The process
From shoebox to screen in four careful steps — every photo by hand, every original returned.
Hand them over in whatever shape they're in — albums, envelopes, or a shoebox in the closet.
Every photo is scanned individually in high resolution, so the details stay sharp.
Your images are sorted into neat, clearly named digital folders you can actually find things in.
Your new digital copies arrive on a USB stick or download link — along with every original photo. All within two weeks, not the 6–12+ weeks the big mail-in services quote.
See it happen
This is what scanning does: the faded print you have becomes the vivid picture you remember.
Before on the left, after on the right — one sweep at a time.
On paper
Black-and-white portraits, faded color snapshots, framed favorites, letters tucked between prints — if it fits in a shoebox, we can save it.
Who we are
Pixelated Past is run by our family, from our community. We started because our own shoeboxes of photos were fading, and we knew every attic nearby had one just like them. When you hand us your photos, they're handled the way we handle our own — one at a time, with clean hands and full attention, by people you can actually call on the phone.
— The Pixelated Past family
Our promise
Your photos never get shipped across the country. We treat them like our own.
Every photo is scanned by hand at 600 DPI — one at a time, never fed through a bulk machine.
Our guarantee: not happy with a scan? We'll redo it free.
What happens next
No mystery, no silence. Here's exactly what happens next.
Stripe emails your receipt the moment you book.
We email you personally to arrange drop-off or pickup — or, if you're not local, we'll send you a USPS label so you can ship your photos to us.
Your photos are worked through by hand. Questions meanwhile? Email us — a person answers.
Everything comes back: USB or download link, plus every original photo.