By, smartwatches 12/04/2022

How to use Google Photos. Automatically upload and classify photos --Impress Watch

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With the spread of smartphones, taking pictures with a camera has become very familiar. While it is convenient to take out your smartphone and take pictures anytime, anywhere, many people may have trouble managing the pictures they have taken.

Google's photo management service "Google Photos" is convenient for managing a large number of photos. In addition to the function that automatically uploads photos from your smartphone, you can easily find the photo you want to see later by using various search functions unique to Google.

The environment that can be used is also substantial, and it can be used not only for Android and iOS, but also for the browser of a personal computer. Android is often installed from the beginning, in which case you don't even need to install the app.

If you have a Google account to use with Gmail etc., you can start using it for free immediately. The maximum free capacity is 15GB, but this capacity will be shared with services used by the same Google account, such as Gmail and Google Drive. Be careful with the remaining space so you don't upload too many photos and you won't be able to receive emails in Gmail.

The capacity can be expanded for a fee. The monthly charge for 100GB is 250 yen, 200GB is 380 yen, and 2TB is 1,300 yen. You can change the capacity at any time, so it's a good idea to start with a low-priced plan.

Upload automatically if you set the image quality and communication method

When you start Google Photos, after allowing access to the photos in your device, you will first be asked if you want to make backup settings, and then set backup options.

Allow access to photos in your device Turn on backup

The backup option allows you to set the image quality and communication method. Regarding the image quality, in the case of "High image quality", the size of the still image is reduced to 16 million pixels and the movie is reduced to 1080p and saved. In the case of "Original image quality", it is not compressed and can be saved with the original image quality and file size, but it will use a lot of Google Drive capacity.

Select image quality and communication method in backup options

Google explains that "high image quality" can be printed with high image quality up to 61.0 x 40.6 cm, which is a size that can be printed on A3 size paper. Also, since the camera of iPhone 12 has 12 million pixels, it seems that there are many cases where images taken with smartphones can be saved as they are.

You can select the communication method, Wi-Fi only or uploading via mobile line. When the backup setting is on, uploading is performed every time the camera shoots, which consumes a lot of data capacity of the mobile phone line. If your mobile phone billing plan limits your data traffic, turn it off to avoid consuming space due to unexpected uploads.

"Face grouping" that automatically recognizes and classifies people is convenient

You can view the backed up photos in different ways. The easiest way is to view the photos in chronological order.

Google フォト活用術。写真を自動でアップして分類 - Impress Watch

You can go back in time by sliding down the "Photos" in the app, and you can easily access photos from several years ago using the slide displayed on the right side. This is useful when you want to see a photo that has a fixed time, such as "I want to see the photo of those days."

View photos in chronological order

A very useful feature of Google Photos is "face grouping," which automatically recognizes and classifies the faces of people and animals in photos. This is off by default, so let's turn it on from the settings. It's not ready to turn on and it will take some time for Google Photos to analyze and classify your photos.

Face grouping function

Photos classified by face grouping are listed as "People" at the top of the "Search" screen, and you can see the classification result list by tapping "Show All". This alone is convenient, but since Google can not determine the name of a person from the photo, it will be easier to find it if you give each classified face photo a name. It's difficult to register all of them, so it's a good idea to name them from people who often look back, such as family members and close friends.

Face grouping classification is displayed at the top of the "Search" screen. The same person automatically classifies.

Note that face grouping cannot completely classify human faces. You may see a picture of another person, or you may end up registering a poster or TV face. The more you use Google Photos, the more candidates you have, so if you don't want the recognition result, press and hold it and then "Hide Face" to erase it.

Also, if you choose a particular face, you may be asked if you are the same person by comparing the two faces. If you repeat this, the accuracy will improve and you will not overlook it, so it is a good idea to check the face photo you want to look back over and over again on a regular basis.

Improve accuracy by comparing two photos

Search for photos by location or keyword.Classification of selfies and 360 degree photos

You can also check the photos you have taken from the location information. If GPS is on when you take a picture, you can display it based on GPS, but even if GPS is off, you can check it from Google's location information or the landmark information in the picture. This is useful for finding out "a photo of that place you traveled before".

Search for "Nagaoka".I was able to display a photo of Nagaoka Fireworks

You can also choose from the subject categories. Keywords such as "wedding" and "ramen" are automatically recognized from the photo for the subject, and you can search by text from the search window. Keywords that Google has recognized so far are also automatically displayed as candidates, so you can also know what keywords to search for.

Search by "ramen".The ramen photos taken in the past are lined up, and the combination of "Ramen Shibuya" narrows down only the ramen that you ate in Shibuya.

You can also search in photo formats such as screenshots of saved smartphone screens, selfies and videos, and 360 degree photos. With these various search functions, it is convenient to "upload all the photos to Google Photos for the time being and view them later".

You can also narrow down by photo format

Album function that allows you to share photos with others

Google Photos has a lot of search functions, but sorting by album makes it easier to find by yourself, and it is also convenient for sharing photos with family and friends.

There are many ways to create an album, but the easiest way is to select multiple photos you want to register and press "+" from the menu. There are two types of albums, "album" and "shared album", but you can freely change the sharing settings later, so it's a good idea to select "album" first.

Select multiple photos you want to register in the album Select "Album" Name the album

After naming the album, choose whether to share it. There are two types of sharing: sharing just by viewing the album, and sharing that allows the other party to add photos. If you just want to see the album, you don't need to register as a user, but you need to use Google Photos to add photos.

If you just want to show it to the other party, you can browse it by sending the URL with a function such as "Get Link". If you want the other person to add a photo, turn on "Co-authoring" from the "Options" of the album, and then send the URL or invite the other person. The other party can also register photos in the same album by logging in with a Google account.

In addition to directly inviting the album to a Google account that can be limited to others, you can also invite via URL or app

At events such as "going on a trip with friends" or "participating in a wedding", it is convenient to share photos with each other using a shared album so that you can share photos that you have not taken. Even people who do not have a Google account can view the photos, so you can easily send photos to people who are not familiar with computers and smartphones.

If you turn on "Co-editing", you can upload photos to the shared destination. The shared party can choose whether to join the album. You can now add photos to the shared album.

Face grouping + shared album is convenient

You can also combine the automatic face recognition described above with a shared album to always share a specific person's photo in the album. For example, if a couple shares an album with their children's faces, they can share the pictures of their children taken by each other at any time and show them to their parents who are far away.

Select "Select person or pet" when creating a new album Upload only specific people or pets to the album A caution is displayed when sharing an album of automatically recognized photos.

Again, auto-recognition isn't perfect, so some photos may not be added to the album, or conversely, photos from different people may be added. If you have a photo that you don't want to see, it's a good idea to create your own face-his grouping album and share only the photos you want to publish.

Google Photos with useful features

There are other services besides Google Photos that allow you to manage your photos online, but Google Photos has a lot of search and classification functions such as face grouping, so it's very convenient to see your photos later. There is no need to take over photos when changing smartphone models, and people using multiple smartphones can manage photos at once.

Until May 2021, you could use it with "High Quality" setting without any capacity limit, but from June, you can use it for free even if it has high image quality, up to a total of 15GB. It's a shame that it's no longer unlimited, but Google Photos is still a very useful service for managing photos. If you haven't tried the backup function, please try it.