Striations in a photo

[angelize]

To be honest you would probably get a better result in a dedicated photo app but it can be done in Xara. It's not a quick process, and not perfect. If you have access to a hires copy of the image you will get better results I just copied the image from your post.

first give your photo some extra sharpness and contrast not much just a bit (I know this seems counter intuitive but bear with me )

next clone your photo (ctrl +K) Select your top copy and go to the live effects and under distortion there is a median blur effect set both sliders to about 3 then set the resolution of the effect to 300 ( default will be automatic)
Now use the eraser tool to brush back in fine details where you need them around the eyes, nose, hair etc. You will be reintroducing striations back into large areas of fine detail like his hair and beard but it can't be helped. If you use a pen and tablet you can set pressure sensitivity on the eraser tool for more control.

[pauland]

Duplicate image, set alpha to 50%, displace by 1.5 pixels, experiment with the horizontal displacement, duplicate again perhaps. Only move the copies horizontally, never vertically.

[gwpriester]

There used to be a method, which I have forgotten decades ago, in Photoshop where you apply a Gaussian Blur and follow it up with an Unsharp Mask.

[Ron Duke]

Thanks, Jonopen, Frances, Paul and Gary.

[Joelle]

I am a bit late to the party.. but if this photo was scanned, turn it 45° and then re-scan it.
That's how I remove stripes and dots from newspaper/magazine photos.

:-)
Joëlle

[Ron Duke]

I am a bit late to the party.. but if this photo was scanned, turn it 45° and then re-scan it.
That's how I remove stripes and dots from newspaper/magazine photos.

:-)
Joëlle

Thank you, Joelle. I'll give it a try.

[Ron Duke]

Hmmmm
Didn’t work for me, but thanks.