P: New AI-powered Generative Remove (Early Access) available across all surfaces.

[Rikk Flohr: Photography]

This post applies to Lightroom Classic and the Lightroom Ecosystem products.
Post Camera Raw feedback here

The Lightroom team is sharing an early look at Generative Remove, which makes it easier to remove unwanted objects and distractions, even on complex backgrounds, with a simple brush stroke. Generative Remove is powered by Firefly AI.

How to use Generative Remove on a desktop:

• You can find Generative Remove under the newly renamed Remove panel (aka “Heal”).
• Make sure the “generative AI” checkbox is enabled before you start brushing (note: when unchecked, Lightroom will use Content-Aware Remove to fill your brushed spots). 
• By default, you will be given a moment to refine your selection with an add or subtract brush. Remember to include shadows for a more accurate result! You can also skip this step by holding down ‘CTRL’ on windows or ‘CMD’ on mac as you finish your brush stroke. 
• Once you’re ready to apply and have accepted the terms, Generative Remove will use Firefly AI to remove your distractions and intelligently fill in the space that’s left by the removed objects. 
• Note: stable internet connection is required to use this feature.
• Generative Remove also lets you choose from multiple variations, so you can pick the one you like best, giving you full creative control. 
  
  Checkout the FAQ and Best Practices

Please give it a try and share feedback and/or report variations in this community forum. It would greatly help to include details like which app you are using (i.e., Lightroom Classic or Camera Raw) and other system details. Our team will continually monitor this thread to track issues to improve the future experience.

Lisa Ngo: Lightroom Product Manager
Posted by: Rikk Flohr 

Update:

Here are some tips if you are having issues with the feature replacing your object instead of removing it. 

• Enlarge your selection - if your brush stroke is too tight, you will have unexpected results.
• Remember that removing an object means painting over it, its shadow, its reflection, and any non-contiguous pieces. If you leave behind a shadow, a reflection, or a disconnected piece (e.g., a hand on a shoulder), the AI will attempt to create something to cast the shadow, reflect, or complete the unbrushed discontinuous item. You can avoid these issue by following the guidance provided in this linked tutorial. https://www.lightroomqueen.com/generative-remove-replace
• The recommended order for applying is: Denoise - Heal (includes Generative AI Remove) - Crop/Edit - AI Selective edits. If you deviate from that you may see the removed object remains as a ghost image. If this occurs you will have to use Update AI Settings, which can be found under the Develop module 'Settings' menu.

[Fabrizio Giuffrida]

Adobe only seems interested in getting feedback about Generative AI working or not. I suggest there should be more questioning whether the inclusion of this function in a photography-oriented app is appropriate or not.

While the traditional Healing Brush replaces a part of a photo with another part of the same photo, Generative AI correction comes from somewhere else, maybe even from somebody else's photo - as is clearly stated in the Terms of Use. This means that if I use Generative AI to edit a photo I cannot say anymore that it is 100% mine. I am not a conservative regarding post-production, but I think this goes too far. In my opinion Generative Remove and other recently introduced functions, such as Lens Blur and Automatic Noise Reduction - whether they use Generative AI or not - find more their place in Photoshop, which is widely used also for illustration and art, not just photography. As a photographer I would like to have a powerful app I can rely on to improve my photos without faking them, this is what Lightroom Classic used to be: will it still be?

If Adobe decides to leave these functions where they are now, I strongly request that all functions that make use of Generative AI be very clearly indicated, to make its use conscious and responsible. For exemple, in the Remove Brush settings, putting the Generative AI flag first, then the Content Aware flag second, makes one think that Content Aware makes use of Generative AI regardless of flag status. Also in June 10th 2024 help, it is stated that "Starting with the May release of the Lightroom Classic version (13.3), the Heal tool has been renamed to Remove" and a few lines below "Remove: Removes spots and objects using Generative AI by (Adobe) Firefly and fills the selection with generated content". It seems then impossible to use the Remove Brush without using Generative AI. As a result, I am not using the Remove brush at all now, in fear of introducing material from outside my photos. You understand this is really annoying.

Again, please indicate with the utmost accuracy which functions use Generative AI. An option to deactivate all Generative AI functions at once would also be greatly welcome.

[Victoria Bampton LR Queen]

Right now, it's quite clear because the name of the tool is Generative AI. But as it becomes more mainstream,  you'd like a preference that disables all generative AI, is that right? Where do you draw the line? Tools that use AI at all, like the AI based masking tools that just create the selection, or just tools that create new pixels? There's definitely a wider conversation to have around this topic. 

[Fabrizio Giuffrida]

Hi Victoria, thank you for reading and for taking time to answer. AI based masking tools are ok, they just speed up work, they do not add anything to the photo - that is the kind of AI they use is not Generative. The problem comes from Generative AI because it introduces pixels that are not in the original photo, thus changing it into a composite image. Selling or exhibiting a photo that has pixels coming from other sources - sources unknown even to the photographer - is definitely a problem both morally and legally, as I am not 100% the author nor the owner of it anymore. I think Generative AI has no place in a Photography-centered app - we are all the best generators for our own photos! - but if Adobe chooses to introduce it in Lightrooom Classic they need to label it in a very, very clear way, which is not the case now. And having an option to disable Generative AI would make it simpler for all those who do not want to use it.

[jrsforums]

It seems every new step goes 'too far' for someone.  In my view, this is no different from any other processing option, from brightness, toning, lens adjustment, cloning, healing, composition, etc. (or even removing a beer can before taking a shot).  we have the choice of using any of them to meet our individual artistic or vertas needs.

[Fabrizio Giuffrida]

The big difference resides in that Generative AI introduces pixels from outside your photo, while all the other tools you mentioned exert their action inside it, without adding anything: you may clone out the beer can but the pixels you are using are being copied from some other part of the same photo. After using Generative AI, even only to remove a spot, what you have is a composite image, not a photo anymore. And it is not 100% yours, as some part of it has been "created" or pasted from some other photo. And according to the Terms of Use : "Adobe may attach or publish Content Credentials for content created with generative AI features to let people know it was generated with AI". This is why it is important that Adobe indicates very, very clearly which tools use Generative AI, so that each one of us can choose if using it or not. The June 10th 2024 help notes suggest that Remove Brush uses Generative AI even when it is unflagged. Presently it is unclear which tools use Generative AI, so the customers are being denied their choice. An option to disable all Generative AI functions would make it simpler.

[Karol34393830ic7h]

Still is problem to remove object in corners of picture.

[mfriloux]

I have the latest Lightroom update 13.3.1 and I'm still noticing a problem with the new LR remove tool. On items in the corner of images, it doesn't remove the item. It consistently has tried to keep the item I'm selecting to remove and replace it with identical items. I've tried selecting a larger area and I get the same result. The photoshop version is much better but I do appreciate that this tool has been added to Lighroom as it does really help with several other elements I have tried to remove. I attached the original and the 3 options provided. 

[Ian Lyons]

Try temporarily removing any crop you may have applied and turn off lens corrections. Both can cause the issue you show. The crop and lens corrections can be reapplied after you've used Generative AI Remove.

[Morningland]

wow!  It works amazing well for me!  

[Samantha35953690exj2]

Admittedly, it can be hit or miss in terms of actually removing an object rather than replacing it with another object but often times after a few revisions and variations I could get the result I wanted. Lately it removes what I want it to, but you can still see the outline of what I removed in like a bright haze of sorts and you can't get the outline to remove for ANYTHING. It only started doing that in the last maybe 5 days or so. But it's a pain and I end up having to remove in Photoshop anyway which is a bummer.

[Ian Lyons]

@Samantha35953690exj2 

The haze you refer to maybe the result of applying 'Generative AI remove' to an image that has an AI based mask. This is denoted by a red dot under the 'Masks' icon on the toolbar. If this is the case, then you can fix the issue by using  the 'Update AI Settings', which can be found in the Develop module Settings menu or as shown in attached screenshot.

[redb0xster]

My experience so far is this feature is pretty lame.  As others have reported, it doesm't actually remove the object and fill in the background; it replaces the object with some random blob or blobs.

[johnrellis]

@redb0xster, temporarily remove any crop and disable Lens Corrections and Transform. Include a generous boundary around the object, including any shadows or reflections, and then it should be replaced with background (removed) rather than with another version of the object. See this article:
https://www.lightroomqueen.com/generative-remove-replace/

If that doesn't help, please attach the original photo here (not an export) so we and Adobe can see the issue in detail. If the forum won't let you attach it, upload it to Dropbox, Google Drive, or similar and post the sharing link here.

[stefanosg81785881]

The biggest update ever since adding the generative fill!!!I've noticed it does better when selecting in parts. I love that I don't need to spot heal in Photoshop as much. 

[jjDaley]

It's probably an early implementation bug but FYI, when using the new remove tool I''ve found instances of it properly removing an object (cable) from an image in the LRC interface (image 1) but if that same image is synced to the web, on the published version the removal shows some obvious irregularities (image 2.) 

[Unicorneu]

Generative AI removal feature works most of the time pretty well. In a few instances, however, it replaced people with other people instead of filling in the surrounding background. New additions had a rather creepy appearance.

[johnrellis]

@Unicorneu: "In a few instances, however, it replaced people with other peoplei"

Temporarily remove any crop and disable Lens Corrections and Transform. Include a generous boundary around the object, including any shadows or reflections, and then it should be replaced with background (removed) rather than with another version of the object. See this article:
https://www.lightroomqueen.com/generative-remove-replace/

If that doesn't help, please attach the original photo here (not an export) so we and Adobe can see the issue in detail. If the forum won't let you attach it, upload it to Dropbox, Google Drive, or similar and post the sharing link here.

[ClaudioCla]

il programma genera nuovi soggetti simili a quello che vorrei togliere, invece io vorrei SOLO togliere il mio soggetto senza generarne di nuovi. grazie

[Ian Lyons]

@ClaudioCla 

Have a look at below linked tutorial. It demonstrates how to use the tool to remove rather than replace.

https://www.lightroomqueen.com/generative-remove-replace/ 

[redb0xster]

I realize this is a radical suggestion, but perhaps a tool that does not really remove objects should not be called the Remove tool???

[Ian Lyons]

If you don't remove the shadows, refelections, projections, etc associated with the object you're trying to remove, then the AI model will try to replace it with something that would cause the shadows, etc. 

Another issue that can occur is not removing an object at the edge of the frame or corner. This may be due to the image having been cropped prior to the Generative AI Remove being applied and/or lens corrections. Temporarily disabling the crop or lens corrections can often resolve the issue.

[redb0xster]

Bingo! The objects I tried to remove were both in the corner of the
uncropped image. In both cases LR removed much of the objects but then
inserted new blobs of something or another.

Not working in corners, I would think, is kind of an issue with the tool.

[johnrellis]

@redb0xster, Remove does usually work in corners. Did you disable Lens Corrections and Transform before doing the Remove?  

If that doesn't help, please attach the original photo here (not an export) so we and Adobe can see the issue in detail. If the forum won't let you attach it, upload it to Dropbox, Google Drive, or similar and post the sharing link here.

[besler]

Cannot even get close to the results I get in Photoshop with Generative AI in Lightroom Classic. It always seems to want to add new elements ... not remove them. Trying to remove the edge of a tree on the side of my frame, and it wants to insert new leaves.

Excited about this, but it needs A LOT OF WORK to be production ready.

[johnrellis]

@besler: "Trying to remove the edge of a tree on the side of my frame, and it wants to insert new leaves."

Temporarily remove any crop and disable Lens Corrections and Transform. Include a generous boundary around the object, including any shadows or reflections, and then it should be replaced with background (removed) rather than with another version of the object. See this article:
https://www.lightroomqueen.com/generative-remove-replace/

If that doesn't help, please attach the original photo here (not an export) so we and Adobe can see the issue in detail. If the forum won't let you attach it, upload it to Dropbox, Google Drive, or similar and post the sharing link here.