Club notes 9 – Repairing torn photo

Repairing damaged photo revisited

The photo used in this exercise had a piece torn out and in a separatefile, we started working with this picture.

Duplicate the layer, just in case, Ctrl-J.Use the Magic Wand (W) to roughly select all the area surrounding the
part of the photo.
Use the Quick Mask (Q) to tidy up the selection with a small slightly
soft edged brush.
Q to revert to normal view.Invert the selection.
Duplicate the selection on to a new layer with Ctrl-J.

Drag across to the main picture with the Move tool (V), this will
create a new layer. Rename this by clicking on the word 'Layer 1',
call it 'piece'.
Activate the background layer and then duplicate it.
Locate the piece layer in the correct position using Edit | Transform
| Rotate. This will enable moving the piece to its new position and
rotate it, but not to change it otherwise.

Select the Stamp tool (S) and set the Sample All Layers tick box in
the Tool Options bar. Work round the edges of the inserted piece, but
sample areas from the Background Copy layer.

Make a selection round the good chair leg, probably with the Polygonal
Lasso tool (L),
Duplicate the selected area to a new layer with Ctrl-J then move it
over the damaged chair leg.
To cope with the difference in colour, add a Layer mask then with the
default colours (D) and a Foreground to Transparent gradient, drag
upwards from the bottom to the top of the new leg.

Select the Patch tool (J) ensure the Source button is selected in the
Tool Options bar and the Transparent tick box is NOT selected..
Drag round the scratches and then move the selection over an area
where there are no scratches. Repeat as necessary.

Select the Lasso tool (L) and set Feathered to about 3 px in the Tool
Options bar.
Make a selection round the good foot on the left (make sure the
Background Copy layer is active!).
Duplicate the selection with Ctrl-J.
Edit | Transform | Flip Horizontal and then move it across to the
other foot. Use Edit | Transform | Free Transform (or Ctrl-T) to make
and small adjustments.

After all that, I decided that the most important part of the picture,
showing the heads, was relatively undamaged so it might have been as
well just to fade out the rest.
Draw an ellipse round the faces and invert the selection.
Then select the Gradient tool (G); choose the Radial gradient check
the Reverse check box in the Tool Options bar and then set the default
colours (D).
Layer | Layer Mask | Reveal All and then drag the gradient out from
the middle of the selection.
However, that would not have been so much fun and would not have taken
up the evening session would it?

I need some ideas for next month's session please.