2018
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How to Protect and Restore Old Damaged Photographs Written by: Brandon Harris, Smooth Photo Scanning Services
For more than a century, people have used photos to encapsulate their lives and immortalize important moments.
But while today most of the photos are stored permanently online or on our digital devices, not too long ago the only way to save pictures was by using physical images that would find their place in photo albums or photo boxes.
And while having a physical copy of the photo might have some advantages, it has its drawbacks as well. Namely, the fact that physical photos wear down and become damaged over time, even if you try to take good care of them.
Luckily, even if you have a bunch of old photographs, there are things you can do to prolong their life as long as possible and even restore the ones that have become damaged.
To get you started, here are a few things you can start doing as soon as today.
Have Backups
The first and the most obvious way to protect your images from getting damaged or destroyed is to have backups for every single photo.
While this may seem like a big task, it is really the only way to ensure that none of your precious memories get lost forever. Even if you take great care of your photographs, accidents still happen, and some of your pictures will end up damaged or destroyed.
By making backups, you are ensuring that even if a photo gets ruined, you will have backups of each picture and will not lose a single one.
Remove Dirt
Dirt and grime can significantly increase the rate at which photos deteriorate, so you need to make sure that you maintain your photographs and clean them regularly.
Luckily, even if your photos have accumulated dirt already, it is not too late to fix it you don’t need any special materials and can do it in your home, which is great if you don’t have the budget to invest in specialized equipment for photo maintenance.
You can just rinse the photos with water and use a cloth to clean any dirt that’s stuck.
Since dust and other particles get stuck to photographs pretty easily, cleaning them regularly is a must. Otherwise, the dirt will end up causing irreversible damage to the images.
Digitize!
No matter how much effort you put into protecting your physical copies of photographs, it’s almost impossible to prevent them from suffering damage over long periods of time.
Photographs can last for many decades, but in the end, they will succumb to environmental factors and will become damaged or at least lose their original quality.
That’s why the only permanent solution for keeping your photos forever is to use a photo scanning service that transfers the images to your computer where they will remain intact forever.
If you hire a professional photo restoration services provider, he can help you to not only digitize your physical copies of photos but also restore the ones that have suffered damage and return them to their former quality while also improving the colors.
My father has been in the document scanning industry for as long as I can remember. I worked for his company Smooth Solutions, Inc. during summer breaks growing up and for a couple years after college. Wanting to venture off on my own, I gained experience in several careers including wholesale seafood sales as well as owning and operating a bakery for several years. When my father approached me with the opportunity to expand upon his already successful business by providing high quality, professional scanning services to the general public, I jumped on board. From personal experience, I recognize how important it is for most people to have their family memorabilia preserved for future generations and I want to be a part of helping others do that.