Google explains how its stunning portrait light works on pixels

Portrait light is one of the latest features that Google introduced in the camera of its Pixel, which we can also take advantage of in Europe. This function is responsible for generating artificial light when taking a portrait with the phone’s camera, in order to get a much better photo, with better lighting.

Users with Pixel 4, Pixel 4 XL, Pixel 4a, Pixel 4a 5G and Pixel 5 can already use portrait light. Google has now wanted to explain how this function works in the camera of phones, a function which has caused a sensation since its official launch.

Google is once again doing magic with your photos: it’s the new feature that comes to all Pixels

The new Google Photos tool for Pixel mobiles is now available and allows us to modify our portraits by adding spectacular lighting.

This is how portrait light works on the Google Pixel

Portrait light is a feature that allows the user change the lighting of photos once they have been captured. This feature uses artificial intelligence to work and Google is now explaining how they developed this feature, which users of the latest Pixels can now take advantage of.

The photo mode of this function was formed with Light Stage, which is a computer lighting system which allows automatic placement of directional light in photos, as well as backlighting, when said photo has already been captured. To form Light Stage, the company photographed thousands of people with 64 cameras positioned at different points of view and using 331 individually programmable LED light sources.

By photographing a person in a different light each time, this Google artificial intelligence has the ability to generate portraits in multiple lighting environments and so train. The Pixel’s camera uses machine learning to determine which lighting profile is best based on the photo. Aspects such as the direction, intensity and color of the light source are evaluated, as well as the pose of the person.

Google can thus estimate what is the ideal situation for the light, then generating lights and shadows on the person, although they’re not really there. They can hardly be differentiated from real lights in a photo studio. This intelligence uses geometric models that help it recognize the scene and later reconstruct it in 3D, in order to continue playing with light. In addition, this artificial intelligence of the brand continues to train in each photo, so it will improve.

Portrait lighting is Google’s first step towards better and more precise lighting control in photos taken with mobile phones. We will therefore surely see how it evolves little by little, allowing even better results to be obtained.