Adrian HonMar 11, 2023

Interesting thread concluding that Samsung is using an AI model to replace users’ blurry, super-zoomed photos of the Moon with slightly higher res textures.

How did they discover this?

1. They downloaded a high res image of the Moon
2. Downscaled it to a blurry 170x170px image on their computer monitor
3. Took a photo of it on the Samsung with the room lights out

…and they got a magically higher-res Moon! Clever.

https://reddit.com/r/Android/comments/11nzrb0/samsung_space_zoom_moon_shots_are_fake_and_here/

Samsung "space zoom" moon shots are fake, and here is the proof

**This post has been updated with several additional experiments in newer posts, which address most comments and clarify what exactly is going...

reddit
Show threadAdrian HonMar 11, 2023

AI image enhancement and upscaling isn’t new or exclusive to Samsung, of course. Take a blurry image of some grass and an algorithm can fill in the gaps based on what it thinks “grass” looks like.

People usually don’t notice or care; with the Moon it’s weird (and weirdly effective) because it looks the same for everyone, and everyone knows what it looks like.

Show threadAdrian HonMar 11, 2023

Is it bad? I’d need to think more about it!

Smartphone photography is already incredibly processed, lightyears from film photography of old. People should probably be more aware that the image their phone shows them is increasingly distant from “reality” – though most of the time, people don’t want reality!

Show threadDave
@adrianhon A “camera” app that doesn’t use your camera, it just creates an image based on your location, time & angle analyzing every online geolocated photo. I bet it could do well at oft-traveled landmarks.
Mar 11, 2023 at 1:30pmWeb
Show threadAdrian HonMar 11, 2023
@_ Gonna happen!
Show threadJulia RezMar 11, 2023

@adrianhon @_

A friend and I started work on a phone app named 'InStowGram' - whatever picture you tried to take would be replaced by a scenic view of Stow on the Wold in Gloucestershire.

However we all quickly discovered I couldn't code android apps worth a light.

Show threadNatanael ⚠️Mar 11, 2023

@_ @adrianhon essentially an in-game photo mode except with street view synchronized to your location.

Google maps live view already have 90% of the tech to map your GPS and camera data to street view and map data to accurately overlay visual navigation cues (arrows) over the camera view. They could go all the way with AI repainting of the full camera view.

Show threadSörenMar 12, 2023
@Natanael_L @_ @adrianhon sort of a modern take on Photosynth https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photosynth
Photosynth - Wikipedia

Show threadDavid MankinsMar 13, 2023
@_ @adrianhon
Your selfie, just you and the Mona Lisa, hangin’ out in the Louvre, no mob of tourists