"Easy" to start?

[mermaid331]

Hi, Everybody,

What a nice group of people!

I am a newbie from the Los Angeles area; haven't done restoration in some years, so am feeling pretty intimidated at the moment!  It would be best to start out with something on the less difficult side.

Could someone help me out?  I have read a description of what is thought of as "easy".  But when I go to look for easy pics to start out with, I don't see any gallery or area that contains the described "easy" selections.  Perhaps there is only a definition of easy photos but no particular way of finding them?  Or I am completely missing something??

Also I would just like to say I am incredibly impressed by the work I see here!

Thanks for any help given,

Mermaid331

[glennab]

Hi Mermaid from LA!

Welcome from Florida!  Be not intimidated! You have a world-wide group of new friends to help you.  There's always someone ready to jump in if you have a question. And I can tell you that it took me a while to even post, because not only was I not sure whether what I'd done on my restore was acceptable, I'd never been on a forum before.  Everyone was helpful, and in the nearly four years I've been with OPR I've never seen anyone's efforts disparaged.  If something needs adjusting, you'll get observations and suggestions - whatever you need to get the job done and feel good about it.

As for judging easy vs. difficult: it's a matter of looking through the galleries and choosing an image that looks do-able to you.  I noticed a few in the galleries (last time I checked) that don't look too bad.  Try to choose photos that have mostly intact faces and objects that are identifiable and only have a few cracks or spots.  Recreating faces and body parts is a bear unless you're an artist, and even then you're still guessing.  What you'll create, as we've all had to do at times, is the best representation you can of a person, but not a true restoration.

Some of the photos will have gnarly color casts, but not a lot of damage otherwise.  If you know color-correction techniques, those are often the least difficult. 

Unfortunately the photos never look as bad in the galleries as they do when you download them. That's a size thing as well as a bait-and-switch tactic of our ever beloved distribution coordinators.  We've learned to live with their apré-choice damage delights. We can't get them under control, so acceptance is the best way to go.  Post in the galleries for a photo that you want to try, dive in, and post if you're not sure what to do at any point.

Good luck.  I'm glad you've joined us!

GK

[Hannie]

Hi Mermaid, welcome to the forum!
Glenna said it all, of course the last paragraph is not true.   I only send out photos of the best quality, a joy to restore I can assure you!  :halo:

(Don't hesitate to try one, if it turns out to be a real doozy you can return it and we place it back in gallery again!)

Hannie

[Tori803]

Hi Mermaid,

Welcome! You're right about the galleries - nothing 'easy' in there right now. When I can't decide on one, I look for an image where the main subject (usually people) is in pretty good shape and most of the work will be in fiddling around with the background. Once you decide you can ask for suggestions on where to start or what to do if you get stuck. I like to start by duplicating the image and then checking out the RGB channels, the CMYK channels, and the LAB channels to see if there is any detail hiding somewhere. Then I usually do Levels and Curves (on adjustment layers). When I start healing, cloning, or patching, I try to use a non-destructive technique like using the healing brush on a separate layer with Sample set to "All layers" or at least by duplicating the layer. I don't know about anyone else, but I do a lot of 'undo'-ing! So, feel free to jump in and get your feet wet!

Tori

[Mhayes]

Welcome to the forum Mermaid331. We are happy you joined and don't let the hard ones in our galleries scare you off. In the beginning, photos were classed as to their difficulty. It's easier this way to keep families together and when a new crop of photos are added, there are generally some easy ones. If you pick an easy one and then faint from shock when you see the photo up close; you will know if was not an easy one!  >:D Drop us a line and let us know you are waiting on an easy one and we will keep you posted when new patch of photos has been added. Another thing you might want to do, pick a photo that you would like to try, but not sure of how to tackle it: Ask for the photo to be downloaded and then post to the forum and ask for help on restoring. This will be a great way to get different tips on how to get started. Also, should you ever get a photo that is too difficult for your--let your distributor know and she will put it back in her gallery. All of us have had photos that just didn't work out.

Above all else, have fun as you will meet some great people who love to help out!

Margie

[mermaid331]

 :)
Hi, Everyone, again,

Just wanted to say thank you SO much for taking the time to write back and give encouragement and also the procedural/workflow advice!  Sometimes it helps just to be able to think where to begin.

It's sort of amazing what taking a few minutes to exhibit kindness can do, and I thank you for your help!

Mermaid331