Along with yesterday’s suggestion of focusing on the story, if the photos cannot be made “perfect” enough, embrace the flaws and use what you have. Here are some examples:
Background: Vintage planes in flight. The day I took these photos it was bright but hazy and my camera had issues focusing. Additionally my lens had some dirt on it and there were some hot spots in the photos.
To fix the photos: I first tried to color correct the photos. Then I used Unsharpen Mask. I then cropped the photos to focus on the planes. I then reduced the size of the photos to try to reduce the fuzziness.
End result:
Background: Trip to the local racetrack. The day was overcast. My child doesn’t have a steady hand using the camera, so a number of the photos were both dark and slightly blurred from shake.
To fix the photo: First I color corrected it using Auto Tone and Auto Color. Then I used Unsharpen Mask and a High Pass filter to sharpen it. Then I noticed the colors clashed (bright reds and bright blues next to light greens), so I converted the photo to Black and White. Then I adjusted the Brightness/Contrast. Finally, I cropped the photo to draw more attention to the main subject.
End result:
While every photo may not “perfectly” capture a memory, preserving the memory is the important thing when scrapping. Preserve the story and embrace the photo you have.
Kits used:
Planes: Month in Review: February by Wisteria Moments
Horse: Month in Review: March by Wisteria Moments; horse: modified from Ann Ominous Designs
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