I was thinking about the future of photography, esp with all the features available in apps like ChatGPT, Grok aso.

Consider the photos in this post, with the Maiko (apprentice Geiko/Geisha). I made this in Kyoto. In the background of the original, you see some cars which I find distracting and not very pleasing. How easy it is to just have ChatGPT replace the car with some pine trees or the golden temple in Kyoto? Within seconds? I can have my photo made just to my liking.

So you could say why bother going out and shoot because it will be very difficult , if not impossible to make photos you make yourself look as good as those made or altered by AI, if you know how to give it the right prompts.

ChatGPT now also includes a connection to the Photoshop app that analyses your photo and makes suggestions on how to improve it with adjusting contrast, saturation, lights, shadows et cetera and it does a real good job. So why bother?

I guess it all comes down to the experience you are having and the excitement of being at the right place at the right time and capturing the scene.

I’ve often thought there is an element of hunting in photography, esp when capturing people or animals. Photography can be a sort of replacement for that feeling.

Only afterwards do I look at it again at home and maybe post it on here. And to be honest, I do appreciate the likes and reposts and of course the zaps. It feels like a validation.

So I guess there are two main experiences connected to photography: the excitement of the moment itself and then the experience you get when showing the result to others.

Making AI adjustments doesnt affect the first feeling. Either it was there or it was not.

So it affects only the moment showing it to others, not the high you get from clicking at the right time, capturing beauty.

That in itself is a reason to keep on shooting. AI will never be able to spoil that for me.

In post processing, even removing small distractions, like some litter on the foreground, I don’t have a problem with.

There are whole debates about this online though, for many it is considered ‘not done’.

So where is the line for me?

I guess removing a fundamental part (subject, total background or foreground) and including something that was not there, is where I draw the line.

Making changes like that takes away any satisfaction I might get from showing what I made to others. If that means i ‘lose’ to those that do make their photo’s ‘perfect’ this way, then so be it.

Let me know you thoughts on this!

HAVE A MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY AND THANK YOU FOR APPRECIATING MY WORK!

#photography #AI