Photography is one of the discoveries that has changed the world. Just as the wheel allowed man to travel faster and explore the world, photography enabled him to do something that seemed completely impossible in history - to save a moment of time. Photography launched the so-called visual era, which has become a major feature of the modern age. Due to the great importance of photography, it is necessary to store it well and handle it accordingly. This paper deals with the process of photography, its preservation, exhibition, conservation and restoration. The paper brings the main determinants of damage that threatens photography, which can very easily be caused by various internal and external factors. The practical part of the paper will be presented on the example of a black and white silver gelatin photograph from a private collection. Identification, analysis and tests, removal of impurities, disinfection, strengthening, integration and toning and retouching were performed on the photograph "Photograph of children". All the mentioned procedures make a complete restoration and conservation of the photograph and helped the photograph to return to its original purpose, that is, saving the moment in time. The creation processes of photography had to and continues to adapt to the challenging advances of technology. In order to understand photographic processes, it is necessary to know the basic terms and concepts that can be applied to any type of photography, so this paper highlights the most important features of this topic. If photographs are exposed to some form of manipulation or if they are inadequately protected when exposed to a large number of people, various forms of damage can occur. This damage is almost impossible to completely avoid. The notion of damage is as complex as the very notion of photography. There are various types and forms of damage, so it is very important to take the correct preventive protection, but also utilise the creation of favourable storage conditions. In order for photographs to be properly stored, protected and restored, knowledge of the physical and chemical characteristics of the photograph itself and knowledge of technology is crucial.