my 2cents.
1. Make a story of the fading.
Instead of a very uniform fading because of age, instead
eg.
1. make some parts still newer because it was pressed/covered by a container..
2. water touched a portion of the photo...
3. distinctive imprint maybe left by a compass?..whatever
2. More importantly, the edges of an old photo tells a lot of story,they're the natural frame to an old photo, cropped really does not do it justice..
1. eg,old photos used to be developed with decorative patterns..
2. Are your edges damaged, stained,etc..