I was gone almost all day yesterday on a long, London adventure.
I was supposed to meet our friend Gordon for a pub lunch at 12:30. The meeting was in Islington, and I thought I'd walk there -- a couple of miles. So after Bailey left for her walk with Josh at 9:30, I set out with my camera for a leisurely autumn photo ramble.
As you can see above, there's still a lot of color out there. I walked down through Camden Town and along the canal to Islington, which took a couple of hours, including a stop for coffee in Belsize Park and a stop at the Camden Market where I bought...
...another big bag of old photo slides! I'll have fun going through these over the next couple of weeks. I need to order a new slide attachment for my camera so I can digitize them. The one I have fits my old Canon -- the one stolen in Italy -- but not the new camera. I'll look into that this week.
I passed the Sir Richard Steele pub, which has a new sign. At least the poor guy now has some clothes!
I also passed lots of autumnal scenery. It's a beautiful time of year, even on a gray, foggy morning.
I got to lunch with plenty of time to spare and Gordon and I spent a couple of hours chatting. Dave and I used to work with him at school until he retired a few years ago, so among other things, we compared notes on retirement. He reminded me that I'm now eligible for an over-60 travel card that allows me to travel free on the tube and London-area trains! I completely forgot that this was a thing, but you can bet I'll be applying for that ASAP.
I did not walk back -- instead I took the overground, which deposited me practically back at my doorstep.
Buried in my bag of slides I found this tattered remnant of an old photo. I imagine AI could mend this if I knew where to upload it and what prompts to give. Another project for another day, maybe -- though I also like the ghostly images of these long-lost people peering out of the creases. There are some names written on the back, but I have no idea if they're the people in the photo. The only one I can make out is Mrs. J. Watts.
Almost lost to oblivion!
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Addendum: Here's Chat GPT's restoration of the family photo. It did a good job with the woman and the boy, but the girl looks completely different:
She was very pretty, even in the damaged photo without AI enhancement.
ReplyDeleteShe was! I prefer the unenhanced one, actually.
DeleteSorry yes, I wasn't very clear. I meant that one too
DeleteAI often changes faces, I mainly use it to remove signs and vehicles from scenes.
ReplyDeleteOh, that's a good idea! I should try that.
DeleteOh more slides! Hope there are treasures in there.
ReplyDeleteMe too!
DeleteAs you may recall, AI also managed to significantly alter the appearance of my great grandfather. It's weird how the little girl was so changed when her mother and brother look exactly right. I have had a senior travel card for a few years now. It has saved me a lot of money. I can even use it on London buses - but not the tube as I am a northerner.
ReplyDeleteI think it's because the little girl's face is so damaged in the original photo, whereas the other two are pretty much intact.
DeleteThe Sir Richard Peel pub looks rather spesh.
ReplyDeleteI never thought about your slide attachment for your stolen phone.
Chat GPT did make the girl look more attractive but that is wrong.
"Sir Richard Peel"? When's the last time you had an eye test Andrew?
DeleteIt wasn't my phone that was stolen, it was my Canon camera! Sir Richard Steele was of "Addison & Steele" fame -- the founders of the Spectator.
DeleteYou had a very successful and enjoyable day. The Fall weather served you well for a nice city walk-about and meet-up with Gordon.
ReplyDeleteThe slides are a good find, and I like the photo of the mother with her two children. The enhanced AI version is remarkable too. Not perfect but still remarkable.
It's pretty incredible how well it repaired the original. If it were my family and I wanted something to frame, AI might eventually get me there. (I'd have to work on the girl more, though!)
DeleteI like how it repaired the damage but yes, the girl looks a lot different. Am I surprised you bought slides? Of course not! I wondered, in fact, when that urge might hit again! What a gorgeous day for a walk and what beautiful territory you saw. That's a great pub sign! And I love the canal boat. What a wonderful day. And very good about the geezer transit card! Yup -- do it now!
ReplyDeleteAnd the slide guy says he has THIRTY THOUSAND MORE he wants to sell. LOL! I could be buried in slides for years to come.
DeleteWhat a delightful day out. The slides will be so fun to sort through. You never know what you might find.
ReplyDeleteI love the thrill of the hunt.
DeleteI have found AI hit or miss when it comes to "restoring" old photographs. In my attempts, it always seems to de-age the subjects fairly significantly and occasionally change the facial structure completely. I had an AI company reach out to me based upon a blog post to review their product. It had the same issues as all the rest but I will have a post on it here in a couple weeks.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to all the future posts of slides.
ReplyDeleteYou probably provide them with valuable feedback! It is funny how AI makes people look younger. I guess it assumes that's what we all want!
DeleteThe Autumnal colours are amazing this year aren't they. Driving the M6 every week has been a wonderful show of ever changing colours for us. The little girl just looks too modern, and no longer like her brother at all, how strange. Will you be taking Bailey on the trains once you have your free pass?
ReplyDeleteYeah, the original girl looks a lot like the mother and brother, the new one not so much! I will indeed be taking Bailey on trains. Should be interesting. :)
DeleteYour first image of the old photo was clear to see and didn't need to be changed. I don't think you should "restore" the old photos. Just keep them as they really are. The "restored" ones are not real. Why not just leave them as time has left them?
ReplyDeleteYou will have fun sorting through the treasure bag of slides!
To be honest, I wouldn't have done it if it were up to me -- but I had a feeling some readers might suggest it so I thought I'd get ahead of them. :)
DeleteI love that top photo - it looks like a lovely place to walk. And the new pub sign is very cool, but I'm a little sad about the clothes. Ha!
ReplyDeleteHe's probably warmer, though!
DeleteI'm impressed by that photo restoration but I see what you mean about the little girl. She does look a bit different. Still, that's a good job. You captured lots of color on your walks from the trees to signs to boats. It's a great time of year to be out doors.
ReplyDeleteWe're just past peak color, but there's still plenty of it out there.
DeleteI should have known a long day out in London would involve a bag of slides to sort. I much prefer the original photo to the tarted up version. Genuine rules! I like the pumpkin colored car, very seasonal.
ReplyDeleteI like the original, too. I love all the creases and tears -- there's beauty in the imperfections.
DeleteA travel card! Brilliant!
ReplyDeleteAnd so are these pictures. The one with the orange car AND the red car is terrific.
AI seems so weird to me. It'll do some things very well and then all of a sudden there's a completely janky element and I understand nothing about how it works.
This is probably a stupid question but do the people who live on those boats live on them year 'round?
I hope that Steve won't mind me stepping in to answer your question Ms.Moon... Around 10,000 people live on London houseboats all the year round.
DeleteYes, as YP said, many people live on boats full-time. (I didn't know the number, though, so thanks, YP!) Some of them have permanent berths so they're always docked in the same place, and some of them have to keep moving around.
DeleteLol. Can't wait to see what you find this time.
ReplyDeleteOught to be good for a couple of posts!
DeleteThose yellow trees are so striking.
ReplyDeleteLove the houseboat. That's always been one of my fantasies, to live on a houseboat.
I used to think it would be fun, but I suspect it would be damp.
DeleteLove that first photo; the leaves are stunning.
ReplyDeleteAnd there is a perk at turning sixty!!!
Yes, good things start happening! Soon I'll be able to take my pension!
DeleteLovely photos. I'll try and convince Jack to go out this afternoon but sadly all of the leaves are off the trees. I still like to see the tree skeletons:)
ReplyDeleteIt'll be interesting to see the slides.
Tree skeletons make good pictures, too! Especially with snow...
DeleteWhat a beautiful walk! That's quite a deal for the 60+ crowd. John and I have ORCA for seniors cards and can travel to and from Seattle on the light rail for a couple dollars. It's a steal! Plus, no gas costs or parking worries/prices. The girl in the photo is quite a bit changed!
ReplyDeleteA couple of bucks to Seattle sounds like a good deal. I'd be going all the time!
DeleteI liked Sir Richard without clothes, although I’m still curious as to why he was without clothes. I do love how you collect and save old slides and photos. Not a fan at all of what Chat GPT did to the little girl (I don’t know why those kinds of “restorations” disturb me so much), although the rest of it is exceptional.
ReplyDeleteI like to think saving the pictures is a sort of service, though honestly the internet is so saturated with images it's probably a disservice more than anything else!
DeleteI look forward to seeing what hidden gems are in that big bag of slides!
ReplyDeleteI will keep you posted!
DeleteOh goodie! I can't wait to see what you pull out of that bag! The corrected photo is quite stunning- bringing the ghosts back!
ReplyDeleteIt's a bit too changed for my taste but all things considered it IS quite remarkable.
DeleteThe "balloon" lights by the hotel/pub are nice and I like that gaily painted barge too. There are photo shops that can restore that image and will give you back the original one too.
ReplyDeleteYeah, if it were my family I might pay for that, but I'm not paying for some randos. LOL
DeleteI couldn't agree more with you on this: It's a beautiful time of year, even on a gray, foggy morning."
ReplyDeleteMore slides, yay!! I am looking forward to your next project.
Stay tuned! :)
DeleteWho knew you could buy a whole bag of slides, not me, but then from what I read in the comments this is not your first time buy. years ago, I had a lot of slides which were later discarded. If I only knew you like to buy them, Steve😏
ReplyDelete