Making Old Photos of a Pet Who Has Passed Clearer

Start with the best original

• Collect every photo you have, including ones in old phones, messaging apps and cloud albums. The largest, least-compressed version is the best source.
• Photos that were sent through messaging apps are often smaller. If you can find the original file, use it.
• Choose a photo where the eyes are visible, the face is turned toward the camera and the light is even.
• Keep the originals safe. Don't overwrite them.

How to restore an old photo of your pet

1. Look at the problem

   Is the pet photo dark, scratched, faded, small or blurry? A dark photo is a lighting problem, see fix photo lighting. A soft photo is a blur problem, see fix a blurry photo.

2. Try restoration first for age damage

   Upload to Photo restoration, check the price, run it. It repairs scratches and damage, and keeps the original tones.

3. Compare with the original at 100 percent

   Look at the eyes, nose, whiskers, ears and the fur pattern. Does it still look like your pet?

4. If the photo is still soft, try deblur

   Photo deblur has several kinds of blur; pick the one that matches. Its result is at most 1600 px on the long side.

5. Stop when it looks right

   More runs do not always look better. If a result no longer looks like your pet, go back to the previous version.

6. Save the restored pet photo within 24 hours

   After 24 hours the restored pet photo is no longer kept, so download it first. The Privacy Notice says results are fully deleted from storage within 7 days.

What to check against your memory

We tried one old pet photo: scratches and white spots were cleared and the brown, yellowed tone stayed but got darker; after deblurring the fur and face were sharper. Whether the fine fur detail matches the original, you have to judge yourself. If a detail has changed, use the earlier version.

• Eye colour and shape.
• The pattern and colour of the fur: stripes, spots, white patches.
• Ears, nose and the shape of the face.
• Collar, tag or toy, if they were part of the photo.

Limits

• If the photo is very small or very blurry, the tool may not be able to find enough detail.
• The restoration tool keeps the original tones. For colour on a black-and-white photo, use the colorize tool.
• Please do not use a result that looks like a different animal. The original is the real photo.

Ways to keep them

Print the best photo, make a small album, or save the files in two places. Download results within 24 hours and keep the originals too.

Frequently asked questions