Retouching old photos
using Photoshop tools
Occasionally as photographers you may be asked to retouch some old prints from negative or slides. No matter how good the old photo may be there are always some creases and dust particles to remove. So here we are:
What is the fastest way to retouch an old print?
There are so many different tools for this job. You can use the Healing brush or Clone stamp, but the process is very time consuming.
Here I am going to show you how to use one of the powerful tools of Photoshop:
the Dust and Scratches Filter!
1- Open the scanned image in Photoshop
2- Make a selection around the area containing the dust or scratches by using any selection tool. I prefer the Lasso tool.
3- Then go to FILTER > NOISE > Dust and Scratches and select it.
4- There are two sliders for adjusting the Radius and Threshold.
5- Start with the Radius slider and increase the Radius till the dust and scratches disappear. This makes your selection blurry
6- Now start moving the Threshold slider to bring back the original texture of the selected area. You may have to readjust the slider to get the best result.
Once you’re happy with your adjustments click OK.
7- Now here comes the fun part of it! Select another dusty part of image by using your preferred selection tool. By using the keyboard shortcut Cmd+F (in Mac) or Ctrl+F (in Windows) apply the adjustments to the new selected area! It’s that easy. If you find that you have moved to an area where the last filter setting just isn’t getting it done, hold down Cmd+Option+F or Ctrl+Alt+F to quickly get back to the dialog box and change the adjustment.
Happy editing with the Dust and Scratches Filter!
Do you want to learn more about Photo Retouching? Sign up for our upcoming Photoshop and Photo Editing Seminar. We are going to cover lots of cool tools!
All of us at Omnilargess Services wish you a very Merry Christmas and
a wonderful holiday season. We thank you for your valued business and
continued support. See you in January 2012!
Ted and the Omnilargess team