{
  "id": 7081840,
  "title": "Old family photo fading? 5 ChatGPT prompts to restore, sharpen and colourise it",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/13/old-family-photo-fading-5-chatgpt-prompts-to-restore-sharpen-and",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-13T08:14:35.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Hindustan Times",
    "slug": "hindustan-times",
    "url": "https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/old-family-photo-fading-5-chatgpt-gemini-prompts-to-restore-sharpen-and-colourise-it-101789284020383.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "Old family photographs can become more precious over time, but their conditions often deteriorate with age. ChatGPT prompts can help restore, sharpen, and colourise these faded memories. First, using the prompt \"Restore this photograph while preserving the original appearance and identity. Remove scratches, dust, stains, tears, fading, creases and other signs of physical damage. Repair missing or damaged areas naturally, improve contrast and exposure, and recover details that have been lost over time. Do not change facial features, expressions, body proportions, clothing, hairstyle or the composition of the photograph,\" one can address visible wear and tear. For blurry or shaky photos, the prompt \"Improve the sharpness and clarity of this photograph while keeping it authentic. Reduce blur, haze, noise and softness, and enhance fine details without making the image look artificially processed. Preserve the exact facial identities, expressions, skin texture, clothing and background. Do not invent or modify facial features.\" can be used. When dealing with black-and-white photographs, the prompt \"Colourise this black-and-white photograph with realistic, historically appropriate colours. Keep the facial features, expressions, skin tones, clothing, hairstyles and surroundings unchanged. Use natural-looking colours rather than overly saturated tones. Consider the likely era, lighting and photographic conditions when choosing colours. Do not add, remove or redesign any objects or people. Make the result feel like an authentic colour photograph from the same moment.\" can help create a more natural finish. Lastly, for photographs with tears or scratches across someone's face, it's better to use the prompt \"Restore this photograph conservatively. Where facial details are damaged or missing, prioritize preserving the person’s original identity over creating new detail. Do not guess, beautify or redesign facial features. Only reconstruct details that can be reasonably inferred from the surrounding image. Clearly preserve any unavoi\" to maintain the person's original identity.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 5,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Live Mint",
        "title": "1980s AI photo trend on ChatGPT: Mistakes to avoid for realistic retro photos on Instagram, WhatsApp",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/1980s-ai-photo-trend-on-chatgpt-mistakes-to-avoid-for-realistic-retro",
        "published": "2026-09-11T03:37:51.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Hindustan Times - World News",
        "title": "1980s AI photo ChatGPT trend is viral. But is it safe to upload your face?",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/1980s-ai-photo-chatgpt-trend-is-viral-but-is-it-safe-to-upload-your",
        "published": "2026-09-11T08:13:18.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Indian Express",
        "title": "1980s AI photo trend: 7 ChatGPT prompts to turn your photos into Kerala-style portraits",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/1980s-ai-photo-trend-7-chatgpt-prompts-to-turn-your-photos-into",
        "published": "2026-09-11T11:04:23.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Times of India",
        "title": "Ganesh Chaturthi AI photo prompt: 5 ChatGPT prompts to create personal wishes",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/ganesh-chaturthi-ai-photo-prompt-5-chatgpt-prompts-to-create-personal",
        "published": "2026-09-11T11:30:20.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}