VODOOAI photo restoration: old, torn and faded photos brought back
By VODOO AI · · 4 min read
Most families have a box of photos that are creased, scratched, faded or torn at the corner. Restoring one used to mean a specialist and a few weeks. AI does the repair and the enlargement in one pass: you scan the photo, say what's wrong and how big you need it, and get back a clean version you can print.
This guide covers how to scan well, what to ask for, how to keep faces exactly as they were, and when to leave a photo in black and white.
Start with a good scan
The result can only be as good as what you give it. A phone photo of a photo works, but a scan works better.
- Scan at 600 dots per inch or more, in colour, even for a black-and-white photo.
- If you use a phone, shoot straight on in soft daylight, with no flash and no shadow from your hand.
- Take the photo out of its frame or album sleeve: glass and plastic add glare.
- Scan the whole photo, edges and all. The AI uses the border to judge the fading.
What it fixes, and what it can't
Scratches, dust and spots
- How it does
- Very well
Creases and small tears
- How it does
- Very well
Fading and colour shifts
- How it does
- Very well
A missing corner
- How it does
- Well, if it's background; it rebuilds what is likely there
A face that's badly damaged or blurred
- How it does
- With care: it can change how the person looked
| Problem | How it does |
|---|---|
| Scratches, dust and spots | Very well |
| Creases and small tears | Very well |
| Fading and colour shifts | Very well |
| A missing corner | Well, if it's background; it rebuilds what is likely there |
| A face that's badly damaged or blurred | With care: it can change how the person looked |
Restoration and enlarging happen in the same pass. That matters: doing them separately makes the AI invent fine detail twice, and that's where faces start to drift.
Keep faces true
A restored photo is only worth having if it still looks like the person. Say so in the brief, every time: "keep every face exactly as it is". Then compare the faces side by side with the original before you print.
- Ask for the least invention you can live with. More repair means more guessing.
- If a face comes back looking like someone else, ask again with 'repair the damage only, don't sharpen the face'.
- Keep the original scan. A restoration is a copy, not a replacement.
Briefs to copy
Restore this 1970s family photo: repair the torn corner and the crease across the middle, remove the dust and scratches, bring back the faded colours, and keep every face exactly as it is. Enlarge it for printing at A3.Make this in VODOO →
Restore this old black-and-white portrait: remove the scratches and spots, even out the fading, keep it in black and white, keep the film grain and keep her face exactly as it is.Make this in VODOO →
Fix the colour on this faded 1980s holiday photo of a beach: bring back the blue sky and the colours of the towels, remove the orange cast, and keep the people exactly as they are.Make this in VODOO →
Colour, or leave it black and white?
AI can add colour to a black-and-white photo, but it guesses the colours: a coat that was green may come back brown. For family photos, many people keep the restored black-and-white version and make a coloured copy alongside it, clearly as a second version. If you colour a photo, tell anyone you share it with that the colours are imagined.
Restore your first photo
- 01Scan itAt 600 dots per inch or more, in colour, the whole photo.
- 02Open CreateChoose Restore and upscale, add the scan and say what's wrong and how big you need it.
- 03Compare and printCheck every face against the original, then download it for print.
Start in Create with 300 free credits a month, no card needed. To make a small picture bigger without repairs, see the AI image upscaler guide.
Questions people ask
- Can AI restore a damaged photo?
- Yes. It repairs scratches, creases, small tears and fading, and enlarges the photo at the same time, from a scan or a clear phone photo.
- Will the people still look the same?
- They will if you ask for faces to stay exactly as they are and keep repairs to what's damaged. Always compare the faces with the original before printing.
- Can it add colour to a black-and-white photo?
- Yes, but the colours are a guess. Keep the black-and-white restoration too, and say the colours are imagined when you share it.