Sharper image?

[Patre]

The three images here attached are the original damaged image and my two attempts at restoring it
I am looking for suggestions on how to give the images a cleaner,sharper, crisper and more
professional look. I am not a digital artist, so I am not confident that I could repaint the faces
in such a way as to improve their authenticity. I used channel mixing, levels adjustments, all of the healing tools and cloning. I worked with the unsharp mask, despeckle and dust and scratches filter, and painted in some flawed areas. I am not sure what I else I can do to give this image a cleaner more professional look.
Any suggestions?
Thanks,
Pat

[glennab]

Hi Pat,

This photo looks like a perfect one on which to use the multiply layer blending mode.  Try copying the original to a new layer and set it to multiply.  I suspect that if you do that at least once – possibly more than that– you'll be amazed at the detail that will appear in the light areas at the top of the image.

In this iteration I duped the layer twice, multiplied it and set the opacity of the two multiplied layers at 50%.  I flattened the image and looked at the channels.  The blue one gave the most information, so I copied it to a new document and tweaked the levels just a bit.  I'd use something like this and just touch it up rather than trying to recreate the faces, because it's preferable to have a little less detail and keep the look of the original.  It needs some masking and more tweaking, but here's my two cents, for what it's worth.



Cheers!

Glenna

[Patre]

Thanks Glenna,
I will give it a try..
Pat

[Ausimax]

 Hi Pat,

Picked yourself a nasty one, Here is a quickie I did, I copied the blue channel and adjusted it with Levels and used it as the base image.

It is only a 6x4 so I would just get rid of the actual spots on the faces, the more you try to do the more detail you will loose, I did a bit on the lady's face. On B&W images the Smudge tool can be quite effective, sometime it is easier to blend an area of spots than with smudging rather than cloning or healing.



And remember to keep checking your work at Print size, it is easy to spend a lot of time removing damage at 100% resolution that can't be noticed at print size.

Max

[Patre]

Thanks Max,
By saving the blue channel, do you mean duplicating it?
I am not able to find the command for saving a channel.
If the image is printed at 4X6 and is 1200 X 1800, should
I view it at 100% resolution? I am not sure what you mean
by viewing the image at print size?
Thanks, Pat

[Ausimax]

Hi Pat,

I hope you are using PS, to copy the blue channel, go to the channels pallet and select the Blue channel, then Select Menu/ select all, then click once on the RGB channel and then Edit/Paste.

If that has worked as desired you will now have the blue channel in your layers pallet where you can use it as the main image.

If you are using the eyeglass tool there should be 3 options on the menu bar Actual Pixels, Fit Screen and Print size - print size will give you a rough view at print size depending on your monitor size, other than that I just use a ruler to measure the size on the screen.

You usually work at 100% resolution but the actual size when printed is only about a third of that size, hope this helps, unfortunately some of my directions are about as clear as mud.

Max

[Patre]

Thanks Max,
Your directions were terrific!!!
I worked on the image using your help,
and this is the finished product.
I don't know that I can do any better.
I'm uncertain as to whether to upload it
to photoshelter.com because the quality
of the image is not very good, although it may be slightly better
than the original. Is it worth submitting this for printing?
Thanks again to all who replied and helped me learn
much more than I ever knew.
Pat

Here is the completered image:

[Hannie]

Hi Pat,

Great job, you managed to pull out a lot of detail!  Good job!
It may be a good idea to try and work a little on the difference in tone in the lady's dress.  That is the only thing that stands out a bit.
How's the weather in Arizona?

Hannie

[Patre]

Thanks Hannie,
Weather is terrific in Arizona this time of year!
Desert is always nice in the wintertime..
Pat

[Hannie]

Pat, Arizona has touched my heart and I will never forget it.  Have spent a lot of time over the years in and around Payson and miss it like crazy.  If I had enough money this is the state where I would retire. 

Hannie

[schen]

Pat,  I see you are doing a great job restoring a very old picture.  There is a gray cast over the halo area around the gentleman's head and the lady's lower dress.  I will dodge over them.  I like the brightness and contrast of the upper-right quarter of the background than the other three quarters.

The picture is old and looks old.  If it is mine, I would prefer to keep the old look.  We do have urge to restore it to a look of today's professional portrait but the original was not.   But it was a wonderful snapshot that kept the most precious thing: "The memory of the love ones".  I am sure the owner will cherish the print from your restoration.

[Patre]

Yes, Hannie, Arizona is a great place to retire. Housing is getting expensive, but cost
of living is still within the range of most people with middle class incomes. Payson
is a wonderfully pined and scenic area...Hope you find your way back.....

Thanks Schen for the kind words!. And for doing some dodge work to make
the image the best that it can be...

All the very best,
pat