Apple patents “synthetic group selfies”
----------------------------------------------
In a move that feels perfect for our times, Apple has been granted a patent that allows a user to invite several friends to take selfies, then combine them into a single composition
----------------------------------------------
Example: Three socially distancing friends chatting on FaceTime* – one suggests taking group selfie to record occasion. Here’s how:
   
Dan (originator)

Chloe Lily (contributors)
----------------------------------------------
Send Retake

Dan has invited you to participate in a group selfie photo

Accept Decline
----------------------------------------------
1 Dan invites Chloe and Lily to take selfies for group shot
----------------------------------------------
2 Chloe and Lily accept, and take photos of themselves using their iPhones. App deletes backgrounds and sends images to Dan’s handset
----------------------------------------------
3 Dan takes his own selfie and chooses background image
----------------------------------------------
4 Dan’s iPhone automatically composes images into one photo and sends copies to Chloe and Lily, ready for editing or sharing on social media
----------------------------------------------
Montage is layered object

Any participant can rearrange composition
----------------------------------------------
Accept 
Rearrange composition
----------------------------------------------
*Apple’s video chat service. Pictures: Yingchou Han and Courtney Cook (both on Unsplash), Apple 
----------------------------------------------
Sources: The Verge, Patently Apple, United States Patent and Trademark Office    
© GRAPHIC NEWS