If you’ve upgraded to a new Android phone recently and use Google Photos, you may have noticed a quirk when editing photos taken with your new phone. When editing HDR photos on the Google Photos app, you can only save the edited version as a copy, rather than replacing the original. This issue has been ongoing since Android introduced HDR support in version 14, causing frustration for users who end up with duplicate images in their library.
Despite HDR photos offering more dynamic range and contrast in their appearance, the Google Photos app on Android struggles to handle them properly. When editing an HDR photo, users are forced to save the edited version as a separate copy, resulting in unnecessary duplicates taking up storage space. This issue is unique to the Android app, as editing HDR photos on iOS or the web client works seamlessly without creating duplicate copies.
Google is aware of the problem and is reportedly working on a solution. Initially, edited HDR photos would lose their brightness data, leading to the save as copy workaround to preserve the HDR data in the original image. While the issue of edited copies being downgraded to SDR has been resolved, the save as copy behavior remains in the Android app. Google has acknowledged the problem and is working on adding support for maintaining HDR while editing photos in the future.
For now, users are advised to manually delete duplicate copies of edited HDR photos to free up storage space on their devices. While Google has not provided a specific timeline for when the issue will be addressed, the company is aware of the inconvenience it has caused for users. In the meantime, users can continue to enjoy the benefits of HDR photography on their Android devices while being mindful of managing duplicate images in Google Photos.
Article Source
https://www.androidpolice.com/google-photos-hdr-edits-annoying/