How to turn off AI processing on a Samsung camera
Galaxy phones boost colour, sharpen edges and smooth texture before you ever see a photo. Here are the settings that turn that down, from Scene optimizer to Camera Assistant, and how to get the least-processed file your phone can make.
What Samsung's camera does to your photos
Galaxy phones process photos heavily by default: scene recognition boosts the colour of food, skies and greenery, sharpening makes edges crisp on a phone screen, and noise reduction smooths away grain along with fine texture. That's why photos can look punchy at a glance but crunchy or painted when you zoom in. You can't switch it all off in Samsung's own camera app, but you can turn most of it down.
Samsung moves and renames camera settings between One UI versions and models. If a name below doesn't match your phone exactly, look for the closest one in the same place.
1. Turn off Scene optimizer
Scene optimizer recognises what you're pointing at and adjusts colour, contrast and sharpening for it. It's the usual cause of over-saturated grass and skies.
- Open the Camera app and tap the settings gear.
- Under Intelligent features, turn off Scene optimizer. Newer versions may call it something like scene detection.
Photos will look a little less punchy on the phone screen, and more like the scene in front of you.
2. Soften the sharpening with Camera Assistant
Camera Assistant is Samsung's free add-on for the camera, from the Galaxy Store (on recent phones it may already be in the camera settings). Its Picture softening option, called Photo softening on the newest models, reduces sharpening:
- Install Camera Assistant from the Galaxy Store if it isn't in your camera settings.
- Open it from the camera settings.
- Set Picture softening to Medium for a natural balance, or High for the least sharpening. It's Off by default.
On some of the newest Galaxy phones there's a matching Video softening option for video.
3. Stop the camera switching lenses for you
In dim light or close up, Samsung's camera may quietly use the main camera and crop, instead of the telephoto lens you chose. In Camera Assistant, turn off Auto lens switching so 3x or 5x always uses the real telephoto. Our guide to wide, ultra-wide and telephoto explains why the camera does this.
4. Turn off face effects
Selfies and portraits can get skin smoothing. In selfie mode, tap the face effects (wand) icon and set the effects to zero or off.
5. Shoot RAW for the least processing
A RAW (DNG) file skips most of the processing, so you decide sharpening and noise reduction when you edit. On Samsung, RAW comes with Pro mode (look for a RAW copies option in the camera settings), and Samsung's separate Expert RAW app adds more on supported Galaxy models. See how to shoot RAW on Android.
6. Use a camera app that skips the processing
Third-party camera apps talk to the camera through Android's Camera2 interface, which lets them ask for less processing than Samsung's own app applies. One Camera has a Neutral setting that turns the phone's own sharpening and noise reduction off, and saves RAW (DNG) alongside the JPEG. Both are in One Camera Pro, a one-time purchase, and one short ad unlocks them for 24 hours, so you can test on your Galaxy first. How much a phone lets apps switch off is up to the manufacturer, so results vary by model.
For the general picture beyond Samsung, see how to take photos without AI processing on Android.
Questions
How do I turn off AI enhancement on a Samsung camera?
Open the camera settings and turn off Scene optimizer under Intelligent features. For less sharpening, install Camera Assistant from the Galaxy Store and set Picture softening (Photo softening on the newest models) to Medium or High.
How do I stop my Samsung photos looking over-sharpened?
Use Camera Assistant's Picture softening option at Medium or High, turn off Scene optimizer, or shoot RAW in Pro mode and sharpen it yourself when you edit.
Why doesn't my Samsung 3x zoom use the telephoto lens?
In dim light or close up, the camera may switch to the main camera and crop. Turning off Auto lens switching in Camera Assistant makes it keep the telephoto.
Is there a camera app for Samsung with less processing?
Yes. Third-party apps using Android's Camera2 interface can ask for less processing. One Camera's Neutral setting turns off the phone's own sharpening and noise reduction, and it can save RAW (DNG) too.