Bring back separation and contrast
Ask for a gentle lift in tonal definition when people and scenery blend into a washed-out print. Compare highlights and dark clothing instead of increasing saturation everywhere.
AI faded photo restoration
Restore Faded and Discolored Photos
Refresh a washed-out family print, reduce a yellow cast or rebalance a red-shifted photograph. Start with gentle color and contrast correction that respects the original scene.
Upload your photo
JPG, PNG or WebP. Drop a photo here or use the + button.
Starting point
Target edit
The editing goal
Bring back a balanced appearance without inventing a new color palette.
Start with a focused change and tell the editor which details to keep:
- The people, clothing and original scene
- Natural-looking skin tones
- The period character of the photograph
Compare fine details with your original after generating. Results vary with the source photo and instruction.
Target the unwanted color cast
Choose yellow-orange or red-magenta correction to describe the problem more clearly. Familiar skin tones and neutral objects give you useful reference points for review.
Keep the warmth you remember
Retain a warm sunset or a muted vintage palette by naming it in the instruction. Correcting fading does not have to mean turning every photo bright, cool and modern.
Made for your photo
A fresh look at faded family and travel photos
A washed-out family color print
Low contrast can make people and the background blend together. Ask for gentle color recovery and inspect skin tones, dark clothing and bright objects. Stronger saturation is not necessarily closer to the original appearance.
A yellowed wedding photograph
A white dress or neutral wall can help you assess a color cast, but warm lighting may also be intentional. Compare faces and highlights instead of making the entire photo bright white. Details absent from an overexposed dress cannot be verified by the edit.
A red-shifted travel photograph
Older color prints can become dominated by one hue. Check familiar surfaces such as sky, foliage and clothing after correction. If you remember a particular color, add that information to the instruction as guidance rather than treating the first result as historical fact.
A starting prompt for your photo
Use a prompt below to fill the editor, then adjust it for your picture. Your uploaded photos stay in place; selecting a prompt does not start generation.
Gentle color recovery
For a washed-out color print with weak contrast.
Gently improve faded tonal separation and color balance in this old color photograph without excessive saturation. Preserve the people, clothing, scene and period character. Do not recolor objects arbitrarily, modernize the scene, colorize a monochrome source or beautify faces.
Reduce yellow cast
For an unwanted yellow or orange cast in an originally color photo.
Reduce the unwanted yellow-orange cast in this old color photograph. Keep natural skin tones and avoid turning intentional warm light into a cold scene. Preserve the people, clothing, scene and period character. Do not recolor objects arbitrarily, modernize the scene, colorize a monochrome source or beautify faces.
Reduce red or magenta cast
For a faded color print dominated by red or magenta.
Reduce an unwanted red-magenta color cast and gently rebalance the old color photograph. Avoid oversaturation or arbitrary object recoloring. Preserve the people, clothing, scene and period character. Do not recolor objects arbitrarily, modernize the scene, colorize a monochrome source or beautify faces.
Make it your own. Keep the desired mood explicit: ‘Reduce the yellow cast and improve faded contrast. Retain the warm afternoon light and natural skin tones.’
How to restore Faded and Discolored Photos
Step 01
Upload the faded color photo
Use an evenly lit scan or phone capture. Avoid glare and colored room lighting, which can add a cast that was never present in the print.
Step 02
Describe the color problem
Choose gentle recovery or a cast-specific prompt. Mention a known color, such as a cream dress or blue jacket, to guide your preview.
Step 03
Compare familiar details
Sign in to generate and review faces, clothing and neutral surfaces. Save a corrected copy alongside the source so you can compare both versions later.
Color correction, restoration or colorization?
AI faded-photo correction
- Best for
- Exploring balanced color and contrast in an old color print.
- Consider
- Recovered colors are estimates when information has faded away.
Manual curves and white balance
- Best for
- Controlling the overall tonal and color balance yourself.
- Consider
- Uneven fading may require local adjustments.
Black-and-white colorization
- Best for
- Creatively adding color to a monochrome photograph.
- Consider
- Adds estimated colors; it is a different task from correcting a color print.
Get more from your original photo
Use a scan or an evenly lit photo of the old print. Glare and colored room lighting can introduce a new cast, so correct the capture before editing if possible. Identify a familiar object or a neutral area in the scene to compare afterward. Start gently and keep an untouched copy of the source.
Color restoration and black-and-white colorization are different
This page is intended for photographs that were originally in color. It asks for fading and unwanted casts to be corrected. Adding color to a black-and-white image requires estimated colors and is a separate creative decision; it is not enabled by these presets.
Preserve a warm vintage look when it belongs to the picture
A sepia print, warm sunset or deliberately muted photograph is not automatically damaged. Describe the character you want to retain. If only one area looks discolored, identify it instead of asking for a complete modernization of the image.
The original colors may no longer be recoverable
A faded print is incomplete evidence. The editor can suggest a balanced, natural-looking version, but it cannot prove the original shade of every object. Compare known details and keep the source file. Avoid presenting inferred colors as a documented historical record.
Restore faded photos: frequently asked questions
Can this fix yellow or red color casts?
There are separate presets for yellow-orange and red-magenta casts. Use them on originally color photographs, then compare faces and known objects. Some warmth may be part of the original lighting rather than damage.
Is this the same as colorizing a black-and-white photo?
No. These instructions preserve and rebalance an existing color photograph. A black-and-white source needs a separate colorization instruction, and its added colors are estimates.
Will it restore the exact original colors?
No exact historical match is guaranteed. Fading can destroy color information. A reference photo, remembered garment color or other documented detail can help guide the edit, but review the result as an interpretation.
Can I keep a warm vintage look?
Yes. Edit the instruction to retain warm tones or a muted palette while improving only the unwanted cast or weak contrast. Start with gentle correction and compare the whole image before asking for stronger changes.
Should I remove scratches at the same time?
For clearer comparison, handle one problem at a time. You can first repair distracting surface marks with the scratch tool, then make a color correction. Save each version so you can return to the original if a later edit changes important detail.
Do I need to sign in, and can I use starter credits?
Sign in to generate. Eligible new accounts receive starter credits, and all models are available when your balance covers the displayed cost. Nano Banana 2 is selected by default. Check the total in the editor and purchase more credits if needed.
Which files can I upload, and are my results private?
Upload JPG, PNG or WebP photos. Free generations use public mode and results may be selected for public display. Watermark-free downloads require purchase access. Review the account options on the pricing page and keep a copy of your original photo.
Give your faded photo a more balanced appearance
Upload your photo, make the instruction your own and sign in when you are ready to generate.
Edit your photoContinue with a related edit
Choose a focused tool with a ready-to-edit instruction. Upload your photo, review the settings and compare your result.