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How to remove 'foxing' from old paper

4525 views18 repliesLast post: 10/30/2012
howpaperremoveold
@Brian_Peart
2007-01-12 15:45:37
I have to scan 34 B/W engravings from an old book (printed 1883). Over time the paper has aged and turned brownish with many brown foxing spots in the image area.

Any ideas on how to 'drop out' these foxing spots would be most helpful.

Thanks in anticipation.

Brian
#1
@Brian_Peart
2007-01-12 17:20:48
Hey thanks! Not heard of Pixentral before, but I think I've done it okay - here are the URLs for the two images I put there:

< http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1Jsylxn3Pc2QFqhysk pu4U57hsAADG>

< http://www.pixentral.com/show.php?picture=1d779C4GSCElQJvfpt SXEKC2K4Hgk81>

Both of these images are crops out of the same original. Most of the rest of the scans I need to do are worse than this example.

In the first picture the area of interest is the top left where you can clearly see the foxing spots, in the second picture, scroll down to the area of the hat and the boys legs...

If I use the red channel only, (its an RGB scan) the foxing shows less.

Thanks for your interest!
Brian
#3
@Brian_Peart
2007-01-13 17:24:56
Yes that's about the best I can come up with too! I guess it will have to do...

Its just that I seem to remember reading about how to remove stains (including ballpoint pen) from (B/W) photos etc somewhere, and that there was a really good trick to sort of drop out a colour, but I can't find it. Never mind, I'll do as you suggeted and I'm sure I can do a good enough job.

Many thanks for your help! I appreciate it.
#5
@Bernie
2007-01-13 17:29:42
Rubber stamp?
#6
@Talker
2007-01-14 17:13:00
On Sat, 13 Jan 2007 11:26:07 -0800,
wrote:

Color Deconvolution plug-in from 4N6site.com might be what you saw concerning removing the blue.. However I have had no success trying to get this "FREE" plugin.. sure looks interesting though..
I found it at < http://photoshop.pluginsworld.com/plugin.php?directory=adobe &software=photoshop&plugin=1035> and followed the "more info" link.. if you are able to get it, let me know how you did it!

Hello "Granny". I went to that site and if you go here http://home.planet.nl/~ber03728/4N6site/improc/decoplugin/re quest.htm It asks for your e-mail address and a few other bits of information, then they will e-mail you info on the filter....or e-mail the filter, I don't know. I just filled in the info and I'm now waiting to see what they do.

Talker
#8
@Granny
2007-01-14 20:33:54
Talker wrote:
It asks for your e-mail address and a few other bits of information, then they will e-mail you info on the filter....or e-mail the filter, I don't know. I just filled in the info and I'm now waiting to see what they do.
Talker

Been there, Dun that, waitin fer three weeks now!!
After waiting for a week tried again useing a different addresses, STILL waiting..!

My thoughts are the site is no longer around (because the email or 4n6 links are not clickable)... or... maybe they don't recognize hotmail in the Netherlands

Then again, I am not affiliated with anything and this ol' retired butt has no intention of being affiliated... which may have something to do with it... Oh well, as my grand kids say, "Whatever!!" (Hmmm, maybe they just don't like 4n-ers trying to get sumtin "Free")

Hope you have better luck
Granny
#9
@Talker
2007-01-15 03:44:32
On 14 Jan 2007 12:33:54 -0800, ""
wrote:

Talker wrote:
It asks for your e-mail address and a few other bits of information, then they will e-mail you info on the filter....or e-mail the filter, I don't know. I just filled in the info and I'm now waiting to see what they do.
Talker

Been there, Dun that, waitin fer three weeks now!!
After waiting for a week tried again useing a different addresses, STILL waiting..!

My thoughts are the site is no longer around (because the email or 4n6 links are not clickable)... or... maybe they don't recognize hotmail in the Netherlands

Then again, I am not affiliated with anything and this ol' retired butt has no intention of being affiliated... which may have something to do with it... Oh well, as my grand kids say, "Whatever!!" (Hmmm, maybe they just don't like 4n-ers trying to get sumtin "Free")
Hope you have better luck
Granny

Nah, I doubt that I will. The link is dead, so they must have removed it from the site. If you go to the Digitization plugin download page, you will notice that the end of the URL is "getit.htm" If you then go to the Free Fourier Transform Plugin page, there is also, no link to download it, but if you look at the URL there, it ends in "main.htm" If you remove the main.htm and replace it with getit.htm, it will take you to the download page. If you do the same thing with the Color Deconvolution URL, it gives you a 404 error, so I guess they took the plugin down.

Talker
#10
@Brian_Peart
2007-01-15 15:16:20
Thanks for your replies, guys!

The Colour Deconvolution looks a bit powerful but I didn't try to download it! (It wasn't the solution I had seen previously). However, I think Fred's solution above is what I'll stick with, it works nearly perfectly, plus if I then take just the red channel, convert it to greyscale and take the levels to black and white, I get a really good result that will certainly please my client.

So thank you, thank you, thank you, to all for your help!

This is a good forum, isn't it!
#12
@Talker
2007-01-15 18:57:19
On Sun, 14 Jan 2007 22:44:32 -0500, Talker wrote:

On 14 Jan 2007 12:33:54 -0800, ""
wrote:

Hope you have better luck
Granny

Nah, I doubt that I will. The link is dead, so they must have removed it from the site. If you go to the Digitization plugin download page, you will notice that the end of the URL is "getit.htm" If you then go to the Free Fourier Transform Plugin page, there is also, no link to download it, but if you look at the URL there, it ends in "main.htm" If you remove the main.htm and replace it with getit.htm, it will take you to the download page. If you do the same thing with the Color Deconvolution URL, it gives you a 404 error, so I guess they took the plugin down.

Talker

I guess I spoke too soon Granny. I just received the filter via e-mail, and I used one of those throw away accounts like Hotmail or Yahoo.
Maybe you should fill out their form again, and this time, where it says "Affiliation", just fill in "Housewife". Try it and see what happens.

Talker
#13
@Fred_Nirque
2007-01-15 19:57:12
I forgot to suggest that if all the images are similar you could also record the steps as an action and batch process the lot at the same time very quickly.
#14
@Richard
2007-01-16 02:28:16
Talker wrote:
On Sun, 14 Jan 2007 22:44:32 -0500, Talker wrote:

On 14 Jan 2007 12:33:54 -0800, ""
wrote:

Hope you have better luck
Granny

Nah, I doubt that I will. The link is dead, so they must have removed it from the site. If you go to the Digitization plugin download page, you will notice that the end of the URL is "getit.htm" If you then go to the Free Fourier Transform Plugin page, there is also, no link to download it, but if you look at the URL there, it ends in "main.htm" If you remove the main.htm and replace it with getit.htm, it will take you to the download page. If you do the same thing with the Color Deconvolution URL, it gives you a 404 error, so I guess they took the plugin down.

Talker

I guess I spoke too soon Granny. I just received the filter via e-mail, and I used one of those throw away accounts like Hotmail or Yahoo.
Maybe you should fill out their form again, and this time, where it says "Affiliation", just fill in "Housewife". Try it and see what happens.

Talker
FWIW, I just got one as well. I told him I am not affiliated with anyone because I am not.
There is also reference made in the email, to another filter in the works which will be provided free to anyone who contributes, financially - makes a donation.

--
Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com
#15
@Granny
2007-01-16 07:27:58
wrote:

My thoughts are the site is no longer around (because the email or 4n6 links are not clickable)...

Hope you have better luck
Granny

Sorry about the confusion with the ability to obtain the Color Deconvolution Plug-in from http://4n6site.com/ ..

They are indeed active and have sent me an email alerting me of my inefficiencies and explaining why I had not received the Plugin..

I had used my pseudonym "Grannys Playhouse" and they did not believe that was my real name and would not send the plugin without a "Real" name..

MY BAD!!! (now I am curious as to how they know if my real name that I have sent them is my real name???)

After all this I hope I am smart enough to use the plugin, if and when I get it...

Granny
#16
@Brian_Peart
2007-01-17 23:04:02
Wow! Those results are very good!

I have made two test scans for my client using the method outlined by Fred and they both looked good. I like the "Photoshopness" of the procedure and I learned from it which is always good.

However, I am in a production situation and a tool like the deconvolution plug-in could be very useful, so I'm going to check it out too. The tests you did are very impressive.

Thank you both for your time and suggestions.

Brian
#18
@Administrator
2012-10-30 13:21:51
The problem has been fixed! Thank you for your report!
#19
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