Lost Gallery: Out of the Darkness - Rescuing Old Tintypes

Rescuing some old tintypes.

For some, an old photograph loses its charm when "restored" to modern day clarity with all the age spots removed. Some photographs however, benefit greatly from just a nudge of enhancement. An improved contrast or the reversal of the yellowing brings out details that otherwise would have been missed and lost forever.

To please both camps of those who rescue old photographs, here are both the originals and the enhanced of just a few of the latest additions to Lost Gallery.

The old tintypes need a little boost sometimes. Instead of fading, the light parts of the photograph darken. By nature, a tintype is a bit dark to begin with.

Eventually, over time, depending on the care given them, they are lost in the dark shadows of obscurity. Here are a few that were brought back by adjusting the contrast a bit.

They are enlarged slightly for this page too. It's for the details.

And here are some other BACK PAGES featuring the TINTYPE photograph:
Tintypes - Page Three
Tintypes - Page Two
Tintypes - Page One (This One)
And here are some interesting examinations:
Out of the Darkness - Look what I found
Out of the Darkness - A Set from a Bag
Out of the Darkness - Special Group

This one really improved.

This is like a tintype except it is not on tin. It is on a black card that looks like a stiff sheet of plastic. It is poorly trimmed and very small, about 1.5 x 2.5 inches.

I am not certain if the stain in the lower right is on the photo or IN the photo.

Another thing different about this one is that it is a candid snapshot not a carefully posed studio portrait. New materials, faster cameras.

The tiny tintypes were often placed in a paper matting as you see here. The mat made them less likely to be lost and the actual surface of the print was handled less.

Here, only the photo was enhanced slightly, the matting was left as it is to retain the feeling of its age.

Now, is that a beard or a fancy collar?

This one wasn't too bad to begin with.

This one I took a bit further. All tintypes are actually reverse-image because of the nature of the process. The photograph is actually the negative. (The shirt buttons are on the left.)

So this one was reversed to correct that and then converted to grayscale. A few more details emerged.

Although you can make out where the belt loops are stitched and see a four hole button peeking out, the detail of the buckle is still obscured.

Yes, I repaired this one just a bit.

Can't get enough?
Here's More!
Out of the Darkness - Rescuing Old Tintypes - Page One
Out of the Darkness - Rescuing Old Tintypes - Page Two
Out of the Darkness - Rescuing Old Tintypes - Page Three
Out of the Darkness - Rescuing Old Tintypes - Page Four (This one)

And here are some interesting examinations:
Out of the Darkness - Look what I found
Out of the Darkness - A Set from a Bag
Out of the Darkness - Special Group

The most popular photographs An album of the most requested photographs in the Lost Gallery.

Area 51 and a Half You are probably not authorized to see these.

Don't take my picture! Oh! You DID didn't you! This is a collection of photographs that disappear on the way home from the photo processing shop.

And don't miss
Cabinet Card Gallery
One Man's Treasure
Penny Tales
Square America
Tattered and Lost
Vernacular Photography
The best
FOUND PHOTOGRAPH
sites on the web.

And for postcards try
THE DAILY POSTCARD.
POSTCARDY

THE KIDS It is always a mystery how a photograph of any of these precious children could end up lost or abandoned. Here are a few. You will probably say "Ooh..." at least once.