Cloud image storage services like Google Photos and OneDrive are useful because they allow you to save files without taking up space on users’ computers or phones. In practice, this means that they can access a greater amount of data, including heavy content such as photos and videos, without fear of overloading their devices.
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On the other hand, having a large amount of information in the same place can make it more difficult to find specific content. This problem has been solved by new resources in the areas of artificial intelligence and machine learning, which allow these platforms to offer solutions that help users locate their files. Check out some tips:
1) Search for objects, colors, places or people
The artificial intelligence of Google Photos and OneDrive is able to identify various types of objects in an image, in addition to animals and people. If you want to find a picture of a dog, for example, you can simply type «dog» and «dog» in the search box, or «cat», if applicable. The search for colors also returns photos with the same predominant color. Also try searching for «sunset», «full moon» or even «rain» in the cloud.
The same tip works for other types of objects, such as furniture and vehicles. The system is also able to read any metadata in the image and find out where it was recorded. Another function available in Google Photos is to identify people, but this only works with those who have been manually identified with a tag.
Google Photos on PC: Search for a dog and find pictures of your pet – Photo: Carolina Ochsendorf / dnetc
Both services allow you to add tags to help identify photos. The feature is called bookmarks on Google Photos and tags on OneDrive. In both, the option can be accessed directly from the photo preview screen.
OneDrive uses artificial intelligence to automatically create tags, but recommends that your users check and change them when they think it is necessary to improve the capability of the feature. It is ideal to facilitate the identification of any details that the user considers important.
Google Photos: search for locations where you clicked and find all the photos in the cloud – Photo: Carolina Ochsendorf / dnetc
Google Photos markers are intended only for recognizing people. When someone is tagged, the system identifies other images in which the same face appears and creates a group. From this moment on, it is possible to use the name or nickname to search. Bookmarks are private, only appear to the owner of the image even if it is shared.
Another function offered by the two platforms is the possibility to create albums to aggregate related and similar images. To do this, simply select the desired photos and click on the “New album” button on OneDrive or the plus sign and then “Album” on Google Photos. And, on the next search, find the album.
One Drive on PC: search for objects and find photos in which they appear highlighted – Photo: Carolina Ochsendorf / dnetc
4) Manage your face groups
In Google Photos, you can remove photos from a marker, hide the tag, and also merge multiple groups of faces into one – for a class. The first two options can be found in the group menu. The merger can be done simply by naming two groups with the same name. When this happens, the system will confirm the action (merging groups) before executing it.
All tips work using a browser on the PC or a mobile application.
