I usually use Bing/Edge, and I have this page as my 'new tab' default - wutsearch.com

Or when I do need Google I've got the 'advanced' page bookmarked on my toolbar - google.com/advanced_search

But as per that article, I've never seen VERBATIM before, and never seen a mention of it anywhere! (seems to works like a strict version of double-quotes for phrases, or a '+' for a word).

AROUND(#) is new to me, too, although not so useful.

This has been around for years, apparently - official method to export all your google data (including photos backup). You tick off what you want to download, then submit a request. You receive a download link a few hours later.

https://takeout.google.com/

Then if you actually want to leave google photos, check out IMMICH - windows and mobile apps. It's actively developed, with a busy community.

https://immich.app/

https://www.reddit.com/r/immich/