New feature in Google Photos: Recognition of people without taking into account the face
The stock Android gallery app has been offering auto-recognition of people in photos for years now. Recently, however, Google Photos has taken a step forward and has learned to recognize people even in cases where their faces are not visible. This includes both recently uploaded photos and those taken many years ago.
How does Google Photos recognize people without a visible face?
The exact method by which Google Photos recognizes people without a visible face remains unknown for now. However, it is possible that Google creates a 3D model of the head based on videos and other photographs that contain only a partial image of the face. Thus, the system recognizes unique head shapes, hair and other features, such as the presence of a bald spot.
Analysis of other features and final decision
Google can also analyze other characteristics of a person in recent photographs. For example, if the owner of an Android smartphone took a series of pictures of the same person in the same place and at about the same time, it is likely that this person will be wearing the same clothes and being in the same place.
Google distinguishes a recognized person whose face is not visible from ordinary photos with face recognition. A tag appears that says “person available to add”. This indicates that Google Photos provides a recommendation to tag a person, but the final decision is up to the user. The application does the work automatically, but it encourages the user to be careful, as errors may occur. If the face in the photo is incorrectly identified or does not require a tag at all, the user can tap the photo to change or remove the specified tag, notes NIX Solutions.
List of benefits:
- Recognition of people in photos even without a visible face.
- Analysis of other features such as clothing and location for accurate recognition.
- Possibility to change or remove tags manually.
With the new Google Photos feature, it’s even easier and more convenient to organize and find photos with people on your Android device.