Can Photoshop Generative Fill be your AI photo assistant?

Artificial intelligence (AI) has made tremendous strides in recent years, revolutionizing various industries. One significant advancement is generative AI, a technology with great potential for photographers and photo editors. Generative AI is a subset of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating new and original content. Unlike traditional AI systems that primarily analyze existing data, generative AI leverages complex algorithms to generate new data, such as images, videos, text, and more.

Recently, Adobe released an update to their Photoshop beta app that integrates their generative AI tool called Adobe Firefly. They're referring to the integrated Photoshop feature as Generative Fill. I've spent some time exploring ways to leverage this new tool, as well as stumbling on its numerous limitations, and created this video to show you what I've found. I hope you come back to this article after watching the video to learn more about the benefits and concerns of Generative AI for photographers.

Benefits of Generative AI for Photographers

Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs) are one of the most popular approaches within generative AI. GANs consist of two neural networks: a generator and a discriminator. The generator creates new content while the discriminator evaluates the authenticity of the generated content. Through iterative training and feedback, GANs become adept at producing highly realistic and visually appealing outputs.

Creative Inspiration

Generative AI can serve as a wellspring of inspiration for photographers by providing a fresh perspective and pushing the boundaries of traditional editing techniques. By generating diverse variations and unique interpretations of an image, generative AI opens doors to new artistic possibilities, sparking innovative ideas for photo editing.

Automated Image Enhancement

Generative AI can streamline the photo editing workflow by automating certain enhancement tasks. For example, AI algorithms can analyze an image and make intelligent adjustments to lighting, color grading, noise reduction, and sharpness. You already see this happening with apps such as Topaz Photo AI, which analyzes a photo and automatically recommends appropriate noise reduction and sharpening. This automation saves time for photographers, allowing them to focus more on the creative aspects of their work.

Style Transfer

Generative AI techniques enable photographers to incorporate different artistic styles into their images seamlessly. Through style transfer algorithms, photographers can transform a photograph into a painting reminiscent of a famous artist's style, such as Van Gogh or Picasso. This blending of styles adds a unique touch to the photographs, making them stand out and capturing viewers' attention.

Object Removal and Manipulation

Unwanted objects or distractions within an image can be effortlessly removed or modified using generative AI. By training the AI models on vast datasets, these algorithms learn to identify and remove unwanted elements from images, allowing photographers to refine their compositions and achieve cleaner, more visually appealing results.

Concerns of Generative AI for Photographers

While generative AI benefits photographers in numerous nove, I want to acknowledge several valid concerns. Here are some reasons photographers may have concerns about generative AI:

Ethical Use and Attribution

Generative AI can create highly realistic and convincing images, which raises questions about ethical use and proper attribution. With the ability to generate original content, there is a risk of misuse, such as plagiarism or copyright infringement. Photographers may worry about their work being manipulated or misused without proper consent or credit. Trust me, this is a very real worry for me, too.

Loss of Originality and Authenticity

As generative AI becomes more sophisticated, there is a potential for devaluing original photographic work. Maintaining the authenticity and value of original photographic work may become a concern. With AI algorithms capable of generating realistic images, photographers might worry that their unique vision and creative input could be overshadowed by AI-generated content.

Dependency on AI Tools

With the increasing capabilities of generative AI, photographers might find themselves relying heavily on AI tools for editing and enhancement. They may become overly reliant on AI algorithms, potentially hindering their ability to develop and refine their editing techniques. This dependency raises many legitimate questions about the impact on their skills and creativity, and it's a delicate balance I struggle with as a photo educator.

Privacy and Data Security

Generative AI models often require large datasets (i.e., thousands to millions of photos) to train effectively. Concerns arise regarding the privacy and security of the data used to train these models. Photographers may worry about their images or personal information being used without their consent or stored insecurely, potentially leading to privacy breaches or data misuse.

Job Displacement and Industry Changes

As AI technology continues to advance, there is a possibility of job displacement in photo editing. This may lead to shifts in the industry and changes in the demand for certain skills and job roles, causing concern for professional photographers and photo editors. Automated editing features provided by generative AI could reduce the need for human intervention in certain tasks, especially those that photographers find tedious.

Wrapping it up

While generative AI offers remarkable benefits for photographers, there are legitimate concerns that arise alongside its development. It is crucial to address these concerns by establishing ethical guidelines for AI usage, ensuring proper attribution, and protecting original work. It is also important for photographers to continue honing their skills and creativity, embracing AI as a tool rather than a replacement. Photographers can help shape its responsible and beneficial integration into their profession by actively participating in the conversation surrounding generative AI.