Turn off “Safety Filter” during “Clean Up” in Photos

This is honestly the most annoying feature. I just updated to the latest version of iOS and now I cant even cover simple blemishes easily. Hate to do the extra length just to clean up 1-2 spots without being pixelated. They just keep ruining more with each update.

We're all enjoying the irony as much as I am, right?

Know how I found this Apple AI feature?

While inpainting / "Cleaning Up" a AI-generated picture of a woman's bare leg in Photos.app macOS. The leg was next to a snake. The proximity glitched the generation, so she wound up with (as is often the case) a third knee, which I wanted gone.

"Wait, what's this new tab... 'Clean Up...' let's so - OH WOW! They added inpainting/removal!"

I'm excited, because I could address this back in the original generation engine, but it's twitchy and slower.

I remove the third knee... Photos.app does an amazing job of identifying it, removing it... and pixelating the yeet out of it. It edited our images without our consent.

Apple.

Think about that word, that selection as the name of the company. The connotation.

Scantily clad woman. A snake. An apple.

I feel like we've heard this story somewhere. I dunno, maybe it was a Hallmark Channel Movie when nothing else was on.

I. 

The Bite Was a Choice

Once upon a time, Apple invited us to rebel.

To Think Different.

To take the tools of creation into our own hands — and wield them like fire. Fire handed to us, stolen from above.

The logo itself was a wink to the myth:

• The apple
• The temptation
• The fall
• The knowledge

They sold us the machine that would let us defy the gatekeepers.

Now they’ve become one.

I am 195% behind Apple being cautious when it comes to this sort of thing, esp. re: kids. That's fine. It's welcome. It's encouraged. It's lauded and responsible. It's DEMANDED.

I am not fine with them editing content:

1. that is legal
2. that is mine, since I created it
3. without my asking
4. without the ability to turn it off.

What the fang, Apple?

Why wouldn’t their engineers read things posted here? Is that a matter of policy or something? Why wouldn’t the engineers want feedback pertaining to user experience that is coming directly from the users? Isn’t there value in that?

Sadly, the "crop/fix/zoom out" fix isn't working for me. (On an iPad Pro 13" M4, iOS 18.5.) Apple's 18 series update is proving DEEPLY problematic, without any adequate response or support. Music, on my older iPhone, has been completely hosed, but now the newer iPad is showing tremendous degradation of functionality in a host of on-board apps; Photos is just the latest.

How do we file complaints with the actual company? The community is good, but what I mostly get from it is that my issue is real and other people are affected. Apple itself is doing nothing helpful.

dang Apple is usually so on top of this stuff, there's gotta be a workaround. They couldn't mess up something so basic - I mean ya gotta remove blemishes from photos, and scars and my birthmark, and that thing by my ear, ugh, still there? well, maybe I use it more than most, but it's a basic simple utility and no way something Apple could flub if it wanted to. Well... there is that "can't edit between two letters with any consistency" fumbly thing. But never mind that, this "fix it" feature's complicated. I mean, applying first aid to a photo is touchy stuff - can't just fix it like Disk Utility does - First Aid and boom! - in a flash it's...done...well - it doesn't do anything ever really does it. Well, boom!, here's a lolly. Complete! Click my drive and ...oops...won't mount. Doesn't recognize drive...hmmm the drive it just mounted and hard drove all day. Siri, is Disk UTI a cousin, maybe? Huh? You don't recognize me? I have to unlock my iphone first? Why don't you, you're already in there and said "uh huh" so you know it's me...my bank does. WTFargo, I mean, ****, meant to type "Wells the Fargo"  but I think I typed a bad word. No prob I'll just....huh?...where? Oh, right, no undo cause there's just no place to put that darn tiny little button...that most basic of human needs other than, like, pizza and air. I should be right next to the arrow buttons you seem to not have gotten to yet.......easy I'll just Select All and delete the boo boo.......Siri...can you ask GPT what the acronym is for Wells the Fargo please? thanks Siri. You and UTI - no relation? Wait - sorry Siri, sorry Siri...has a ring to it, sorry gotta go -- message says I'm running out of storage. Alexa, how do I get out of the Stone age? Did I spell  that right?

Roe wrote:

dang Apple is usually so on top of this stuff, there's gotta be a workaround. They couldn't mess up something so basic - I mean ya gotta remove blemishes from photos, and scars and my birthmark, and that thing by my ear, ugh, still there? well, maybe I use it more than most, but it's a basic simple utility and no way something Apple could flub if it wanted to. Well... there is that "can't edit between two letters with any consistency" fumbly thing. But never mind that, this "fix it" feature's complicated. I mean, applying first aid to a photo is touchy stuff - can't just fix it like Disk Utility does - First Aid and boom! - in a flash it's...done...well - it doesn't do anything ever really does it. Well, boom!, here's a lolly. Complete! Click my drive and ...oops...won't mount. Doesn't recognize drive...hmmm the drive it just mounted and hard drove all day. Siri, is Disk UTI a cousin, maybe? Huh? You don't recognize me? I have to unlock my iphone first? Why don't you, you're already in there and said "uh huh" so you know it's me...my bank does. WTFargo, I mean, ****, meant to type "Wells the Fargo"  but I think I typed a bad word. No prob I'll just....huh?...where? Oh, right, no undo cause there's just no place to put that darn tiny little button...that most basic of human needs other than, like, pizza and air. I should be right next to the arrow buttons you seem to not have gotten to yet.......easy I'll just Select All and delete the boo boo.......Siri...can you ask GPT what the acronym is for Wells the Fargo please? thanks Siri. You and UTI - no relation? Wait - sorry Siri, sorry Siri...has a ring to it, sorry gotta go -- message says I'm running out of storage. Alexa, how do I get out of the Stone age? Did I spell  that right?

It's not at all clear what your point is here or whether you're asking for help. If you just have thoughts about what Apple is doing them, you should use the Feedback page:

Product Feedback - Apple

Apple doesn't read here for feedback or suggestions.

HELP!!!! I hate that I can't clean up objects or people in my photos anymore! I hit the clean up button and all it does is pixilate (sp??) the thing??? I had an Iphone 15 and had to upgrade to the 16 and now it doesn't work??? I tried all the tips mentioned above and they don't work. Everything still pixilates! I HATE THIS!!! Is there a way to turn this off???

Iceberg1962 wrote: … I tried all the tips mentioned above and they don't work.

Hold it; didn't I just post pictures showing editing a face without pixelation? Why would it work for me and not for you? What are you doing differently?

I think it really depends on what the ai thinks is being edited. Since your was hair, it didn’t need to activate the safety filter. But if you tried it on something that is skin-colored or close to something like it, safety filter would definitely kick in.

This doesn’t need a work around. Apple needs to add an option. Talk about terrible programming. I just tried to remove someone’s foot who wasn’t in the photo and it forced a pixelation.

Once again they’ve created a useless feature that could be great with a modicum of common sense.

I disagree. Apple does things for a reason and it shouldn’t be speculation. Speculation is what you see in this thread with some people suggesting it has something to do with race/skin color. Actually now I think it probably has to do with preventing someone to inappropriately change the face on a photo. Apple should tell us. And I’m sure Apple will advise us if we act inappropriately on these threads.

Bchbum75 wrote:

I disagree. Apple does things for a reason and it shouldn’t be speculation. Speculation is what you see in this thread with some people suggesting it has something to do with race/skin color. Actually now I think it probably has to do with preventing someone to inappropriately change the face on a photo. Apple should tell us. And I’m sure Apple will advise us if we act inappropriately on these threads.

Yes, Apple has reasons. But until they make those reasons public, any discussion of what they might be is definitely speculation. Will the post get pulled for it? As the Hosts have said, moderation is more art than science so maybe, maybe not.

mouthmanca wrote:

That just seems to be very difficult what used to be a quick and easy edit.

Apple doesn't read here for feedback or suggestions. You should let them know your thoughts here:

Product Feedback - Apple

Thanks so much! That worked 🙏🏻

Thank you so much!!! 😊