Does film grain get preserved?

Roughly. The repaired strip is often a little smoother than the surrounding grain, though at print size it reads as clean rather than wrong.

What about a crease across a face?

Thin creases over cheeks or forehead usually repair well. Anything crossing an eye or mouth will be reconstructed inaccurately.

Should I scan at high resolution?

Yes, up to the 8000px limit. More pixels around the damage gives the fill more to work from.

Can it fix a missing corner?

It will invent something plausible, but a large missing area is beyond convincing reconstruction. Cropping is often the better call.

Drop an image here

or click to choose: PNG, JPEG, WebP, up to 8000px

Choose image

The cleanup runs on your own device.

Remove scratches from an old photo

Repair scratches, creases and tears on a scanned print. Thin damage over even areas rebuilds well at high scan resolutions.

The short version

Scanned prints usually carry fine scratches and a crease or two. These are thin, which is exactly what suits this kind of repair: trace along the damage and the surrounding emulsion is continued across it. Wide tears through the middle of a subject are a much bigger ask.

How to do it

Scan the print and drop it in.
Trace along each scratch with a modest brush.
Remove, then repeat for anything left.

Questions

Does film grain get preserved?: Roughly. The repaired strip is often a little smoother than the surrounding grain, though at print size it reads as clean rather than wrong.
What about a crease across a face?: Thin creases over cheeks or forehead usually repair well. Anything crossing an eye or mouth will be reconstructed inaccurately.
Should I scan at high resolution?: Yes, up to the 8000px limit. More pixels around the damage gives the fill more to work from.
Can it fix a missing corner?: It will invent something plausible, but a large missing area is beyond convincing reconstruction. Cropping is often the better call.

How to do it

Questions

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