I am working on restoring some family photos. Nothing crazy, just brightening them up, fixing corners where needed - easy peasy stuff really.

My big issue is that some of them have a deep red color cast. I've watched some videos on how to neutralize the color cast (using the invert of the average color and decreasing opacity.) The problem is, once I've done that, the photos seem very washed out and faded. Is this something I have to tweak with levels or by painting in a new layer, or is there a quicker way to do it?

All suggestions appreciated!

Edit: Adding a before and after shot of one of the images I'm working on.

BEFORE: http://i.imgur.com/d7281kv.jpg AFTER: http://i.imgur.com/s5meYUf.png

Exact steps I took: Made a copy of the layer, on the new layer - filter, blur, average. Changed blending mode to color (rather than working on the solid turquoise color). Decreased opacity to about 45%.

Now you can see what I mean by "faded color"

***Not looking for the work to be done for me, I really actually enjoy learning this stuff, which is a good thing considering this is where my career path is heading. :)

Thanks again for all the great advice!