The Earlier, the Better
Our eyes and ears are amazing. They allow us to fully engage with the world, communicate with others, and are our gateway to the past, present, and future. However, when paired with our brains, they are not always perfect at noticing things. The reason for this is simple: our brains are too busy keeping us alive to process everything. Instead it looks for big changes.
The Finer Details
If we see the same person every day, and they look roughly the same, our brain will quickly tell us, “everything’s fine” and zone out, so we won’t notice small changes such as a hair trim. However, if we see a person’s hair has gone from blonde to purple, our brains will quickly tell us, “something is different” and prompt us to pay close attention to that person. Even now, while reading this, your brain is filtering out background information so that you don’t get overwhelmed. You probably won’t notice the feel of the chair you’re sitting on, or the hum of your computer, but if your phone rings or the smoke alarm goes off, you’ll immediately notice.
This concept applies to photo and video restoration as well. If we’re staring at the same photos on the same part of the wall, day after day, we might not notice when the dyes in the photo start fading. If we watch the same VHS videos on a regular basis, we might not notice gradual loss of video or audio quality. If things still sound basically the same, your brain tells you that everything is okay, and you’ll miss the signs of the video aging and degrading.
You Can’t Stop Time
It’s important to remember that all forms of physical media are constantly degrading. Photos change colors and fade, VHS tapes degrade, audio garbles, and eventually they stop working. That’s why the earlier you convert your photos and videos to digital, the better they will be. We can’t stop time, but we can accurately capture moments. Unless those files are actively used and edited, they will stay the same indefinitely.
The sooner your physical media is converted to digital storage, the more you can preserve the original qualities of that media without relying on significant restoration or reconstruction.
Not sure where to start? Contact us (https://www.pureimagenation.com/contact), we can point you in the right direction.