Martyn Posted January 15, 2023 Share Posted January 15, 2023 Hoping I can get advice on correcting an image in Photoshop ! I have no idea what caused the fault line in this negative, it hasn't seen the light of day since I took it in the late 1980s ! It is the only frame on the film that has the fault and I can only assume something was between the camera and my friend. I only use Photoshop for basic corrections and have little experience of using layers which I suspect may be required here ... and I have no doubt to many in the forum, it will be a very simple straightforward fix ! Any advice on how to darken the bottom half of the image to match the top half and removing the dividing line, in simple terms, will be much appreciated ! Thanks in advance. https://postimg.cc/F71gc4HR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted January 15, 2023 Share Posted January 15, 2023 Hi Martyn, It looks like a chemical stain to me, like a liquid had stayed too stagnant for a bid too long. In any case, I would use a variety of tools in PS to smooth and blend the line. Maybe I could download and take a crack at it. The hardest part would be the line going through the woman's hair. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 15, 2023 Author Share Posted January 15, 2023 2 minutes ago, Michael Ventura said: Hi Martyn, It looks like a chemical stain to me, like a liquid had stayed too stagnant for a bid too long. In any case, I would use a variety of tools in PS to smooth and blend the line. Maybe I could download and take a crack at it. The hardest part would be the line going through the woman's hair. Hi Michael, I did wonder if it was caused by a chemical stain but it's odd that it only appears on that one frame and obviously not caused by a low level of developer in the tank initially as the line would run top to bottom and not left to right ... it would also be on every other frame as well ! Please feel free to experiment with it !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted January 15, 2023 Share Posted January 15, 2023 Have a look at this. Not perfect but some improvement. You can download it by clicking on the down arrow icon in the lower right of your screen. Sorry, had to convert to JPEG to upload to Smugmug. https://venturaphoto.smugmug.com/Other/SAM/ 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 15, 2023 Author Share Posted January 15, 2023 Thank You very much for doing that Michael, a vast improvement on the original ! Very much appreciated ! I really need to start improving my Photoshop knowledge ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jill Morgan Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 I took a quick stab at it as well. To get a really good image would take a bit of time, but would be able to be saved. https://i.postimg.cc/3rnFv11V/martyn.jpg Jill 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 I've not tried to fix your photo, but if you want to try yourself I would first recommend selecting the dark area using the lasso tool then modifying the selection to soften the edge. You can then create an adjustment layer, type levels, which will apply to the selected section, and increase the exposure, while maintaining a true black and white. If your selection is not as you want it you can bring up the layer mask and increase its size by painting over it, or reduce its size by erasing. It's often best to soften the brush type and reduce the % transparency of the tool used, suck it and see, you'll learn by experimenting. Hours of creative fun ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 Thank You Jill and Bryan - I will have a go myself later as well as a learning session ! I also downloaded the version that Michael worked on and with an extra bit of minor tinkering, the fault can no longer be seen ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 (edited) An interesting forensic case as to what caused the fault if you have the mind for it- which unfortunately I do. Unusual on b/w but could it be fading- has something been laying on top of the neg while it's been exposed to light? Can't think how it would affect only the one neg though, unless it actually does affect the preceding/following negs on the strip and it's not noticeable. Or a piece of paper has caused bleaching. Can you see if the increased/reduced density continues into the base fog in the rebate? Of course if they were well stored, and I bet they were, none of that could happen. The only faults I have from 1979 are some tarnishing and staining, probably due to insufficient washing when I was learning how to do it. Incidentally the two items I recall we were required to buy for college were a copy of Langford's "Basic Photography" and a System 4 universal tank. Edited January 16, 2023 by spacecadet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 10 minutes ago, spacecadet said: An interesting forensic case as to what caused the fault if you have the mind for it- which unfortunately I do. Unusual on b/w but could it be fading- has something been laying on top of the neg while it's been exposed to light? Can't think how it would affect only the one neg though, unless it actually does affect the preceding/following negs on the strip and it's not noticeable. Or a piece of paper has caused bleaching. Can you see if the increased/reduced density continues into the base fog in the rebate? Of course if they were well stored, and I bet they were, none of that could happen. The only faults I have from 1979 are some tarnishing and staining, probably due to insufficient washing when I was learning how to do it. Incidentally the two items I recall we were required to buy for college were a copy of Langford's "Basic Photography" and a System 4 universal tank. Strange you should say that ... I was wondering the same thing myself ! I will have a look next time I delve into the negative files to see if that frame is on the end of the neg strip and have a look at the rebate as well ... if so, it could be that it was half poking out of the sleeve and the light was slowly fading that half of the negative ... if not, it maybe the case that something was covering the negatives bar that small piece and the light was on it as you suggest ... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Ventura Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 6 hours ago, Jill Morgan said: I took a quick stab at it as well. To get a really good image would take a bit of time, but would be able to be saved. https://i.postimg.cc/3rnFv11V/martyn.jpg Jill I like your version better than what I was able to do! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 So, I have just pulled the neg from the file and it was originally cut into two adjoining frames to fit into the sleeve. The two images side by side are of two different friends and they were both sitting in the same place a few minutes apart so that rules out my original thought that something got in the way of the lens or there was a perspex partition that was in the way of half of the image even though I would not have took the pic if that was the case ! The other frame of the other female friend does not show the same fault so that also rules out anything like a perspex screen being in the way ... it is just that one frame. I lined up the end negative with the fault with the lip of the neg sleeve and it is almost a perfect match so I think Spacecadet is quite correct in that that particular end frame was poking out of the sleeve and had light on it whilst in storage. There is no sign of it on the film rebate but then the rebate is clear and probably wouldn't show anything anyway. I took a quick rough and ready shot of the strip of two poking out of the sleever and you can see the two lips of the sleeve and the fault line which is a close match ... mystery solved I think !! https://postimg.cc/t7tY7qTJ https://postimg.cc/CnYTWVT6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, Martyn said: So, I have just pulled the neg from the file and it was originally cut into two adjoining frames to fit into the sleeve. The two images side by side are of two different friends and they were both sitting in the same place a few minutes apart so that rules out my original thought that something got in the way of the lens or there was a perspex partition that was in the way of half of the image even though I would not have took the pic if that was the case ! The other frame of the other female friend does not show the same fault so that also rules out anything like a perspex screen being in the way ... it is just that one frame. I lined up the end negative with the fault with the lip of the neg sleeve and it is almost a perfect match so I think Spacecadet is quite correct in that that particular end frame was poking out of the sleeve and had light on it whilst in storage. There is no sign of it on the film rebate but then the rebate is clear and probably wouldn't show anything anyway. I took a quick rough and ready shot of the strip of two poking out of the sleever and you can see the two lips of the sleeve and the fault line which is a close match ... mystery solved I think !! https://postimg.cc/t7tY7qTJ https://postimg.cc/CnYTWVT6 Not so fast, Watson! The bit poking out prints lighter, so it's denser. On the assumption that bleaching reduces density, surely it should print darker. This is a three-pipe problem, methinks. Edited January 16, 2023 by spacecadet 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 31 minutes ago, spacecadet said: Not so fast, Watson! The bit poking out prints lighter, so it's denser. On the assumption that bleaching reduces density, surely it should print darker. This is a three-pipe problem, methinks. Well, that's true, thinking about it so my conclusion is ... I have no idea what caused it !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 1 hour ago, Martyn said: Well, that's true, thinking about it so my conclusion is ... I have no idea what caused it !! .........unless the bit poking out is the original density, and the bleaching was caused by the material in the actual sleeve, which is an alarming thought. But it does look a lot like the line of a shadow. Hmm Another pipe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 22 minutes ago, spacecadet said: .........unless the bit poking out is the original density, and the bleaching was caused by the material in the actual sleeve, which is an alarming thought. But it does look a lot like the line of a shadow. Hmm Another pipe? Well ... that's possible I guess but unlikely ... although the particular sleeve that negative was in was a very old sleeve sheet from the 1970s so it wouldn't be of an archival type, the type that has a semi transparent backing paper with the double transparent plastic sleeve itself mounted on top of it ... but if that was the cause then I would have a lot of bleached negatives ... not that I would notice if they were bleached evenly over the entire frame ... hmm indeed ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 16, 2023 Share Posted January 16, 2023 (edited) I don't think it's the plastic either, the glassine type are much more problematic. We're not going to crack this one, it's not as if you can do a quick test. Edited January 16, 2023 by spacecadet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn Posted January 16, 2023 Author Share Posted January 16, 2023 17 minutes ago, spacecadet said: I don't think it's the plastic either, the glassine type are much more problematic. We're not going to crack this one, it's not as if you can do a quick test. It would kind of make sense though ... if the sleeves are fading the negatives due to a chemical reaction and the end of the negative that was poking out escaped that chemical reaction / bleaching, then it would appear lighter when printed as a positive which is how the positive did appear ... so it's a possibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marianne Posted January 17, 2023 Share Posted January 17, 2023 I can sympathize. I thought all my old film from college was well preserved in negative sleeves in a looseleaf binder kept on a shelf in my well ventilated and dark office closet. Well, turns out the negative sleeves were glassine although so far the B&W look okay. The slide sleeves (plastic) left some sort of spots all over the slides - it happened to more than one batch, so don't think it's from poor washing. Moreover, I had the transparencies professionally processed after the first two batches because it turns out I was quite allergic to the color (Ektachrome) chemicals. First time it felt like I had food poisoning or a severe stomach virus which then cleared up within a day. Next time, it happened again and my professor (who happened to be there that time) and I realized it was the chemicals, so I got permission to have the local camera store process my transparencies. No issue when printing thankfully. However, the first batch I processed have now turned all purple/mauve and I doubt they are salvageable (beginner's disaster). Nearly a month's worth of travels throughout Europe, but I also have B&W and some prints. The colors of the rest are pristine, so hoping I can address the spots. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 17, 2023 Share Posted January 17, 2023 (edited) 11 hours ago, Marianne said: the first batch I processed have now turned all purple/mauve and I doubt they are salvageable Probably insufficient stabilisation (pickling in formaldehyde, essentially). The dyes are more permanent nowadays and don't need it. It also affects all pre-80s MP (movie) prints except Technicolor, but I have seen clients recover very good results from pinked archive with Photoshop-type tools, as long as it hasn't gone too far. If they're of any interest or value, scan them soon! My glassines back to 1979 are holding up well too. No slide spots either, but quite a bit of my Super-8 has fungus. Edited January 17, 2023 by spacecadet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marianne Posted January 17, 2023 Share Posted January 17, 2023 7 hours ago, spacecadet said: Probably insufficient stabilisation (pickling in formaldehyde, essentially). The dyes are more permanent nowadays and don't need it. It also affects all pre-80s MP (movie) prints except Technicolor, but I have seen clients recover very good results from pinked archive with Photoshop-type tools, as long as it hasn't gone too far. If they're of any interest or value, scan them soon! My glassines back to 1979 are holding up well too. No slide spots either, but quite a bit of my Super-8 has fungus. Pix taken during a trip to Europe during my winter break senior year 1979-80, developed in January 1980. Scanning is a winter project I need to set up soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted January 18, 2023 Share Posted January 18, 2023 14 hours ago, Marianne said: Pix taken during a trip to Europe during my winter break senior year 1979-80, developed in January 1980. Scanning is a winter project I need to set up soon. Just the same time as mine. "Scanning", of course, means DSLR copying nowadays. Plenty about that on here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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