Ok, so I was recently browsing other photo restoration websites to get some hints and tips about website design, when I came across a blog for the company imagerestore.co.uk. Always eager to get advice from those with experience and knowledge, I started reading until I came across the following article:
http://www.image-restore.co.uk/blog/how-not-to-restore-photos/
In it, the writer and owner Neil Rhodes proceeds to describe a company that, “claims to restore photos with no colouring, implying they are experts at just one process. Plenty of examples of ‘photo restoration’ are shown, but no ‘restoration’ has been done, only tonal corrections. Photo restoration is about restoration of photo’s isn’t it?, showing no examples of this on your site is a little contradictory? Having a ‘major restoration’ category and charging top prices but showing an image with a tiny amount of damage is just wrong”.
Of course, he’s talking about my site. The references are obvious. And that’s actually fine, because I have to agree with a lot of what he said. And if it weren’t for the fact my restoration business has had to go on hold since losing Mum last year, I would have had an infinitely better selection of work to show.
But he goes on to bemoan the quality of other restoration artists work too, finding fault with almost everyone in competition with him and lamenting the thought of them bringing down the tone of the photo restoration neighborhood.
Neil, a word to the wise. Not everyone is as talented as you! Some, like me, are still learning and finding our feet. Some are better at some things than others. Some are probably just not that good, but persevere because it’s all they know or all they have. And although it may make their work less credible in your eyes, if the final results make the customer happy, then they have performed their job admirably.
You are a very talented photo restoration artist, and someone to whom I had until now, held an aspiration to emulate. However, your ego has caused you to lose sight of your humanity, which in my books, makes you the poorer person for it.
So don’t look a gift horse in the mouth! Instead of complaining about the competition, take heart in the knowledge that you are one of the shining lights of this business and people come to you for the quality workmanship you provide. One day you may have serious competition and will rue the day you ever complained at all!
