 BetterPhoto Member |
Old photographs I don't now if this is the site, but I sure hope someone can help me. My mother died a few years ago and I'm just now going through her photos. I came upon a very old picture of my great grandmother that was taken about 90 years ago. The problem is it looks green around the edges. I don't remember it ever looking green when I was little. I called a person at a photography place and he seemed to think that from my description that it was MOLD. It doesn't look like mold, but he said that it was some sort of chemical reaction to mold that gave that color and that over time, I wouldn't have a photograph at all. He also said that there was no hope and eventually destroy the photograph. I'm heartbroken! Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can do?!
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Alan N. Marcus |
Hi Jay, To make a diagnosis based on your description is difficult. If the picture is indeed 90 years old, that dates the picture 1918. Likely it is a gelatin print on paper. The image is made up of microscopically small flakes of metallic silver. The black areas contain copious amounts of silver, gray areas a lesser amount, white areas none. The metal is dispersed in clear, transparent gelatin which is the glue that holds the mixture tight to the paper base. Gelatin is made from animal bone and connective tissue. Thus it is nearly pure protein, a wonderful culture media for microorganisms. Airborne spores, both animal and vegetable eventually find a way to begin munching away. However, likely they will not limit activities to just the edges. One explanation is, the print paper being cut at the edges allows moisture to wick into the interior. Thus the edges provide both nutrient and moisture. Other possibilities: Paper is hydroscopic and absorbs contaminants along with moisture. Maybe the picture was mounted in a metal frame with a copper content. Another possibility, silver gelatin prints were often chemically treated via a process called toning. The toned print was intentionally given a hue, likely brown or sepia, however blue and green is possible. Often for aesthetics, the print edges were colored using ink/dye. It is unlikely the print is a Daguerreotype as they were outmoded 40 years earlier. I mention this in passing because the Daguerreotype was made on a silver plated copper plate. Aged copper takes on a green hue. Your best bet is to scan the print or otherwise make a copy. I suggest a digital copy. Have a copy print made. Also it is likely that the damaged print can be chemically restored. Check the web for such services. Best of luck,.
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doug Nelson |
A skilled( or even semi-skilled) photographic retouch person can do wonders with this photograph. Photographic specialty shops often have people on call who can do this. It needs to be scanned at least 300 pixels per inch resolution (if you want the final product to be twice as big as the original, scan at 600 pixels per inch). Using Photoshop, Elements or other imaging program, the stain and any pits or scratches can be dealt with. Quality work is not cheap, but this project is well worth whatever it costs.
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Mark Feldstein |
Greetings Jay: If it were my photograph, I'd call around to some custom black and white labs and ask them for the name of someone or some lab that does restoration work of black and white photos. Without scanning or anything else, just take it or send it to them and let them assess what's gone on with this print. You'll usually find such places in larger cities like NY, Chicago, L.A., San Francisco, etc. IMO, depending on the print and what chemical reactions are occurring here, if any, scanning using an extremely bright light, just might make your problem worse. So, until you really know what it is, as the great Buddah once said, "don't just DO something, SIT there."
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Christopher A. Walrath |
Might I suggest a stop over to www.apug.org. The site is dedicated to film photography and there are more than a few master printers there that deal with alternative and older processes on a daily basis that might be able to either back up these suggestions or offer new ones. Some who might even offer to take care of it for you themselves. Thank you
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