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Is Any Torn Photo Ever Beyond Repair?

3/28/2023

29 Comments

 
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It would be funny if it wasn't often tragic: the family dog chews the photo; a vindictive lover tears (or scissors) up their couple photos only to reunite with their partner; a disaffected child feels unloved so rips up a photo of himself.  Or, the photo was just too much loved and wore out! We have seen (and fixed) all these situations. 

So what is the prognosis for a torn photo?  Can every torn photo be convincingly repaired and what is involved? What can you do if there are missing pieces? Are any images beyond repair?

Assessing a ripped photo: The 5 key questions

When we get a photo which has been ripped apart there are five questions that we ask and that will determine how much time will be involved in the fix. First, do we have all the pieces? If the missing piece is from a vital area (the eyes, the nose or the mouth, for example) then we ask a second question: Can we use the intact information in the photo to help us? For example, one damaged eye can often be repaired by using the other eye.
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If the missing piece is major and involves the whole of the subject's head or another vital body part then we get to the third question: Is there another photo of the same person taken at about the same time. 

If there is another photo of the affected person, then there is a good chance that we can use it to supply the missing information and make a perfect repair.
The fourth question we ask is: what else needs to be done? 

Seldom is the the tear the only problem.  Often there are other issues such as fixing color tone, removing small dust and minor scratches, or most commonly, overcoming earlier repair efforts like the staining and discoloration caused by old adhesive tape. Also common - and easily fixable - is a missing piece from a non-vital part of the photograph.
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Finally, once we have made the repair and carried out other necessary restoration steps, we ask: What is the appropriate paper for the final print? We don't just print everything on high quality gloss paper (although sometimes that is the wisest  choice).  We like to do our best to match the original.  For example, for the 16" x 20" oval portrait of the young lady above we used a cotton based, archive quality, slightly textured matte paper - and it looked totally gorgeous!
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Technical details

So, how do we go about fixing a torn photo? 

We like to scan each piece in high resolution separately. We take care to hold the scanner's color settings constant so that the color tone does not change across the pieces. For information about scanning, see our DIY Scanning page.
We then bring the pieces into Photoshop and carefully trace the outlines of the emulsion, taking care to avoid selecting any of the substrate. We then mask otiose details and arrange each piece on its own layer.  We carefully maneuver each piece into place (using the transform tool as needed) - similar to assembling a jigsaw puzzle.  Once the torn bits are aligned we then clean up the joins with the cloning or healing brush tools. We then attend to the other issues facing the photo - like color tone or dust spots then we prepare and send a "before and after" preview.  Once we have your approval, we make the print and send that along together with a digital copy of the image!

No torn images is beyond repair

Here at PhotoFixRestore, we like to say that no torn or ripped image is beyond repair - but some images may be beyond budget! While we have astonishing photo restoration tools at our disposal, those tools are wielded by meticulous, flesh and blood artists and most repairs just take time to make the restored photo look convincing - as you can see by the samples on this page. To get a fast and free estimate to repair your torn image just contact Peter.
29 Comments
Melissa
10/17/2018 12:37:51 pm

Hello please contact soon as possible. Thank you!

Reply
Jane link
10/18/2018 11:18:56 am

Hi Melissa,
Thanks for getting in touch. I take it you need help restoring a photo. You are welcome to call me on 949-742-2755. You could take a photo of the image using your cell phone and text to that number or email to jane@yourstoryhere.com. I look forward to helping you!
Kind regards
Jane

Reply
Elizabeth Wood link
2/10/2019 11:37:43 am

I have a photo that was stuck to another photo an when it was unstuck the photo was ripped and most of the photo ended up on the back of the other photo so I was wondering if the torn photo was able to be repaired

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Judith stephenson
3/21/2019 10:09:29 am

I have an old baby picture I would love like restored. It has rips and creases in it.

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Laura Stancill
7/21/2019 03:50:41 pm

I have a picture of me and my horse that was taken by a photographer. One of my children tor it up years ago, but I have all but one piece. Can this be repaired?

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Mandy Reynolds
10/8/2019 04:55:28 am

Can you contact me please I need a photo fixed thanks you
from Ireland

Reply
Peter link
10/8/2019 10:45:18 am

Hi Mandy,
Thanks for getting in touch. If you would like to email me at yourstoryhere@cox.net with your contact details we can get started! I look forward to helping you!
Kind regards
Peter

Reply
Jeane
3/15/2020 07:07:10 am

I have an old picture of my great grandmother that got completely ripped in half horizontally, I lost the bottom half but still have the top half. Is there any way to customize a made up body to make it look like a full picture again

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Misty Cook
4/13/2020 02:55:43 am

I have a torn up picture I like to know how much it will cost to get it fixed please email me the amount

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Morayma Garcia link
5/15/2020 08:34:55 am

I have a baby picture that is torn wanted to know if your guys can fix it and how much ?

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Sadaf Naz
7/25/2020 12:25:25 pm

Hi I have ripened pictures please I want to fixe it please

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Fern Link
10/21/2020 05:38:59 pm

I have a ripped photo of my two oldest sisters, that I would like repaired except I don’t have the other half, can you help me? I would also like the picture brightened if possible. It’s a black and white photo . Thank you.

Reply
Kara
11/9/2020 08:12:19 am

Hi there,

I need help. My puppy ripped up one of my boyfriends photos of a departed close friend in a tragic accident. I salvaged as much as I could. It’s a funeral photo so I don’t know how to completely replicate it but I saved as many pieces as I could, can you help me to salvage it and reprint what is there?

Reply
Peter
11/10/2020 02:04:43 pm

Hi Kara,

Just give me a call and let's discuss!

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Catherine May
11/10/2020 11:33:24 am

I need 3 photos fixed

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Peter
11/10/2020 02:03:30 pm

Hi Catherine - just give me a call on the number on this here website!
Best Regards
Peter

Reply
Katrina Robinson
6/25/2021 09:40:47 am

I have a torn photo that I would like fixed would you be able to help with this

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Annmarie
11/23/2021 04:52:50 pm

I need 3 pictures fixed

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Olivia Smart link
3/8/2022 11:10:05 am

Thank you for explaining that tears and discoloration can be easy to fix in torn and damaged photographs. We have a few older pictures of my great grandmother and I've been wondering if it would be possible to restore them since they are so damaged. It seems like they could be, so I'll contact someone to see what could be done to restore them.

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Glenda Majors
5/6/2022 08:02:14 am

I just texted you two pictures to see if they can be restored. I use the number above from some of the other clients I hope that's okay

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Lemuel kirby davis
6/21/2022 08:07:03 am

I have a picture that is torn in half, and can't find the other half can it be restored?

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Eve Mitchell link
9/12/2022 01:04:18 pm

Thanks for mentioning that a tear is usually not the only thing that needs to be fixed in an old photo. I'm hoping that I can get some photos of my grandmother restored. She died when I was 2, but I still have some of the photos from when she was young.

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Albert Peters link
10/10/2022 04:17:48 pm

Answer so charge. Just beyond down edge. Chance many may simply.
To say away collection point however blue. Nor type break past control billion baby weight.

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Bobby Smith link
5/10/2023 12:06:01 pm

Thank you for explaining that tears and discoloration can be easy to fix in torn and damaged photographs. We have a few older pictures of my great grandmother and I've been wondering if it would be possible to restore them since they are so damaged. It seems like they could be, so I'll contact someone to see what could be done to restore them. <a href="https://irepairpros.com/sherman-oaks-ca/">iphone repair sherman oaks</a>

Reply
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5/10/2023 12:07:15 pm

Thank you for explaining that tears and discoloration can be easy to fix in torn and damaged photographs. We have a few older pictures of my great grandmother and I've been wondering if it would be possible to restore them since they are so damaged. It seems like they could be, so I'll contact someone to see what could be done to restore them. <a href="https://irepairpros.com/sherman-oaks-ca/">iphone repair sherman oaks</a>

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iphone repair sherman oaks link
6/1/2023 04:31:47 am

I appreciate your helpful explanation regarding the potential restoration of torn and damaged photographs. It's comforting to know that tears and discoloration can be addressed with relative ease. We possess a few cherished photographs of my great grandmother that have unfortunately suffered considerable damage over time. With the knowledge that restoration is possible, I am now motivated to reach out to a professional to explore the options for restoring these precious images. Thank you for shedding light on this possibility and inspiring me to take action.

Reply



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