From the first ediiton for Adobe Photoshop 6

In the following example, I started with a 35-mm slide original. As you can see in figure on the left, the slide has faded, shifted towards cyan and is covered with dust and mold. By applying the following techniques, I was able to transfrom the faded and damaged slide into the final version as seen on the right - making the image as clear and crisp as the day it was taken.

If you'ld like to work along with me please download the file ch4_berlin.jpglow-resolution 496 k or high-resolution 1.6 Mb.

Part 1 -Correcting Exposure and Color

After scanning in the image it is often tempting to zoom in on the most obvious problems in this case the dust and randomly cloning away. I recommend you avoid this distraction and really look at the image. Start by identifying and taking care of the worst global issues first, which in most cases will be exposure and color problems.

1. To correct the fading and color shifts, start by adding a Levels Image Adjustment Layer and define the sidewalk as a neutral gray area with the gray Levels eyedropper to remove the gray colorcast as shown in figure 01. Often this will take out the colorcast, but in extreme situations such as this one it is often very helpful to take advantage of Photoshop Blending Modes. When faced with very light or faded images such as this one, apply the Multiply Blending Mode to the Image Adjustment layer to darken the image and build up density. If an image is too dark or under-exposed use the Screen Blend Mode to make the image lighter and reduce density.

Part 2 - Dust Removal

After correcting exposure and color it is time to take care of the gross dust and mold damage embedded in this image. Try out the following techniques to remove a lot of dust very quickly and easily;

Method 1: Duplicate & Move works very well on large even surfaces such as sky.

1. Select the area with a 2-3 feathered Lasso tool as seen below (leftside shows a full view and rightside is a close-up). Please note Ð making a rough ragged selection versus a perfectly straight helps to disguise the delineation between the moved areas and the untouched areas.

2. Select Layer > New > Layer via Copy to copy and paste the selected area onto its own layer.

3. Activate the Move tool and use the down and right arrows on the your extended keyboard to nudge the new layer down and over 2-3 pixels.

4. Since the dust is darker than the sky you have offset it against use the Lighten Blend Mode to hide dark areas. In case the damage is lighter use the Darken Blend Mode to hide it.

Method 2: Dust & Scratches works very well on surfaces where you need to maintain image texture such as the sidewalk in this image.

1. Select the area with a 2-3 feathered Lasso tool as seen below.

2. Select Layer > New > Layer via Copy to copy and paste the selected area onto its own layer.

3. Select Filter > Noise > Dust & Scratches and start by pushing the Radius setting up so that the worst dust and mold disappears.

4. Then raise the Threshold value up to bring the texture of the surrounding area back without letting the dust show through as shown in the left figure below. Balancing the Radius and Threshold takes a bit of going back and forth but with a bit of practice you can make the worst dust problems disappear, while maimtaining the film grain and image texture.

Both of these methods work very well on areas that are not essential to an image. In other words I would never use them on someone's face.

Part 3 - Eradicating Mold

In this example, the mold damage is larger than the dust and does not disappear with the above described techniques. In order to remove large chucks of mold or dust on essential image areas careful handwork with the Clone Stamp tool is the best method.

I've zoomed in on the image area that reveals extensive mold damage. By using the Clone Stamp tool set to Use all Layers on the New Layer you can clone over the damage without touching the original data. In case you slip or clone over important image information use the Eraser tool to erase the mistake and go back and clone over the area again.

Closing Thoughts:

Whether you are new to digital restoration or are presently translating traditional skills to digital, respecting the original image by working on separate layers will allow you to build up the retouch without damaging the original data. In the end your very best work will always be invisible.