Old Photo Restoration Software for Graphic Designers

At first, it can be hard to imagine why old photo restoration software is a must in your editing arsenal. Not many photos are taken that need to be restored. However, think back to the stories you might have heard from others: adventures on the beach, old fishing trips with some unknown celebrity, even stories about spooky locations or childhood homes.

Now those photos? Those could use a touch-up.

How can I restore old photos?

Perhaps one of the easiest editors to use is the photo restoration software by SoftOrbits. This software allows you to do a lot to your old photos.

Are they scratched?

Water marks?

Old spots?

Creases?

The old photo restoration software takes care of it all. Much like each of the programs from SoftOrbits, this is yet another easy-to-use program that you won’t regret trying and buying. Read below for a step-by-step guide that gets you started on your restoration journey!

Step One: Upload

This can be challenging if you don’t have a scanner however, here are some quick options that you can use.

1. Scanner – this is the easiest option if you have a scanner available.

2. Picture – taking a picture of a picture can make an image harder to restore. Try this in a pinch and the upload should still work. You’ll have to either email the photo to yourself, or send the photo to your computer.

3. Google Scan Doc – This is a great option if you use Google frequently. If you have Google Drive, select the plus button in the lower right corner then select scan. From there you can ‘scan’ the image and upload it as a pdf, jpg, or png file.

Once you have the image in a digital format, select add file I the program: don’t forget, you can add as many photos as you want!

Step Two: Identify the Changes

Look carefully using the zoom feature and determine what you want to use. You have several options:

1. Fix Scratches
2. Blend water marks
3. Decrease the look of creases, spots and dust
4. Colorize
5. Reduce Graininess and Noise

​Once you have figured out what it is that you want to do, it’s time to work on restoring your photo. Below, are each of the features broken down so that you can use them on your own photos.

Fix Scratches

In order to fix scratches, you first have to find them. Go to tools at the top of the application, click and select the scratch remover tool. You can either have the program detect scratches or you can use the draw option (the pencil) to highlight specific scratches. You can change how large the blending area is for the scratch by moving the toggle at the top of the

tools’ box. There are also several types of removing styles: my suggestion? Play around with the types to see what fits your photo the best.

Blend water marks

For this option, select the smudge tool from the toolbar. Adjust the size of the brush, the intensity of the blend, and even where to grab colors from in the photo and then begin to blend.

Quick tip here: make sure you take your time to blend out all spots. If you don’t, then you can actually add more spots instead. Always go back to the previous image to make sure that you are blending and making changes that you like!

Decrease the look of creases, spots and dust

For this option, use the concealer tool. Instead of blending spots, this covers the spots with a selected color. This is another area to be careful in: You want to pick the right color.

If the photos are in black and white or really any color, be aware of what color you use to conceal because the photo can look fake instead of restored. Too light and too bright, the image looks overexposed. Too dark, and you begin to loose more details.

Colorize

This tool is a lot of fun to work with. The images still hold enough information for SoftOrbits photo restoration software to accurately estimate the color of the image.

Click the Colorize option, select run, and let the magic happen.