Object Erase spoilt by AI update

[AlChes]

With the One UI 6.1 update and the introduction of AI into the photo editor, it seems the Object Eraser has changed for the worse.

Previously you could long press the object you wanted to erase and it would snap to the outline of the object OR you could circle the object and remove the surrounding pixels also - the shadow for example.

 Now I can't do the latter. Even though I circle the surrounding shadow, it tries to snap to the darkest part of the shadow or just ignores it, so when you erase the object, it's shadow is left behind.

 I have tried the AI function to erase undesired objects (eg a light fitting in the ceiling behind a selfie) and all it did was replace it with a different fitting or an air-conditioning vent or some other ceiling object.

 Using the Object Eraser was good, as it just used the image surrounding the object, in this case the carrpet and door frame, to fill in the gap, but now, as it only snaps to the object, it is almost useless, as is the AI by adding a different object.  I used it a lot to remove creases from clothing or to smooth some areas of the image but it does not work now, as it often does not detect the crease or subtle colours or shadows that need to be removed.

Is everyone having this problem since the One UI 6.1 update?

[Kr1sty]

I just tried mine & it seemed to work OK (dogs) on 1 but not another (rice cooker)...
Tried a few times to erase the black bit at bottom, but it kept sampling the black instead of making it white.
This was using the old way, not AI.

[Kr1sty]

These were the tools

[Kr1sty]

...and tried to sort yours, with a sort of result, but only after 3 or 4 tries. The tool kept deleting my marquee line!

[AlChes]

Thanks Kristy for testing it out.

I was using the same tool as you and had no problem with clear edge objects, such as the door mat, watering can etc at the rear but any objects with shadows, were almost impossible. I did find by zooming in really closely, I was able to gradually select small parts of the shadow but it took about 20 selections and still left a darker patch.

Before the update it would select everything within the shape that was drawn, so, simply drawing a line around the object and shadow, worked perfectly and cleanly removed the object. Now it is a very tedious job and gives poor results.

So far in experimenting with the AI Erase and Generate, I have been very dissappointed. Yes it works and very cleverly, but so far, for me, it is not usable. In nearly every case, it replaced the object with another object.. 

Some examples:

1) I removed a car from the middle of an otherwise deserted street. It generated the road and background OK but also replaced the large SUV with a small car, travelling on the wrong side of the road!! (We drive on the left in Australia!).

2) A framed picture erased from a tiled wall to clean up the background, was replaced by a black shower head, taps and a bottle of  shampoo! All I wanted was for the tiles to replace the picture frame (which Object Erase used to do perfectly)

3) Removing a child from in front of a wedding party, cleverly generated the lower half of the man that the child had hidden, except that the man behind was wearing a grey suit. Now he was wearing a grey coat with black trousers. That may be acceptable, except that all the other men had grey suits. The big problem however was that he had another pair of trousers around his feel!! Very clever to recreate the body but quite unusable.

4) A father holding a child in his arms had a dog's head spoiling the photo. AI removed the dog perfectly. It restored the missing upper part part of the child's dress really well, but put her in nappies, and introduced the father's hand, holding a drinking glass. Very cleverly done, BUT... the child was way too old for nappies and the drinking glass was FILTHY!

Fun to play with but I have yet to find it do anything worth keeping.

Have you had any better results?

Allan

[Kr1sty]

I don't often need to get too particular as mine aren't much more than snapshots now. I'm in Sydney & close to bushland so it's mainly creature's, birds, my pups. But going to Morocco in Sept, so hopefully hv sorted things by then!! It's wonderful to carry JUST a good phone with decent camera, instead of my heavy old NIKON, & good to not have to pay for Photoshop, etc, but... if the editing is this poor, it's looking to be a hard choice. I'm not familiar with Lightroom. Might hv to check it out.

[AlChes]

Hi Kristy.
I used to use PaintShop Pro for all my editing. Does everything PhotoShop does for a fraction of the cost. However, since I got this phone, I have ditched my old Pentax and virtually ditched PainShop Pro too as the phone picture editor does (did!) such a fantastic job and much quicker. I am just hoping they change the Object Erase back to what it was, where you had the option to select what YOU want to erase instead of only the automatic selection.

My photography is basically nature and scenery (Barossa Valley, South Australia). Hope your plans for the trip to Morocco go well.
Allan

[MrOutstanding]

Why don't you move the object before taking the photo..
I know right what a scandal

[AlChes]

I did actually move the object in this case and took a second photo. I was just using this original one to test the AI features (which simple replace the object with another one from someone elses photo). Then when I tried the old Object Erase, which previously would have removed it perfectly, I found it will no longer select what YOU want to erase, but what IT THINKS you want to erase and ignores anthing else you might select nearby. The program now thinks it knows better than we do! So much for artificial intelligence!
Allan

[Kr1sty]

Sure... MrOutstanding Beginner Level 2 - you're a spectacular photographer... 🤦🏻 ♀️