Google is rolling out some previously exclusive Pixel photo benefits to Google One subscribers. People who spend money on this extra account storage will also take advantage of the ability to add Portrait Blur and Color Pop to existing photos without depth data ( such as scans or photos from older devices) and even modify the lighting, courtesy of Portrait Light. In addition, we can all expect a new video editor on Google Photos that offers more than 30 controls, including the ability to crop, stabilize, apply filters, illuminate, rotate, crop and straighten the frame.
Portrait Light, which landed with the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G.
Google launched the relatively new Portrait Light feature with the release of the Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 last year, which allows you to dynamically adjust the lighting for a scene after the fact. Although the depth data captured when the photo was taken can help, it even works without it, thanks to machine learning. Presumably, that same model is also applied to Portrait Blur, which can also work without depth data to blur a scene’s background, and Color Pop, which does the same to remove background colors.
These features have also been implemented in Google Photos, allowing you to apply background blur or pop ex-foto-facto, as long as images have depth data attached. But if you imported photos from an SLR or scanned some old photos, you were out of luck. However, we knew that Google was testing a program to deploy its machine-learning depth data capabilities to more devices as part of a Google One Perks since last November, and as of today, that worked, with Portrait Blur and Portrait Light together for the tour. Google also says that some other machine learning “suggestion” tools will also be available to Google One subscribers, with RAM and Android version of their choice (3 GB + / Android 8.0 and later).
In addition, the video editor that Google Photos for iOS offers ages is finally coming to Android, bringing with it thirty controls in total – not just filters, but frame straightening, cropping and granular edits for brightness, contrast, saturation, shadows, white point, black point, heat and more.
This is not the only benefit that Google One subscribers receive. Google gave them access to a free VPN last year, and they also get credit-based discounts, free Stadia Pro trials and even free Nest Minis. Google One subscription prices range from $ 2 a month for 100 GB to $ 10 a month for 2 TB – and more, if you need to, with discounted annual plans available.
The new video editor is coming “in the coming weeks”, but the new benefits of Google One will arrive in the coming days.