How do I make photos have this quality as if someone had damaged the photo by scratching it? ...?

Question

... as if it were old and used?
http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t249/mariehelene92/as_a_child_would_by_curlytops.jpg

i don't mean scratch it myself lol but as if someone had scratched the photo

oh && using photoshop please

i don't mean scratch it myself lol but as if someone had scratched the photo

oh && using photoshop please

Answer 1

The first thing that happens to all pigments is desaturation, so go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation and decrease the saturation of your photo. Vivid colors don't look like they *should* have scratches on them. :D
I would then add a sepia-toned color fill layer and decrease the opacity to just give it a tiny oldish tint; not too much. If you want, add a mask to this layer and play with increasing the sepia tone near the edges more than in the main field.
Next, add a new layer and fill it with black. Add noise to this layer and distort the noise (ie. Ripple with high settings twice) and sharpen it until its made up of large noticeable specks. Change the blend mode for this layer to Screen and add a mask. Fill the mask with black and use your favourite brush to selectively paint back in the areas you want scratched. Gaussian blur can also help make the scratches look real. If you want help selecting areas to scratch, try "render > clouds" with sharpening as a mask. ;)

Answer 2

It might be easier to find a textured surface you like and photograph it. Then combine that with your images and start manipulating from there.

EDIT: And I should say that Ron's advice does work very well.