Table of contents:
- Use Google Photos to copy text from your photos
- Create new images with your photos
- Scan and crop documents
- Draw, highlight or write on photos
- Create animations, collages or movies
- How to prevent Google Photos from syncing screenshots
Do you have the Google Photos app installed on your mobile? We already know that the Google service has many functions to store and organize our photos. But its characteristics are also useful for the photographs we have on our mobile and we don't want to upload to the cloud.
For this to be an easy task for you, we will share some tips and tricks. First we will see how to use the app without having a Google account. That is, use Google Photos as a complement to the Xiaomi gallery. And then some options to create beautiful creations with your photos.
Take notes on these tips so that you can get the most out of Google Photos from your Xiaomi mobile.
Use Google Photos to copy text from your photos
Google Photos has Google Lens features built in. This allows you to perform a series of actions based on a photograph, without the need to install anything.
For example, copy text from your photos and save it to the clipboard. Or you can select certain phrases and choose to translate them, or search for them on Google.
For this, you just have to open Google Photos and take photos from Camera (or screenshots). Or if you are logged in with your Google account, go to the side menu and look for "Device folders" and choose the photo.
Once you have opened your photo in Google Photos, choose the Google Lens icon and indicate what action you want to take, as you can see in the image:
In this way, you can copy the text and paste it into any note application without having to go through the monotonous task of writing it word by word.
Another feature of Google Lens found in Google Photos is to search for similar objects on the web. That is, if you have taken a photo of an item or object that you like, then you can open the image in Google Photos to see where to buy it.
So using these features built into Google Photos you can:
- copy text from your photos
- translate snippets
- search Google for certain objects or words found in your photos
Create new images with your photos
While the MIUI gallery has interesting options to edit photos, Google Photos can add a plus to your shots.
If you want a quick edit of your photos to share them on social networks, you can use the filters and tools of Google Photos. For example, if you want to crop the image, you will see that it has the most popular formats of social networks and the basic options for editing. Perhaps one of its strengths is the variety of filters.
You can opt for an automatic enhancement or apply some of the 10+ filters, which can be customized with the sliders. By applying a filter and changing the perspective of the image with manual rotation you can create different versions of your photo.
Scan and crop documents
An easy way to improvise a scan of a document or any paper is by using Google Photos.
Just take the photo you need and open it in Google Photos in edit mode. Don't worry if other elements appear in the image, since you can remove it with a simple step.
In the last editing tool you will find "Extensions" with the option to crop documents, as you can see in the images:
You just have to adjust the edges of the document and when you are satisfied give "Done". If you want it to be more readable you can use some of the filters.
Draw, highlight or write on photos
MIUI also has these editing options in its Gallery app, but Google Photos adds some extras.
You'll find these options in the same Google Photos editing mode by selecting the doodle icon. Depending on the action you want to perform, you can choose the pencil, highlight or text. Combining these tools you can highlight text, draw, create doodles, add text, point out elements in the photo, among other options. It is simple, free and practical.
Create animations, collages or movies
To use these Google Photos creation options, you need to log in with your Google account, although you do not need to upload the photos to the cloud. Open the Google Photos app and look in “Device folders” for the photos you want to use to create a collage, animation, or movie.
It is a simple process, you just have to respect the requirements of each one. For collages, you can choose between 2 and 9 photos. And as for the animations, between 2 and 50 images. One detail to keep in mind is that the creation (collage, movie or animation) will automatically be uploaded to Google Photos.
How to prevent Google Photos from syncing screenshots
One of the problems that Xiaomi presents with applications with Google Photos is that it does not allow to separate the screenshots from the photographs you take with the camera.
If you look in "Device folders" from Google Photos you will see that in "Camera" are the two groups included. This can be a headache, since if you have automatic upload activated, your Google Photos account will be filled with captures and images that you are not interested in keeping.
There is no definitive solution for this, but you can try a few options. One is by installing a screenshot application from Google Play. Although not all of them work, most of them create a special folder for the screenshots, so in Google Photos they are displayed independently.
For example, you can try the Easy Screenshot app. Once you install it and start capturing, you will see that in "Device folders" it appears as an independent option:
You just have to keep the backup option disabled and that's it. On the other hand, a detail to keep in mind is that this only works with the captures that you use with the application. Not as intuitive a method as the way to capture screens that MIUI offers, but it frees you from the problems with Google Photos.
Another option is to install an app like Auto Transfer Lite to change the location of the screenshots folder. This requires a series of permissions and to follow the instructions of the application to the letter. It doesn't always work, but if you want to give it a go, go ahead.
