Faded Memories Given new Life by Photo Expert

Restoration of pictures supplies link to past

The woman remembered the beautiful picture of her grandmother in the gilded frame. But many years later, when the photo was discovered, crumbling and tattered after it had been in a leaky attic and then a damp basement, the memory seemed destined to be the only thing left of the picture.

But with patience and the help of brushes, plus manipulation in the dark room, Warren Breitlow was able to restore the photo for the granddaughter, who, now in her 70s, was herself "grandma-aged."

Breitlow said what many people like about his Wauwatosa photo studio, located at 7405 Harwood Ave, is that all restoration work is done on the premises. Plus it's a business Breitlow has been in a long time. He did aerial photography in World War II and later worked in the family-run photo business. It has been in operation since 1932.

When a customer in Greendale decided she wanted about 20 old family photographs restored, relatives weren't thrilled about parting with their pictures. "They were afraid with only one copy they could be lost," she recalled.

She said she was aware of some cases in which people had sent off old photographs away through the mail to be restored, and never saw them again. "So before I was willing to part with the pictures, and to assure my relatives they would be safe, I wanted them done on-site," she said.

The Breitlow studio-restored photographs now adorn an entire wall in her home. They include her husband's parents when they were 3 and 4 years old and living in Switzerland, their wedding pictures, and pictures of her family who came from England. She also has two special photographs of an old "mom and pop" grocery store run by her husband's father and uncle long ago in LaCrosse. "Some of the photographs go back three generations," she said.

Our Greendale customer said some of the pictures she took to Breitlow were in bad shape. "One had a huge crack in it. But he knows how to touch up the print to improve the quality," she said.

Each picture that comes in is a time-consuming project. "I use seven different kinds of film. It could take eight to 12 weeks to restore a photo," he said. "You may have to put on 10 layers of color with an airbrush to restore it. That's what takes time. The photo has to dry between applications, so that can take three to four days with each application."

One of the things Breitlow can do in restoration is enlarge and enhance very small pictures. For example, he had a tiny picture of two sisters taken long ago in a dimestore photo booth. He filled in the space around them and then enlarged the picture. Any marks on old photographs can also be removed with brushes and dyes. Airbrushes are often used to erase unwanted things. There are also times when people ask him to add color to an old black and white photo.

Due to different techniques, there are no "hard or fast rules" he follows in the dark room.

"About the only time we are helpless is when they bring in red proofs, which the photographer made so they would get dark. Then the basic image is red," said Breitlow.

With tintype, even if it is dark and the image is very indistinguishable, Breitlow can bring back the detail.

Breitlow said there's always been an interest in restoring old photographs. "The TV series 'Roots' by Alex Haley really got people (into it)," he said.

"We see adults in their mid-20s who bring in a family picture of a group, or a grandmother or grandfather. People often say 'I look just like my grandmother. I want to have a picture of her.' And if you look at the person, you're almost talking to the identical person in that bloodline."

According to Breitlow, people with an interest in genealogy can go through the Mormon Church in Hales Corners and get information about their ancestors. The older pictures fit in with written history, he said.

Often someone will come into his studio with just one photo of a grandparent and ask for copies for the entire family. "They may all share in the cost or give the pictures as Christmas gifts," he said.

For Breitlow, each photo he restores tells its own story. Usually he learns a lot of family history and some fascinating side stories about how other countries keep records. For example, a number of people take trips to Europe to trace their ancestry and are surprised at how complete the birth and wedding records are, despite the wars. "In smaller communities where they get the information, almost always the records were kept in the church. But since there were no basements, records were very often buried in the adjoining cemetery during World War II," he said. "Then later they were taken out in perfect condition."

And there's always a bit of humor in locating information on one's family, he noted.

Sometimes people in the past thought they were being helpful by writing the names of relatives right across the front of old photos. "Inevitably there would be one photo with 'me' written across it," said Breitlow, laughing. "The writing is not very difficult to remove, but it is very time consuming."

Often old pictures are discovered in a house when the relative dies. "Young kids will say 'who is this' and they'll have to rely on older people to tell them about their ancestors," he said.

He had found that regardless of how badly faded or damaged the pictures are, people still want the originals back. But steps can be taken to reduce damage.

His recommendation to people who have a bad picture is put it in plastic or cardboard before it is restored, so no more damage occurs. The best way to keep a picture from fading is to keep it out of the sun. "The main culprit which causes fading is ultraviolet light," he said.

Another thing to be careful of is spritzing an old photo under glass with a glass cleaner. Some people spray a lot on the glass and it runs behind the image itself. "The emulsion adheres to the glass and you'll never get that out," said Breitlow. "A new print will have to be made."

He said the best thing to do if you use a glass cleaner is to put just a little on a cleaning cloth first, or put a bare minimum on the glass.

"When someone brings in a photo, which is damaged, it gives you a great feeling of satisfaction to restore it close to what it used to be," he said of his work.

The amount for restoring a photo can vary, depending on the problems with the photo.

But then again, memories have no price tag.