On 22/01/2018 00:55, Tony Cooper wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jan 2018 18:10:00 +0000, "David B."
wrote:

Hi

My elderly sister managed to send me a photograph today of our
grandfather. It was taken before he was killed during the first World War.

Here is a copy of same:- https://imgur.com/a/7XRdW

How best can the image be improved?

I suggest you post it at https://www.photoshopgurus.com/forum/ .
Requests like this are handled routinely in that forum, and some of
the results are spectacular. Make sure you title your post to include
that you want an old photo reconstructed.

In your post, specify that you would like to know what steps were
taken in the reconstruction, and that you would like to be able to
follow those steps yourself. State what you will be working with (eg:
CC2018, PS6, Elements, Lightroom, etc)*

Some of the "gurus" there will do the reconstruction, but if you ask
to be informed of the steps they'll provide screenshots. Even if you
want to take on this project yourself, you'll pick up some tips from
this group if someone takes on your project.

What you start with is going to greatly determine what you end up
with. The better your scan, the better starting point you have. The
higher the resolution at the scanning, the better the result. It
takes longer, but this isn't an issue with one photograph.

Hi Tony

Thank you so much for your link. I've been there to have a quick look
and have also enroled on the forum. I'll be returning for sure!

I've always thought that Photoshop is for 'professionals', not for
everyday 'home users' like me. Is it something that would make a world
of difference over the facilities now included with Apple's 'Photos'
software?
This looks like a photograph of a photograph, not a scan. The
lighting is poor and too much to the right. The depth of field is too
wide open. The focus point seems to be the lower right edge. Unless
you have a copy stand and the right lighting, a good scan is a better
starting point.

You are quite right! My sister took a photograph of the old snapshot
with her new iPad Pro and, after a number of failed efforts, was truly
delighted when she discovered that I'd received the image!

She's never used a computer nor a smart phone - EVER! It's a
considerable learning curve for an 81 year old! ;-)

Actually, you have a good subject to start with. Except for your
grandfather's lower left leg (on the right viewing the image), there's
no real need for reconstructing damaged or missing areas. The crack
across the face is a simple fix with the right software.

At Photoshop Gurus you aren't guaranteed that someone will work on it
unless you offer to pay, but most free requests get good responses.

That good to know, Thank you for your advice. :-)

*This is something you should do even in a newsgroup post. Without
knowing what tool box you'll be working with, people can't really give
useful instructions.

That's something I'll try to remember. I haven't any additional tools
above and beyond those included with Apple's High Sierra.

I did once experiment with GIMP on my old iMac but found it rather
complicated to use. Perhaps it's an age thing! ;-)

Once again, thanks for helping.

--
David B.