How to colorize old family photos

Updated 2026-11-01 · Colorize Old · colorizeold.com

Old family prints often sit in a shoebox as black-and-white or faded scans. AI colorization can make relatives easier to “meet” in color — as long as you treat the result as an interpretation, not a recovered Kodachrome original.

1. Digitize the print

Use even light or a flatbed; avoid glare.
Save a master file (JPEG/PNG; longest side ≥ 1200 px when possible).
Keep the original B&W forever alongside any color version.

2. Optional light cleanup

Crop, straighten, gentle contrast. Skip heavy beauty filters before colorizing.

3. Colorize with a one-time credit pack

Many genealogy brands gate unlimited colorization behind a subscription. Colorize Old sells a simple pack: $12 = 50 credits (≈ $0.24 per photo). No account required to buy.

Buy $12 · 50 credits

4. Email the photo (fulfill path)

Pay via Stripe on colorizeold.com.
Email 1 black-and-white photo to [email protected].
Subject exactly: Colorize order.
We run self-hosted Zhang ECCV16 and reply with a colorized JPEG — target same day Asia/Singapore business hours.

5. Compare honest samples first

Public-domain before/after pairs live on the homepage: Lincoln portrait · Migrant Mother 1936 · Dust Bowl farm 1936 (FSA).

Open live samples →

Colorize old family photos — before and after sample