Water damaged photo restoration: what to do and what we can fix
Water damaged photo restoration starts with one piece of good news: a photo that got wet can very often still be repaired. The stains, the ripples and the cloudy patches look final, but most of the time they are not.
There is more good news. You do not have to fix, clean or flatten anything first. Whether it is one portrait or a stack of water-damaged pictures from a flooded basement or a leaking roof, we work from a picture of your photo, just as it is, stains and all. It starts at $38 per photo, and a photo in worse shape does not cost more.
What to do with a wet photo right now
If your photo just got wet, it is safest to do very little. Try not to pull apart photos that are stuck to each other. Try not to rub or wipe the surface, even gently, because a wet photo is soft and marks easily. Keep it away from a hair dryer, an iron and direct sun. Lay it flat, picture side up, somewhere clean and dry, and let it dry by itself.
These are the gentlest things you can do, and you do not have to get them perfect. Once your photo is dry, take a picture of it the way it is, stained, curled or both. That picture is all we need.
If the damage is old and your photo has been dry for years, there is nothing to do first. Please do not try to clean the stains or the mold yourself. We take them out of the restored picture, so your photo itself can stay just as it is.
Photos stuck together or stuck to the glass
If you have photos stuck together after getting wet, please do not pull them apart, and do not try to pry a photo off the glass of its frame. Part of the photo can come away with the glass. A photo stuck to glass can stay right where it is. Take a picture of it through the glass, in its frame, in daylight. Stand so that the window or a lamp does not show in the glass. If you see a reflection, move a little and take it again.
With two prints stuck together, we have to be honest. We work from what your picture shows, so we cannot see a face hidden under another print. The print on top can still be restored, so take a picture of whatever is visible. If you cannot get a clear picture, or you would rather send us the original, write to us and we will sort it out with you.
What water damage we can repair
Water leaves its own kind of marks. You may see brown or yellow stains, water lines, and cloudy or washed-out patches. Colors may have run or faded, and there may be mold spots. There can also be small areas where the surface of the photo lifted away, torn or missing corners, and ripples or curled edges that show in the picture you send. Our artists restore old family photos every day. We can fix nearly anything, and a stain across a face is ordinary work for them.
If water washed a part of your photo away, the artist carefully rebuilds that part from what is left around it.
You are not left guessing how it turned out. You see your restored photo before anything is final. If something does not look like the person you remember, tell us and we work on it again, free. If we can't get it right, you get your money back.
How to take a picture of a warped or curled photo
A photo that dried curled can crack, so please do not press it flat under books or force it open. Leave it the way it is. Put it on a table near a window in daylight. Hold your phone straight above it and fill the frame. Then check for shine or shadow across the photo. If you see any, turn the photo or move a little and take it again. You do not need a scanner, and your original never leaves your house.
When you order, you can leave a note for your artist. Tell us what the stain is hiding, or what matters most to you: a face, a dress, a uniform. A few words are enough.
What it costs for bad damage, or for a whole box
The price does not depend on how damaged your photo is. You choose your artist: $38 or $58 per photo. If a whole box got wet, there is a discount when you restore three or more photos. The photos in a box do not all have to be done at once. It is fine to start with the one that matters most and come back for the others later.
You choose the speed at checkout. Most orders are ready in 2 to 5 business days, delivered by email. If you are in a rush, there is a 24-hour option, and the faster options cost extra. You see the exact price before you pay. Every order comes with unlimited free revisions and a 100% money-back guarantee.
If you would like a new print to replace the one the water ruined, prints start at $10, and nothing is printed until you have approved the restoration. The first step is a small one. When your photo is dry, take a picture of it with your phone, and we will do the rest.