A Redditor discovered that Space Zoom on the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra uses AI to artificially enhance photos of the moon.
Samsung users were outraged when they discovered that their phone's "Space Zoom" feature uses artificial intelligence to artificially enhance photos, leaving them feeling betrayed and disappointed.
A Reddit user has accused the tech giant of its “fake” images after intentionally blurring a photo of the moon and then proceeding to take a photo with his Galaxy S23 Ultra smartphone .
The resulting image was much more detailed, showing craters and grainy texture that were not detected in the original image.
User 'ibreakphotos' confirms that Samsung 's artificial intelligence is responsible for creating the incredibly detailed images, as optics simply cannot achieve such a feat.
User ibreakphotos downloaded a photo of the moon and reduced its size to 170×170 pixels. He then blurred it with editing and, turning off the lights in his room, took a photo of the moon on his screen using his mobile phone.
The result was incredible. The phone's lens managed to capture a much more detailed image than the image on his computer screen. This was proof that Samsung has trained the AI to recognize when the moon is in the frame and intentionally adds details to make the photo look clearer, even if those details were never there.
After questioning, the company admitted that it uses artificial intelligence to identify when the moon is visible. They were unable to refute the online detective's claim either.
Since the moon is connected to the Earth through tidal forces, it's simple to train your model with data from other lunar images and apply that texture whenever something resembling the moon is detected.
When he turned off the “Scene Optimizer” feature on his phone, it created a blurry photo of the moon. Furthermore, if there are two blurry moons in the original image, only one of them will be given a photorealistic lunar texture.
The consumer described the photos of our planetary companion taken using Space Zoom as “artificial” because it “enhanced details that weren’t there in reality.”
This process does not involve sharpening or combining multiple frames with different levels of detail - each frame in this experiment contains the same amount of information.
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Despite the fact that the frames are intentionally blurry, the camera still miraculously records that craters exist.
Samsung 's recent marketing claims have been deemed "misleading," with the South Korean tech giant claiming its lens can target objects or people from greater distances than ever before.
As a means of showcasing a camera's capabilities, manufacturers often feature images of the moon – a distant, dimly lit object – in their advertising campaigns.
The post went viral, prompting Samsung to respond and acknowledge that Scene Optimizer leverages advanced artificial intelligence to detect objects and enhance details.
Samsung 's Galaxy S21 series revolutionized photo taking with Scene Optimizer , which recognizes the moon as a distinct object and applies detail enhancement to capture breathtaking images.
Capturing the celestial beauty of the moon has become easier and more impressive with your Galaxy , according to Samsung. Thanks to artificial intelligence technology based on deep learning and multi-frame processing, you can get more detail in every shot. The algorithm has been trained specifically for moon photos, so it quickly recognizes when the camera lens is pointed at our friend in the night sky – meaning maximum focus clarity as well as brightness levels are automatically adjusted before the shot!
Finally, the AI detail enhancement engine will take care of removing any remaining noise and further improving the image details.
However, the process remains a mystery, as it does not provide details on how such believable lunar surface textures were created. It is speculated that the software uses the data it has acquired to create hyper-realistic visual elements that are not present in the actual images.
ibreakphotos would otherwise be lost, and this case that uses an artificial intelligence model trained on moon images to recognize them and apply their texture – even when there was no lost information to begin with.
Many other Reddit users expressed their displeasure after being thoroughly impressed by Samsung 's cameras . One user even wrote: "I'm so disappointed."
Another commented that he would have been satisfied with the situation if more transparency had been ensured.
By using Scene Optimizer, recognizable lunar features are added to photographs that would otherwise appear natural, as opposed to constructing fictitious or imaginary elements.
On the contrary, some argue that using a telescope to observe the moon and take an image of it makes such an activity pointless.
Responding to the allegations, a Samsung strongly stated: “At Samsung, we are committed to providing superior photography experiences regardless of conditions.
See also: Google: 18 zero day vulnerabilities in Samsung Exynos chipsets
Using scene optimization , when the user takes a picture of the Moon, the algorithm will recognize it as the main object and take multiple photos for multi-frame composition. Additional AI elements are then used to enhance details and improve color intensity to enhance the overall quality of the image.
By disabling the AI-based Scene Optimizer, users can choose to forgo automatic detail enhancements applied to their photos.
The debate around whether artificially augmented or exclusively produced visual elements can be considered photography continues to evolve.
Last month, an Instagram with a huge following praised Midjourney – the artificial intelligence software he used to create photorealistic portraits.
His fans were outraged by his action, believing that he deliberately misled them into thinking the photos were taken with a camera.
According to artist Jos Avery, creative control still belongs to artists or photographers – not computers.
He argued that, while transparency is essential when it comes to disclosing images created with artificial intelligence, the photography industry has a history of misleading practices in the past.
Mr. Avery asks the questions: “Do people who use makeup in their photos inform viewers of this fact? What about cosmetic surgery?” He continued, observing that “every commercial fashion photo has a heavy dose of photoshopping, even the body replacement of celebrities on magazine covers.”
Source: dailymail.co.uk
