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newbie says hi from Canada's west coast

Started by LindseyH, May 17, 2012, 10:57:38 PM

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LindseyH

Hi everyone! I just joined the community today! I'm SO excited about being accepted and getting started.

I experienced first hand the potential loss of all my family photos and memories when my mom's house burned down a week before Christmas just last year (2011). She lost a lot of stuff but I was able to rescue all the family albums (which, incidentally were in the hottest part of the fire) and I've recovered over 7,000 photos, and counting, so far.

I've worked with Photoshop since the first day it was released and I've been learning photo restoration for a few years. Since working with my mom's photos, though, I've discovered I still have a TON to learn but I love doing this kind of work and I'm thrilled to be able to help.

From the ashes our memories will be recovered.

Looking forward to meeting you all and sharing tips and ideas.

Keep on keepin' on xoLindsey
Lindsey

Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life ~ Pablo Picasso

Mhayes

Hi Lindsey,

Welcome from Kansas. We are so happy that you have joined and sounds like you could give us some tips on restoring photos from a fire. Fires are the one thing that we don't get many photos, because it ususally burns them up.

So sorry to hear about your mom's house, but how great that you were able to recover so many photos. How did you manage to do that and not have them melt on the spot. Because of your experience it will give you empathy for the ones we help after a disaster.

Look forward to see more of you on the forum as it's a great place to pick up tips and also a fun place meet others.

Margie
"carpe diem"

Margie Hayes
OPR President
[email protected]

Hannie

Hi Lindsey,

A warm welcome to the forum from Amsterdam and so sorry to hear your mother's house burned down.  It will be a great comfort to your mother to see have some of her mementos restored back to life by you.

You will feel right at home here restoring photos for flood victims.  These photos have a different kind of damage and are quite a challenge sometimes.  The forum is a great place to share tips and ask for an extra pair of eyes.

Hannie 
Hannie Scheltema
Distribution Coordinator
[email protected]

LindseyH

Hi Margie and Hannie, Thank you for your welcoming and responses!

Yes, it was really shocking to get the phone call about the fire. Fortunately my mum and her husband were NOT in the house at the time!

The albums were badly damaged and burned but I guess they were so tightly packed the pages protected the photos. It was quite the experience rooting through the burned timbers and ashes and finding photos intact.

There's a lot of fire, smoke AND water (from the firefighters) damage but they weren't destroyed completely. Something I want to let people know....if your house burns you might still be able to rescue the pics - don't write them off right away!!

Once I got them home I put them in my deep freeze (which was empty thankfully) and was able to work at them a bit at a time. The freezer kept them from moulding and further degenerating.

It's interesting to find that the newer photos didn't fare as well as the old black and whites. I guess there are more chemicals used in the paper and processing than there were back in the early days.

Anyway, now I'm chomping at the bit to get started with OPR.

onwards and upwards!
Lindsey

Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life ~ Pablo Picasso

Mike S.

A hearty welcome from Michigan Lindsey,

Sorry to hear about the fire at your mother's house but very glad you joined.  You have first hand experience that will help you in restorations for OPR.  You also will be able to learn from all the information on the Forum.

Thank you,

Mike
Mike S.

Pat

Hi Lindsey,

I like your statement:

"I've worked with Photoshop since the first day it was released and I've been learning photo restoration for a few years. Since working with my mom's photos, though, I've discovered I still have a TON to learn but I love doing this kind of work and I'm thrilled to be able to help."

It's wonderful that something we love doing can bring so much satisfaction not only to ourselves but to others, and is also an unending learning experience.  

We are so glad you have decided to join us and we look forward to exchanging tips, tricks and techniques, with you on the forum.

Pat  

Pat

"Take a deep breath and think of the three things you are grateful for, right in this moment."  -MJ Ryan Author

Bambi

Hi, Lindsay:

A big welcome from Las Vegas. It's great to meet you and I look forward to working with you. You are so right about the old photographs. The very old ones printed from negatives on good paper hold up the best. With newer prints, the ink is just stacked on the paper and tends to smudge and smear when they get wet. Great tip about putting them in the freezer!

I started in Photoshop 4 (not CS4!), but I have learned everything I know about photo restoration from the people who have already posted their welcomes and the other experts at OPR. You will never get better problem-specific personal instruction than we all get on Forum. You're gonna love it.

Bambi

glennab

Hi Lindsay

A very warm welcome from West Central Florida.  How awesome of you to be willing to share your time to help others with your Photoshop skills in the midst of trying to salvage your family's history after the fire. Your skills and help will be much appreciated, and with your experience, I suspect you'll be on the forum helping volunteers with their challenges as much as vice versa.

It's great to have you with us!

Cheers,

GK
What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal. ~Albert Pine

(Photoshop CS5 /Mac Pro)