The company is announcing a series of novelties for Google Photos at its Google I / O developer conference. Notable include password protection for specific photos and options to ensure that you view your photos more often.
The most notable novelty, and one that has been delayed for a while, is the option for a closed folder. The so-called ‘Locked Folder’ allows you to hide specific photos with a password or biometric verification. These will then not be distributed across the various platforms linked to Photos or shown in your Google Hub, for example.
Photos now contain four trillion photos, but according to Google itself, they are barely viewed; a majority of the stored images would never even have been clicked. A logical assumption is that many people use the service as an archive for everything they photograph with their smartphone. However, Google wants you to look at those photos more often and is rolling out visualization options, among other things.
For example, you can choose multiple photos that end up in a slow-motion animation for the type of image that looks good as a screen saver or in digital photo frames. The system works by using your ‘residual photos’. Many people trying to photograph for a moment take multiple photos before and after the ‘ideal’ photo, and via AI, Google can link those photos together to animate your still images. Obviously, don’t expect a Dreamworks film right away, but the effect is already nice.
Another novelty, which we classify under ‘AI knows you better than you know yourself, is what Google calls ‘little habits’. People often take pictures of the same subjects. Sometimes that is very clear: my photo album, for example, consists of 60% photos of my cat. Other people may not be aware of those patterns or habits themselves. Google is now going to bring those similar photos together in a folder called ‘Little Patterns’.
Finally, there are the photos that you don’t want to see for a while. For example, Google makes it easier to find the tools that allow you to hide certain periods or people. You will also be able to remove photos of your ex from the Memories and Best of Month collections, for example, so that they do not reappear unsolicited.
