Google Photos Rolls Out Its Biggest Ever Feature Update for Memories

pcmag.com:

Google Photos is harnessing our collective need to share nostalgia with its biggest-ever update to Memories, which surfaces snapshots from recent years.

The redesign, according to product manager Yael Marzan, will feature more videos—including "the best snippets" from longer videos automatically trimmed "so you can relive the most meaningful moments."

"Even your still photos will feel more dynamic thanks to a subtle zoom that brings movement to your memories," a company blog announcement said. Keep an eye out for instrumental music coming to some Memories next month.

"It's amazing how the combination of movement, video, and music immerses you in your memories," Marzan wrote. "I often catch myself rewatching these new Memories multiple times—especially those of my kids."

Launched nearly three years ago, Memories appear as circular images at the top of the Google Photos desktop and mobile apps. Using machine learning, it finds the best pictures from the same week one year ago, two years ago, three years ago, and so on. A "hide" option lets users suppress people, pets, and places that are too painful to remember, while helping to recall good memories otherwise forgotten.

Since their introduction in late 2020, Cinematic photos—3D representations of Memories—have become one of the app's most-saved visual effects. And they're about to get even more immersive: Cinematic Memories will soon transform multiple still photos into an "end-to-end cinematic experience," including a soundtrack that makes looking at pictures feel more like watching a movie.

Drawing inspiration from old scrapbooks, Google Photos is also rolling out Styles, a graphic-art feature that automatically adds accents from artists like Shantell Martin and Lisa