recover faded script against textured background

[Pistolpete-uk]

Hi,
I have been asked by a friend to recover the faded writing in this photo. (Reproduce the entire photo with the script visibly clearer/readable.) Although I can bring more clarity to the writing, I am unable to do so without enhancing the background texture of the paper it's printed on (using selective colour controls, levels & contrast). I have tried using the magic wand with only partial success. Can anyone please suggest a better approach?
Thank you.
Peter
PS: I do not have access to the original print, only a CR2 photo of it.
Before

After

 

[dv8_fx]

Try tweaking with the brightness/Contrast adjustments.........

 

[thebestcpu]

Hi PistolPete

Look at the color channels. The writing stands out in the blue and very little in the red while the texture is the same in both. That means the red channel could be used against the blue channel to take out the texture.

I would post a picture of the results I could achieve yet it is limited by the JPEG compression of the image you supplied (see below). If you supply a link to the CR2 or a TIFF file created from the CR2 file then I or other forum members could give better step by step examples. Just a suggestion.

BTW - just for grins to show why JPEGs can be awful for this type of recovery, I have the original on top at 100% view and just the extracted Hue component of the exact same portion of the image on the bottom. The compression artifacts for the Hue component are obvious when pulled out by themselves. That is non-consequential in the final image with low saturation images yet makes it a real limiter for some restoration techniques. FYI

Also, to avoid the compression artifacts of the Photoshop Guru thumbnail display you will want to click on the image below and have it expanded to the full image that I uploaded.