Understanding Google Pixel 6 Pro's computational photography features
Google's latest flagship, the Pixel 6 Pro, has become a hit due to its refined camera hardware and some nifty photography tricks. The phone offers dual exposure controls and live HDR+ along with a bunch of computational photography features like Magic Eraser, Real Tone, Face Unblur, Night Sight, Super Res Zoom, Astrophotography and Motion Autofocus to set itself apart from the crowd.
Why does it matter?
Pixel phones are known for using advanced algorithms to improve picture quality but with the Pixel 6 series, Google has taken things to a new level. The custom Tensor chipset allows for software sorcery that has until now existed only on high-end editing software. It is worth taking a look at these new photography features since they are not available on other smartphones.
Magic Eraser
Magic Eraser is used to remove unwanted elements from the photo with just a trace of your finger. The user can click a photo, go to Google Photos, click on Tools, and clean the image as per requirement. Google Photos can also automatically scan the image to detect if there is anything to be removed. The feature works on old photos as well.
Real Tone
Real Tone uses computational photography to offer accurate skin tone, brightness, and detail for people of color. The Tensor SoC enables an advanced ML-based face detection model that auto-exposes photos of people of color more accurately. The auto-white balance algorithm has also been updated to detect and correct inaccurate skin tones to capture "true to life" images.
Super Res Zoom
It is always better to capture zoomed images than to click standard photos and crop them into smaller chunks. For that, Pixel 6 Pro is equipped with a 48MP periscope telephoto lens with 4x optical zoom support and up to 20x zoom with an improved version of Pixel's Super Res Zoom that uses AI to retain more details.
Motion Mode
Motion Mode on Pixel 6 Pro is used to capture a moving object. It can be divided into Action Pan and Long Exposure modes. The former detects the subject of the photo and keeps it in focus while blurring the background. The latter gives an impression of motion in an otherwise still image, like fluid motion or light trails.
