day.  From what I understand, this was likely the one and only time she ever went fishing.  Her passion, then as well as throughout her life, was art - certainly not fishing.

Using a variety of digital tools, I was able to bounce digital "light" back onto her face, illuminating her features while preserving contrast in the remainder of the scene.  The finished print is 8 x 12, and in it, you can clearly see the little fish, the stripes in her dress, as well as her wonderfully fashionable shoes.

This photograph makes me long for warmer weather.