Damaged photos, restored by hand.
Mail in your faded, torn, water-damaged or scratched photos from anywhere in the US. Every restoration is done by hand on a digital copy — your original is never altered. Print or digital delivery. Chicago-area customers get free local pickup instead of mailing in.
What's included
Careful, local, and never automatic.
Color rebalancing
Faded, yellowed or shifted color is gently rebalanced so the restored photo looks the way the memory should.
Tear, crease & water-damage repair
Rips, folds, creases and water stains are repaired digitally — even across a face — and missing pieces can be rebuilt where enough context remains.
Dust & scratch removal
Surface dust, mold spots and scratches are cleaned up without softening the people in the photo.
Your original stays safe
We scan your photo first and return the original untouched. All restoration work happens on the digital copy — nothing is destroyed in the process.
Damage we handle
Every kind of photo damage, repaired by hand.
Fading & discoloration
Yellowed, faded or color-shifted photos rebalanced back toward how the memory should look.
Tears & creases
Rips across faces, folds and creases digitally reassembled and smoothed — even a photo torn in half.
Water & mold damage
Stains, swelling and mold spots cleaned up on the digital copy; the original is returned untouched.
Missing pieces
Lost corners, torn-away faces and gaps rebuilt where enough surrounding context remains.
Scratches & dust
Surface abrasions, dust and emulsion damage removed without softening the people in the frame.
Black-and-white colorization
Natural color added to black-and-white photos on request — interpretation, not recovery.
How it works
Three steps, start to finish.
- 1
Ship or drop off your photos
Request a prepaid mail-in kit and send your photos from anywhere in the US, or schedule free pickup if you're in the Chicago area.
- 2
Restoration by hand
Your photo is scanned at high resolution, then color, tears, creases and scratches are repaired by hand on the digital file. Heavy damage is quoted individually before work begins.
- 3
Review, print or download
You review the restored file and request any tweaks. Order it as a digital download, a USB drive, or a printed and framed piece — your original photo is mailed back to you.
Pricing
Clear pricing, counted at pickup.
You only pay for what we actually scan — we hand-count everything together at pickup and again at return. See full packages on the homepage.
Custom restoration
from $5 / photoTears, creases, fading, water damage and missing pieces — quoted individually so you know the cost up front.
Manual sharpening
$0.10 / photoCrisper focus on soft or blurry prints. Optional add-on, never automatic.
Colorization
add-onAdd natural color to black-and-white photos — available as a checkout add-on.
FAQ
Good questions, straight answers.
Do you restore photos by mail, or do I have to be in Chicago?+
Both. Request a prepaid mail-in kit and ship your photos from anywhere in the US, or if you're within about 30 miles of downtown Chicago you can get free local pickup and return instead.
Will you change my original photograph?+
No. The original is scanned and returned untouched (or mailed back if you shipped it in). Every repair is done on the digital copy, so your physical photo is never at risk.
Can I get the restored photo printed, not just digital?+
Yes. Restored photos are available as a digital download, on a USB drive, or as a print — including framed options.
How much does restoration cost?+
Custom restoration starts at $5 per photo and is quoted individually based on the damage, so you approve the cost before any work begins.
Can you fix a photo that's torn in half, water-damaged, or missing pieces?+
In most cases, yes. We reassemble torn or water-damaged pieces digitally and can rebuild missing areas where enough context remains. Heavy damage is quoted before work starts.
How long does restoration take?+
Restoration adds a few days to a standard order. We'll confirm timing based on the number of photos, shipping time, and the extent of the damage.
Get a free quote
Bigger jobs, bulk discounts, anything weird — let's figure it out.
Our packages cover most orders, but if you've got boxes of slides, a wall of albums, or a stack of tapes that won't fit a preset, tell us about it. We'll send a custom quote — usually within a day.
- • Custom pricing for 500+ photos or 3+ tapes
- • Mixed-format collections welcome
- • Free Chicago pickup, no matter the size