Editing photos on your iPhone has become incredibly powerful, and removing unwanted people or objects is now easier than ever thanks to Apple’s built-in Photos app. No longer do you need to rely on third-party apps like Google Photos or Snapseed for quick touch-ups. Apple’s new “Clean Up” feature, integrated directly into the Photos app, lets you seamlessly erase distractions and perfect your images right on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac.
This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about How To Remove People From Photos Iphone using the Clean Up tool. We’ll cover device compatibility, step-by-step instructions, and tips for getting the best results, ensuring your photos are exactly as you envisioned.
Understanding the Clean Up Feature in Apple Photos
The Clean Up feature is a game-changer for iPhone photography enthusiasts. It’s designed to intelligently identify and remove unwanted elements like people, objects, and background clutter from your photos. This feature is part of Apple’s ongoing effort to enhance user experience through intuitive and powerful native tools.
However, it’s important to note that Clean Up is powered by Apple Intelligence and is available on devices that support this technology. Specifically, you’ll need to be running iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, or macOS Sequoia 15.1 or later. Device compatibility includes:
- iPhone: iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPhone 16 series models.
- iPad: iPad mini (A17 Pro) and any iPad model with an M1 chip or newer.
- Mac: Any Mac with an M1 chip or newer.
If your device meets these requirements, you’re ready to start using Clean Up to transform your photos.
Step-by-Step Guide to Removing People and Objects
Let’s dive into how to use the Clean Up feature to remove unwanted elements from your photos. The process is straightforward and user-friendly.
Accessing the Clean Up Tool
- Open Photos App and Select Image: Begin by opening the Photos app on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac and selecting the photo you wish to edit.
- Tap “Edit”: Once you’ve chosen your photo, tap the “Edit” button located in the top right corner of the screen.
- Find “Clean Up”: In the editing interface, you will see a new tab labeled “Clean Up.” Tap on this tab to access the feature.
Alt text: Accessing the Clean Up tool in the Apple Photos app edit menu on iPhone.
The first time you use Clean Up, the Photos app might need to download the tool. Once downloaded, you’ll be prompted to tap, brush, or circle the areas you want to remove.
Removing Unwanted Elements
Clean Up is smart enough to automatically detect and highlight potential distractions in your photo. These elements, which might include people or objects, will be outlined in fluorescent colors.
- Automatic Selection: If Clean Up correctly identifies the elements you want to remove, simply tap on each highlighted area. They will instantly disappear, seamlessly blending into the background.
- Zoom for Precision: For finer control, pinch to zoom in on specific areas of your photo. This allows for more accurate selections, especially when dealing with smaller distractions or complex backgrounds.
Alt text: Zooming in on a photo on iPhone to precisely remove unwanted objects using the Clean Up feature.
Using the Brush for Manual Removal
Sometimes, Clean Up might not automatically highlight everything you want to remove, or you might want to remove something it didn’t detect. In such cases, you can use the brush tool for manual selection.
- Brush Over Elements: Simply use your finger, mouse, or Apple Pencil to brush over the people or objects you want to remove. Circle or draw over the areas you want to clean up.
- Intelligent Filling: As you brush, Clean Up intelligently fills in the selected areas, attempting to match the surrounding textures and colors for a natural-looking result.
Alt text: Manually using the brush tool in Clean Up on iPhone to erase a person from a photograph.
Keep in mind that Clean Up works best when the elements you’re removing are surrounded by relatively simple backgrounds. Complex patterns or intricate details near the unwanted objects might make it more challenging for the tool to seamlessly fill in the space.
Adjusting Brush Size on Mac
For users editing on macOS, the Photos app offers the ability to adjust the brush size. This is particularly useful for fine-tuning edits.
- Brush Size Control: In Photos on macOS, you can change the brush size to make your brushstrokes smaller for detailed work or larger for covering bigger areas quickly.
Alt text: Adjusting the brush size in Apple Photos on macOS for precise removal of objects from images.
Undoing and Resetting Edits
Mistakes happen, or you might want to try a different approach. Clean Up provides easy ways to undo or reset your edits.
- Undo Edits: If you’re not satisfied with a particular edit, use the back button to undo your last action and try again.
- Reset Clean Up: To start over completely with Clean Up, tap or click the “Reset” or “Reset Clean Up” button. This will remove all Clean Up edits, allowing you to begin afresh without affecting any other edits you might have made to the photo.
Alt text: Reset Clean Up button highlighted in Apple Photos, allowing users to undo all removal edits.
Saving Your Edited Photo
Once you are happy with your edits, saving is simple.
- Tap “Done”: Tap the “Done” button to save your edited image. The changes will be applied, and your photo will be updated with the unwanted people or objects removed.
Blurring Faces for Privacy
Beyond removing people entirely, Clean Up also offers a handy feature to obscure faces for privacy. This is useful if you want to share a photo publicly but protect the identities of individuals in the picture.
How to Pixelate Faces
- Brush Over Faces: To blur faces, simply use the brush tool and draw or circle over the facial area of the person you want to obscure.
- Automatic Pixelation: Clean Up intelligently recognizes that you’re targeting a face and will apply a pixelation effect to blur the facial features, providing a quick and effective way to anonymize individuals in your photos.
Alt text: Pixelating a face in a photo on iPhone using the Clean Up feature to protect privacy.
Conclusion
The Clean Up feature in Apple Photos is a powerful and user-friendly tool for anyone wanting to quickly and easily remove people from photos iPhone. Whether you’re removing photobombers, cleaning up cluttered backgrounds, or simply refining your composition, Clean Up offers a seamless experience directly within the Photos app. With its intuitive design and intelligent processing, achieving perfectly polished photos on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac has never been easier. Explore this feature and discover how it can transform your photo editing workflow.
