Cleaning Photos for Google Maps using Magic Eraser Tool
Simple photo editing tips for Local Guides
Many times when we click photos of a place for Google Maps, some random people appear in the background. This happens often in busy places like markets, temples, tourist spots, or streets.
The place may look beautiful, but unwanted people in the frame can distract from the location. To solve this, I often use the Magic Eraser tool in Google Photos.
It helps remove unwanted people or objects and keeps the photo clean and focused on the place.
📷 Example: Before and After using Magic Eraser
See the difference after removing people from the photo.
🛠 Steps to Remove People using Magic Eraser
- Open the Google Photos app on your phone.
- Select the photo you want to edit.
- Tap Edit.
- Scroll to Tools and choose Magic Eraser.
- The tool may automatically highlight people or objects.
- Tap the highlighted area or manually circle the person you want to remove.
- The background will be filled intelligently by the app.
- Tap Done and save your edited photo.
🎥 Instruction Video
(See the short video demonstration below )
🌍 Why This is Helpful for Local Guides
- Keeps the focus on the place instead of people
- Makes photos look cleaner and more professional
- Highlights important details like entrances, signboards, and surroundings
- Improves the quality of Google Maps contributions
Google Maps Photo Guidelines about People
When uploading photos to Google Maps, it is important to keep the focus on the place.
- Avoid photos where a person’s face is the main subject.
- Respect people's privacy while sharing photos.
- Try to capture the environment, building, or useful details of the place.
🤖 Another Helpful Option: Gemini AI Editing in Google Photos
Recently, Google Photos introduced editing suggestions powered by Gemini AI.
This feature can suggest edits, remove objects, and improve photos automatically.
As you can see, Gemini AI sometimes does not remove all people and may also change the background. That is why Magic Eraser is usually the better option for accurate and clean editing.
Gemini AI is useful for smart suggestions, while Magic Eraser gives more control for precise editing.
✨ Final Thoughts
Small edits can make a big difference in the quality of photos we upload to Google Maps.
Using tools like Magic Eraser or Gemini AI helps keep photos clean, focused, and more useful for other users.
Before uploading a photo, it is always a good idea to quickly check it in Google Photos.
