When it comes to restoring photos that have been damaged by water, the best course of action is to consult with a professional photo restoration service. Fortunately, these services are able to fix a lot of photos with water damage, and people are often pleasantly surprised by the results. However, if you want to try and restore the photos yourself, there are a few steps you can take. First, gently rinse both sides of the photo in cold, clear water.
Do not rub the photos and change the water frequently. Then, place each wet photo face up on any clean blotting paper, such as a paper towel. If you have heavily damaged photographs, it may be in your interest to take them to a photo restoration specialist. If you do decide to try and restore the photos yourself, start by immersing them in clean distilled water and removing dirt from their surfaces.
Then, place some distilled water on a clean, flat tray and swipe the photo and shake it for 30 seconds to one minute. Use a sponge or swab to see if you can slide the paper. If it works, shake off the drops and dry them in the sun. If your home has been exposed to a flood or water disaster, there are things you can do to help stop water damage.
Start by scanning the image to repair the restoration of water damaged photos. Then, digitally clean small damaged areas as best you can with the clone tool, fix cracks and damaged areas with the Patch tool and smudge correction brush tools. In many cases, these steps will suffice for restoring photos damaged by water. However, if you have heavily damaged photographs, it may be in your interest to take them to a photo restoration specialist. They have the equipment and technicians trained to bring your damaged photos back to life.
