Caring For Your Photographs And What To Do When It’s Too Late
For photography enthusiasts, their photographs are incredibly important. And the idea of misplacing or damaging them is very stressful. However, the best way to ensure this never happens is by taking precautionary steps.
Everything from how and where you store your photographs determines your photo prints' longevity and condition. Here are some tips for taking the best care of your pictures and what you can do if your photographs end up damaged!
What Causes A Photo To Deteriorate?
To understand how to preserve your photographs, it’s essential to grasp what factors cause the most damage. This will make prevention easier.
Multiple environmental factors such as humidity, temperature, and sunlight can damage your photos’ quality and cause them to fade. When you place your photographs in places that are prone to temperature fluctuations (such as the basement or attic), they’re likely to crack and separate from the base of the paper. Along with temperature highs and lows, dust, grime, and moisture can also sneak into your photographs, leading to your pictures sticking together and eventually ripping apart when you try to separate them!
How Should You Store Them?
Insulation is key to the well-being of your photographs. So, it’s essential that you do not store them in low insulated areas such as the basement or attic. You also run the risk of insects and rodents getting into your photographs and causing further damage.
To ensure your photographs are safe, store them in an area with only 50% humidity and a consistent temperature of 65 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. We understand this is difficult to achieve at your home, so if your photographs hold high sentimental value and you can’t afford to lose them, it would be best to keep them away in a storage unit.
A great way to store your photographs is also by keeping them in a lignin and acid-free album specifically designed for storing pictures. Make-shift photo storage objects such as zip-lock baggies or cardboard boxes are not suitable for long-term use and will eventually cause irreversible damage to your photographs.
You should also separate your negatives from your photographs so that if anything happens to your original pictures, you can still get them reprinted through the original negatives. Similarly, storing digital copies of all your images ensures you can reprint images if negatives are not available.
Ask The Experts
If you're dealing with faded photographs, you shouldn't be disheartened. Thanks to modern editing technology, you can have your old photos retouched and bring them back to their original state. However, this is a job best suited for a professional.
At Heritage, we use cutting-edge editing software administered by industry professionals to give you the photo retouching and restoration services that you need. We also specialize in photo scanning services, so you can rest easy knowing you have a digital backup of all your favorite photographs! Contact us today to learn more about our prices and availability.