AI and The Beginning of The End of Photography
Image created by the AI image generator (DALL-E)
“There used to be big men in the world, men of mind and power and imagination. There was St. Paul and Einstein and Shakespeare...There was Julius Caesar and Tolstoy and Immanuel Kant. But now it’s all robots. Robots and the pleasure principle. Everybody’s head is a cheap movie show.”
― Walter Tevis, Mockingbird
On March 14, 2023, German photographer Boris Eldagsen's eerie image entitled Pseudomnesia: The Electrician was selected as the winner in the open "Creative" category at the prestigious Sony World Photography Awards. Eldagsen refused his award, revealing that it was not a photograph crafted by a person but an AI-generated image. Eldagsen confessed that his submission was done to test the judge’s ability to recognize images produced by artificial intelligence and to start a conversation about its impact on photography.
Boris Eldagsen, PSEUDOMNESIA: The Electrician
The debate that Eldagsen desired never took place with Sony. They accepted his refusal of the award. Then issued a well-crafted sanitized press release that communicated nothing of substance and quickly moved on.
Through the centuries photography has evolved from the oldest surviving photos produced in the early 1800’s on chemically treated light-sensitive metal plates to our current digital media. The one constant has been human control and direction. Eldagsen’s rejection of his award highlights AI's impact on photography. No one can be sure if AI will bring increased productivity or possibly curtailing human creativity.
Image created by AI image generator (DreamStudio)
AI Generators
AI image generators utilize algorithms to create “new” images based on a set of input parameters or conditions laid out by programmers. To teach the software to form pictures a huge data set of existing images are used. Mostly taken from the internet, these images include everything from paintings to photographs. Images produced by these generators also bring into question copyright concerns due to images being formed from existing pictures.
Image created by AI image generator(DreamStudio)
A Curious Trend
A trend since the 1990s has seen a steady lowering of IQ scores on standardized tests worldwide. This decline has coincided with our increased dependence on AI. There are no definitive answers for the cause. One theory does suggest an overreliance on technology and smart devices. The technology that is making life simpler and more convenient is potentially making us all dumber. If AI is the root cause for falling IQs due to our growing dependence, what will be society’s response? Will we prioritize ease and comfort or try to increase human potential?
Image created by the AI image generator (DALL-E)
Undoubtedly, AI will make us more productive but will it come at the expense of our creativity? How do we foster it, when AI can generate images that can be produced within minutes by a few selective prompts on a computer? In a few short years, it has become increasingly more difficult for the average person to tell the difference between artificial images produced by algorithms or with a photographer’s eye. The possibilities of what it could produce consistently in a few years are frightening.
Image created by the AI image generator (Midjourney)
The Future for Photographers
In 1987 Thomas and John Knoll developed Photoshop and firmly put us on the path we are on currently. This software dramatically made it easier to manipulate digital images. Since then, there has been a generation of photographers utilizing this software and other tools to mold and bend images. More importantly, there has been a viewing public accepting and consuming incredibly stylized photoshopped pictures from advertisers, companies, influencers, etc. that are already pushing the boundary of what is real. The next logical progression is images entirely produced by AI.
Despite artificially produced images becoming more common, there will always be people who value authentic photography. There will always be a need for cherished moments captured in an image. Photographers who build rapport with subjects that can translate their unique personality or character onto a picture are skills that IA can not duplicate. Wedding photography, photojournalism, street photography, event photography, and portrait photography are some areas that should be safe well into the foreseeable future.
Conclusion
AI image generators like DALL-E and Midjourney still have their limitations. They are far from perfect. However, AI’s ability to mimic reality improves exponentially every year. Market forces and the masses wanting on-demand and convenient images will give these artificial “artisans” the advantage in some areas. We continue to surrender our control to algorithms that influence what we watch, read, and create. Like any tool, how it is used lies firmly in the hands of those who possess it. We should be wise in its use. Otherwise, we run the risk of losing far more than we gain by letting AI get out of control.
