3 AI Tools That Make Windows 11 Photos Awesome

For some time now, Microsoft has been progressively improving its “boring” Photos app, the default media viewer in Windows 11. Now, with the infusion of some AI-powered features, high-quality photo editing is accessible to everyone.

1 It uses generative artificial intelligence to retouch photos

The Erase feature in Photos helps eliminate distractions — unwanted people or objects in the background, as well as imperfections or blemishes in the subject.

This feature uses AI to fill in the deleted area and processes the image to intelligently blend the background. It uses advanced machine learning to estimate what the pixels would look like without the object in place.

Then, based on the surrounding environment, it generates content that looks natural and undetectable. The process is done locally on your device and Microsoft assures that your data never leaves your device.

Here’s how to use the Delete function to remove an object from a photo:

1. Open a photo in the Photos app and select Edit choice.
2. Choose Delete from the set of available tools.
3. Edit Brush size and highlight the object or area you want to delete. Generative eraser will apply a brush stroke effect.
4. To use the function manually, set Automatic use on Offand then use the brush tool to select the object or area you want to remove. Next, use Add a mask select where you want to use it and Remove the mask deselect the areas you don’t want to use. Click when you’re done Deleteand generative erase applies the effect to the selected area.

The Erase function is the generative evolution of the older AI-based Spot Fix tool – the first tool produces a smoother and more realistic result. It provides a straightforward way to enhance the quality of your photos without using advanced photo editing software.

2 It helps in editing the background

You can also effortlessly add a professional touch to your images using the app with countless background editing options.

The app initially offered a Background Blur feature that could enhance your photos by isolating your subject from the background. This had a similar effect to using portrait mode when taking photos with a smartphone. However, the Photos app now makes it easy to remove this isolated background or replace it with a different color.

To separate an object from the background in a photo and then apply a blur effect to the background, replace it, or remove it entirely:

1. Open a photo in the Photos app and select Edit choice.
2. Choose Background. The background of the image will be automatically identified and highlighted.
3. You can also turn around On and Brush tool on the background edit Brush size and The softness of the brush. Use Add a mask add additional areas as part of the background or Remove the mask to remove parts of the selection.
4. Once the background is correctly identified, select Blur, Removeor Replace.
   1. Select Blur and then use the slider to adjust Blur intensity.
   2. Select Remove option to remove image background.
   3. Select Replace and then use the color palette to select a background color. Alternatively, you can enter the hexadecimal color code or the RGB value for the desired color.

As with Erase, the process is completely local and your data never leaves your device.

3 It can enhance low quality photos

Super Resolution is a useful feature for enhancing and enlarging low-resolution, low-quality photos to enhance old, distorted images or to obtain large prints.

Super Resolution uses AI to upscale images to up to 8 times the original image size. It basically increases the number of pixels in the image and converts it from a lower resolution to a higher resolution.

This makes the image larger and suitable for printing or viewing on larger displays. Super resolution can also be used to enhance image quality, making your photo look sharper and brighter. However, the results are either accurate or not.

Upscale and enhance your photos in Photos with super resolution using these steps:

1. Open a photo in the Photos app and select Edit choice.
2. Choose Super resolution from the available editing options.
3. with Scale slider to select the desired enhancement level.
4. Once the image is enhanced, you will see a before (original image) and after (enhanced image) preview for visual comparison.

Attention, Super resolution in Photos is exclusive to Copilot+ computers. It uses the Neural Processing Unit (NPU) on your Copilot+ computer to effectively enhance photos – that is, locally on your PC.

Recent improvements to the Photos app in Windows 11 and the integration of iCloud and OneDrive have made it a handy photo editing tool. Most casual users don’t need a third-party app for basic photo editing. This is especially true now that Microsoft has baked these AI-based features into Windows for free.