Unveiled at Galaxy Unpacked July 2026, Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy Z series introduces My FanCam — a new feature that lets users focus their edits on a person of their choice — as well as an enhanced Portrait Video that recreates the look of professional camera lenses.
While the two features offer different camera experiences, both draw on expertise spanning foundational technology research, feature development, and user experience design.
As part of “The People Behind the Galaxy Z Series’ Camera Innovations,” Samsung Newsroom sat down with experts from Samsung Research and the Mobile eXperience (MX) Business to discuss the technical challenges and collaboration behind the two features.
A sharply defined subject against a softly blurred background creates a sense of depth long associated with professional camera lenses. Researchers have continued to explore ways to achieve this effect in smartphone video.
With the Galaxy Z series, Portrait Video recreates the distinctive depth and Bokeh1 of a large-aperture lens.2 To make this possible, Samsung Research analyzed the optical characteristics of actual camera lenses and developed AI-powered video processing technology, while the MX Business optimized it for the device.
(From left) Sang-uk Park, responsible for camera development at the Mobile eXperience (MX) Business, and YoungGeol Kim of the Visual Technology Team at Samsung Research.
Samsung Newsroom spoke with YoungGeol Kim of the Visual Technology Team at Samsung Research and Sang-uk Park, responsible for camera development at the Mobile eXperience (MX) Business, about how Portrait Video evolved from a research concept into a Galaxy camera feature.
A New Level of Depth in Portrait Video
Q. What is Portrait Video? What has changed with the latest Galaxy Z series?
Park: Portrait Video keeps the main subject in focus while softly blurring the background, creating a cinematic look that makes the subject stand out.
Users can open the Camera app and tap "More” to access Portrait Video.
On the Galaxy Z series, the degree of blur changes naturally based on the distance between the subject and background. Small background lights appear as soft, rounded Bokeh, much as they would through a large-aperture lens. This allows users to draw attention to the subject and capture videos with greater depth and atmosphere using just a smartphone, without the need for separate professional equipment.
Comparison of videos with and without Portrait Video on the Galaxy Z series
Users can also shift the focus to a different subject or adjust the blur level after filming.
Users can change the subject in focus and adjust the blur level from 0 to 7.
Q. What inspired the technology behind Portrait Video?
Kim: Photography has been my hobby for 25 years. That passion led me to camera technology research and development and sparked a lasting interest in the unique visual character of lenses.
As smartphone cameras advanced rapidly, photography benefited from a range of new features and improvements in image quality. Video evolved quickly as well, but I saw further potential in recreating the depth and background rendering of professional camera lenses. We proposed the idea during the research stage, just as the MX Business was exploring ways to help users create professional-looking videos more easily — paving the way for joint development.
Kim shares the inspiration behind Portrait Video.
Q. How did the teams collaborate to turn Portrait Video into a camera feature?
Kim: Existing solutions alone weren’t enough to achieve the natural lens rendering we wanted. At the time, Samsung Research’s technology was still in the research stage, so applying it to a product was not an easy decision. Even so, the MX Business recognized its potential and decided to commercialize it.
From there, full-scale testing and refinement began. We evaluated the technology on actual devices and exchanged feedback, turning it into a camera feature for users.
Park: To prepare the feature for real-world use, we had to shoot countless videos under a wide range of conditions and validate the results. Since the feature is centered on people, experts from both teams even served as models and filmed one another. We focused particularly on how naturally subjects were separated from their backgrounds and whether the blur and Bokeh looked right at different distances.
As we filmed each other, reviewed the results together and continued our discussions, what I remember most is how noticeably the results improved.
Park describes the collaboration between the teams.
Large-Aperture Lens Rendering on Smartphones
Q. What is the key technology that takes Portrait Video to the next level?
Kim: The key is technology that recreates the distinctive look of large-aperture professional camera lenses in smartphone video. We used AI and optical analysis to make this possible.
Simply blurring an image is not enough to reproduce the depth and natural background rendering of a professional camera. Conventional blur softens an image by blending surrounding colors, but a large-aperture lens works differently. The degree of blur changes naturally based on the distance between the subject and background, while bright points of light spread into Bokeh that retain their shape and brightness. The shapes and textures of these out-of-focus areas are known as bokeh.
This requires accounting for both subject-to-background distance and how light spreads through an actual camera lens.
Bokeh captured with Portrait Video on Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra
Recreating this effect on a smartphone required two elements. First, we analyzed how light spreads through a real large-aperture lens and the resulting bokeh characteristics, then converted the results into data. We combined this with AI-estimated distance information for the scene, allowing the system to adjust the degree of blur and bokeh size based on the distance between the subject and background.
Process for recreating the effect of a large-aperture lens
Q. What technical challenges did the teams face when creating blur and bokeh on smartphones?
Kim: The biggest challenge was naturally rendering complex boundaries between the subject and background, such as hair or eyeglass frames. On smartphones, AI-estimated distance information alone isn’t sufficient to accurately distinguish fine boundaries. Even a small error can blur strands of hair or leave parts of the background sharp, making the subject look unnaturally cut out.
To address this, we combined AI-estimated distance information with boundary information from the original footage, allowing for natural separation between the subject and background even around fine details such as hair.
Park: Maintaining consistent results across different shooting conditions — including weather, lighting, subject movement, and distance — was crucial. We repeatedly filmed under a wide range of conditions and reviewed the results, improving unnatural elements through software optimization and additional AI training data. Building on Samsung Research’s technology, image quality experts from the MX Business also evaluated the results from a user perspective, further refining the feature.
Portrait Video recognizes faces and naturally shifts focus to another person when the main subject turns away.
Q. What did it take to make this complex video processing reliable and ready for use on the Galaxy Z series?
Kim: The biggest hurdle was reducing power consumption and heat generation without compromising quality. Video is a rapid sequence of images, so processing 4K video in real time requires significant computation.
That meant we had to prioritize. We preserved the processing essential to image quality while reducing computation in areas where users were unlikely to notice a difference.
As a result, we struck a balance between natural lens rendering and real-time processing, ensuring stable, efficient performance even during extended recording.
More Freedom in Video Creation
Q. What are some tips to help users get the most out of Portrait Video?
Kim: To make bokeh stand out, look for scenes with bright light sources against a relatively dark background. Sunlight sparkling through leaves, Christmas lights, or streetlights at night can spread softly into circular Bokeh, creating a more atmospheric look.
When filming a person, it’s best to avoid strong light from the front. Instead, position the light source behind or to the side of the subject. This can softly illuminate the subject’s hair and contours while making the background Bokeh more prominent. Reflected light or ambient sources like streetlights can help keep the face from getting too dark for a more balanced result.
An object filmed at a café using Portrait Video. The naturally blurred background makes the subject stand out.
Q. What reaction would you most like to hear from people who have tried Portrait Video?
Park: I’d like users, creators, and video professionals to be surprised by how easy it is to create cinematic video on a smartphone. I hope the natural blur, Bokeh, and post-capture editing features give them greater freedom to achieve the look and feel they want.
Kim: Ultimately, I hope people feel they no longer need to carry a separate professional camera. We will continue advancing the underlying technologies so they can create cinematic videos with just a smartphone.
The experts look forward to what’s next for Portrait Video.
Bringing the cinematic shallow depth of field and light rendering of professional camera lenses to smartphone video required extensive testing and collaboration to turn a research concept into a reliable product feature. Developed through the combined expertise of Samsung Research and the MX Business, Portrait Video expands the Galaxy video experience — giving users more ways to realize their creative vision.
1 The shape and texture of blur in out-of-focus areas, often seen when small points of light appear as circular highlights.
2 A lens with an aperture that can open wide to let in more light, making it well suited for keeping the subject sharp while softly blurring the background and rendering bokeh highlights.
