Google Photos is bringing changes to its Memories feature that include, what it calls, Cinematic photos. Google has been adding a number of new features and improvements to its popular Photos experience and this latest change is billed as a new way for users to interact with images from their past. Here’s a look at how Cinematic photos work and what users can expect once it becomes available.
Launched back in 2015, after splitting from the now-defunct social media site Google+, Google Photos has gone on to become one of the largest and most recognizable cloud-based photo-sharing services in the world. With apps for both Android and iOS, the search giant previously said the service houses more than 4 trillion photos, with 28 billion new photos and videos uploaded each week. As a result, the company announced last month that Google Photos would be adjusting its free storage limits in June of next year.
The new Cinematic photos and other upcoming changes may be a way for Google to try to entice users to continue to use the service and even upgrade to a paid subscription. According to Google, Cinematic photos offer a more “vivid” and “realistic” way to relive memories. Basically, they are 3D photos. Or, at least, simulated 3D photos. Using machine learning, Google Photos predicts the image’s depth and then creates a “3D representation” of the surrounding environment. The process is automatic, so Google Photos will create these Cinematic photos automatically — even if the original image doesn’t have depth information stored in the metadata. When looking at a Cinematic photo, users have access to an animated virtual camera that can pan around the scene. Users can also send the Cinematic photo as a video to friends and family. Since the feature is new, Google says it is still tinkering with it and is asking for user feedback on the experience.
Collage & Other Memories Updates
Google Photos also updated its collage designs this month, which allows users to look back at their past in a different way. The new collage layouts are stylized through artificial intelligence. Google says the AI helps the user choose the right layout for photos by finding similar colors and using them to highlight the font, background color, and other details.
There are also other updates coming to Memories with Google Photos adding new themes to the feature. So, for example, users can view photos of their favorite people, whether they be friends, family, or just acquaintances. Google also said users will soon be able to view photos of their favorite things, determined by the type of photos they choose to upload. Google offers sunsets, baking and hiking as possible examples of what could be found in the favorite things category. While this in itself isn’t new, Google said if users don’t like the photos that come up, they can choose to hide specific people or time periods from appearing in Memories.
