At 7:55 PM -0500 6/7/06, Buster J Wilson wrote: >May I ask a question of a how to nature. I have photographs that >have writing on the back. The pencil marks have faded but I think >that I can see smoe indentions left in the paper. > >How can I retrieve the marks? > >Thanks a bunch. > >Buster Jack Wilson Take a digital picture of both sides of the photograph. Use a good digital camera and set it for the best image possible (most likely a tiff image). Load each image into your computer in a good graphics program. View it. It should be far too large to view all at once on your monitor, but that is fine. Very carefully study where the indentions are. You should be able to make out the words with this large image. If your graphics program will allow it, change the image from color to grayscale (millions of colors) and see if the indented words are clearer. Good luck. Charlie

I also suggested to Buster to try and scan the back of the photograph and if he has Photoshop, to invert the scanned image. I know indentations are different than marks...but as I told him, I've had great luck getting photos out of my mom's old 1940\1950 negatives that I can't get anyone to develop by scanning them in and inverting them in Photoshop. Additionally, when one wouldn't make a good scan, I've taped it to a window, (for a light source), tried photographing it like that, I've also had to go so far as taking a magnifying glass in one hand, digital camera in the other and making the photo or person in the photo "larger" and taking a picture with the digital camera while aiming the camera lens through the magnifying glass to view the photo. It don't ALWAYS work, but I've come up with some amazing results on photos I thought I wouldn't get anything out of. But - there again, "indentations" are different than markings. But I offered to try it for him if he wanted to scan in the back of one and send it to me. The bright light of the scanner may very well "wipe out" any photo image of the indentations. But ..it's worth a try. Love ~Carol