It's the only copy we have
The oldest photos in a family almost never have negatives or backups. A wedding portrait, a great-grandparent's face, the house your family grew up in: there's one print, and it's been sitting in a box or an album for decades.
When that print starts to fade, crack, or tear, it can feel like the people in it are fading too. Old photo restoration is about keeping those faces and moments in the family for another generation.
Faded, cracked, and torn
Time is hard on photographs. Light fades the image, bending leaves cracks across faces, and damp storage brings spots and stains. Corners tear off, and tape from an old repair turns yellow and leaves marks.
Restoration brings back detail that has faded and repairs the cracks, tears, and spots that time added. A photo that looks washed out or broken can often come back clear enough to frame again.
Photos damaged in a fire, flood, or burst pipe need a different approach, covered under damaged photo restoration.
Handle the original gently until then
It's tempting to fix a torn photo with tape or glue it back into an album. Both usually make things worse. Tape yellows and stains over time, and glue can damage the image permanently.
Keep the photo flat in an envelope or folder, out of direct light, until it can be restored. Our Akron team logs each photo in our care, so you always know where your family's pictures are.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a very faded photo be restored?
Often, yes. Even when a print looks almost blank, detail can usually still be recovered from it. How much comes back depends on how far the fading has gone. Each photo is looked at before work begins, so you know what to expect before anything is done.
Will restoring the photo change my original?
Old photo restoration is usually done from a careful high-resolution scan, so the repairs are made to a new restored copy rather than to the fragile original. You get back your original print along with the restored version.
What about photos stuck in old "magnetic" albums?
Those self-stick albums were popular for decades, but their adhesive and plastic can yellow photos and make them hard to remove. Don't pry stuck photos loose, because that can tear the image. Leave the whole page or album intact, so the photos can be worked on without forcing them off.
How should I store old photos until they're restored?
Keep them somewhere cool, dry, and dark, like a closet shelf inside your living space. Avoid basements and attics. In our area, those spaces swing between damp and hot through the year, and that cycle is hard on old prints. Store them flat, in paper envelopes or archival boxes rather than plastic bags.
Can a torn photo be fixed?
Yes, in most cases. Tears, creases, and even missing corners can often be repaired so the damage is hard to see in the restored version. Keep all the torn pieces together in an envelope, even small ones, because they help the repair.
Locally owned and operated by Jeff Sitz and Brian Rick from our Akron office at 1477 Copley Rd.