November 18, 2011

The lovely Hedwig...



"The Lovely Hedwig"
Heidenheim, Germany



How lucky I am to be related to the lovely Hedwig Hagenmeyer Kammerer!  And so very fortuitous that I came into temporary custody of boxes of archival family photos which I am now in the process of researching, organizing and formatting into a family tree and photo book.  One look at Fraulein Hedwig and it was love at first sight.  This is my great-grandfather's sister, yet I am sure she is my kindred spirit...albeit I'm about 100 years too late!  As usual, I am running fashionably behind schedule.

Look at her sublime fashion sense.  I am sure she would be appalled to learn her beautiful portrait had fallen into such tattered and faded condition.  She probably wouldn't leave the house looking like that! So what is a fashionista sista' to do? "Make it work" as Tim Gunn would say.  So, I gave her a little make-over, and voila!  I think Hedwig would approve.  Actually, I like it so much and am so enamored with Hedwig, I think I am going to splurge and have this baby put to canvas...as a true work of art should be.  Live on my lovely Hedwig, you're forever young!


before:



I have been waiting for the right photo to utilize a raised textured overlay, and this was it.  Plus some tweaks on levels, sharpness, center lighting, vignette...and gosh only knows what else! 






--Kathy

31 comments:

  1. What a beautiful woman; and, an absolutely wonderful job of restoration and texture processing. It turned out lovely. Thank you for sharing, kareninkenai (visiting from PAF)

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  2. You did a fabulous job on this. I am soooo jealous that you have photos of REAL relatives. I have hundreds of photos and postcards - but all just adopted! What a fun project you are working on.

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  3. what a stunning portrait and your overhaul is wonderful.

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  4. Fabulous vintage photo processing. I like very much. Well done :)

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  5. Your editing turned out great. The picture is beautiful. Helwig may be gone but not forgotten.

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  6. What an amazing transformation. Hedwig would be proud ... as you should be too! She looks so stately and regal. The rich colours really add to her beauty. Thank you for sharing this piece of vintage restoration at Photo Art Friday - it certainly deserves to be called art and displayed for all to see.

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  7. Wow, and wow! What an incredible job you did restoring this photo - she is lovely!!

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  8. wow, that is so cool that you came into a box of old photos. love that!

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  9. Beautiful photo, what a gift to have all the family pictures! You will have a treasure when you are done!

    Alyzabeth's Mommy

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  10. My grandfather was a furrier, so this photo jumped up and grabbed my attention. You have done a wonderful work on the lady's photograph. She is beautiful.

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  11. I love what you did with this! Lucky you to have possession of such wonderful old family photographs!! Thank you so much for visiting my blog and following. I appreciate it very much! :-)

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  12. This is just amazing. She's a pretty woman, but what you've managed to do to restore the photo is just incredible. Fashionista is right - she looks the height of fashion now! Great job - your project will be time consuming, but if this is a sample of the results, it will be SO worth it!

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  13. Kathy,
    This is just beautiful!
    It is a stunning portrait to begin with, but your editing adds so much to it. How fortunate you are to have these photographs.

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  14. Indeed she is a charmer and you have certainly done her well. And how wonderful that you have been given this gift of old family photos, what fun for you.

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  15. Doggone it you! Now I have to go dig out old family photos and start editing them. As if I didn't have enough to do! LOL Your work here is truly wonderful.

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  16. Beautiful restoration.
    It DOES deserve to be put on canvas.

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  17. What a great edit! And how lucky to have such wonderful family photos!

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  18. Lovely woman and edit! Love the whole feel of the photo!

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  19. Great job with the photo! And what a treasure! PS: I love your blog title. It's almost time for that movie to be on again!

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  20. This is amazing...Hedwig is beautiful, and how exciting to have these incredible old photos to go through! Your restoration efforts are lovely.

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  21. Gorgeous Vintage edit of your relatives photo. It's going to look awesome on Canvas. A great place to go is Easy Canvas - They do wonderful work there.

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  22. What a stunning portrait and your edit has enhanced it to perfection.

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  23. You did wonderfully! She is a grand dame! :)

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  24. How lucky are you.. She is so beautiful. I don't even want to show my old family photos.. It's pretty scary. I am pretty sure they don't have any teeth. OK... Maybe I am exaggerating just a little. Lets just say I probably won't be posting them!!!

    Hugs, Linda

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  25. You did a great job...beautiful processing!

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  26. fantastic "save", I am sure you made your ancestor proud.

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  27. You did lovely Hedwig justice. Beautiful edit Kathy!

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  28. Beautiful photo and wonderful restoration, so honoring!
    Blessings
    Suzanne

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  29. This is fascinating. The lady in your picture and her name match the name of my paternal grandmother.Unfortunately, I never knew her. Is there a way we can make contact? If you are related to Hedwig, then we are likely related as well. The only family my siblings and I are aware of on her side of the family are her grandchildren (us). Thanks!

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    1. I have no way of making contact as there is no email attached to your profile. You can email me directly if you would like: kmcblackburn@gmail.com

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