Pixel 5 Portrait Light feature rolling out to other Pixels
- Portrait Light is one of the main photo editing features of Google Pixel 5.
- This feature allows you to change the lighting around a subject’s face after the photo has been taken.
- Older Pixel devices can expect the function from today.
In our video review of Google Pixel 5 (check it out here), we spent a lot of time covering the Portrait Light feature. The new editing tool lets you change the lighting around a subject’s face. You can do this with any photo – even a photo taken with another phone or camera.
Nowadays, older Pixel devices get this feature. It arrives in the Google Photos app. Our Pixel 4 XL with Photos v5.15.0.337400196 already has the tool.
Portrait Light: A surprisingly useful tool
With Portrait Light, all you have to do is open a photo. Tap the tool and manually move the scale or swipe the subject’s face. As you walk, you’ll see the lighting magically change, as if you were manually moving softbox lighting systems from one side of the room to the other.
Like any other editing tool in Google Photos, you can play around with it until you get something you like and then hit Done. An additional, edited version of the photo is saved (depending on your settings).
Connected: A Beginner’s Guide to Google Photos
Note that this feature will only work if there is a very obvious face in the photo. For some reason, it doesn’t work to change the light around other objects.
Do you have Portrait Light on your older Pixel phone? Show off some of the cool stuff you’ve done with it in the comments below.
