Time conquers everything, but it seems to have a much deeper effect on old photographs. Storage problems, heat, and humidity combined with constant handling can ruin beautiful memories, and in extreme cases, make them almost disappear. Fortunately, there are several AI-based projects that aim to restore old and damaged photos in just a couple of clicks. The AI Picture Restorer developed by the folks at Hotpot is one of them.
The web is full of tutorials that teach how to restore photos in applications like Photoshop, and there are also professionals who work magic when they sit in front of the computer... but users want more "automatic" solutions, so to speak, and that's where artificial intelligence comes in. Previously we talked about Photo Enhancer from MyHeritage, which showed excellent results; however, today we offer an alternative: AI Picture Restorer, especially prepared to restore old and damaged photos.
Learn how to restore old and damaged photos with AI Picture Restorer
Its website doesn't have a very advanced interface, to say the least, and honestly doesn't need one. All you have to do is upload the photograph to process and indicate whether it has scratches. The process takes no more than 90 seconds, and once finished you can download a copy, use a system to enlarge the image (also with AI) or access Snapfish.com's printing service. The credit system is only for commercial use, and its free mode delivers photos in low resolution.
Logically, results vary a lot depending on how extensive the damage is. In our first test, AI Picture Restorer did a solid job removing the most pronounced lines, and created a version that seems barely mistreated. In contrast, the second photo received some interesting corrections in the hair, but it failed to process certain folds, the girl's arm looks injured, and part of the damage in the photo ended up merged with the background.
The developer himself admits that it "cannot replace an expert" for more advanced restorations, and targets end users with simpler requirements. The algorithm works with color or black and white photos alike, and the maximum reported resolution is 1280x1280 pixels. Beyond its limitations, I think you should go to the AI Picture Restorer portal, upload some photo and try it yourself. You might end up surprised...
Official site: Click here
