Restore Yearbook Photo

A yearbook photograph is part of a printed page. Keep a copy of that page, including its caption, before making a separate crop for restoration. Names, the school and the year can be as useful to your family as a clearer portrait.

Capture without damaging the book

Support the book and avoid forcing its binding flat. A photograph of the open page may be preferable when a flatbed capture would require pressure. Check that the camera is square to the page and that glare does not hide faces. Keep the original capture before editing.

Printed dots or texture can remain visible in the scan. A smoother AI output may replace this texture with plausible detail; it does not establish what the camera originally recorded.

Check people and lettering separately

Compare each face, especially in a class or team photograph. Look for changed eyes, smiles, hair and facial proportions. Use the portrait review guide for an individual crop and the family guide for keeping names and versions together.

Transcribe a name from the readable original, not from generated lettering. Mark uncertain names as uncertain, and retain the full-page reference.

Share a clearly labeled copy

Label restoration or colorization when sharing the result. Consider the people pictured and permission for public reuse before publishing a class image. Do not present an illustrative restoration as a verified historical record.

Explore before-and-after examples to understand the kinds of changes that require review.