And by "done" I mean the business of commercial headshots not a "task completed."
This is all hitting right now. No reason not to enjoy taking photographs for fun. Just going to be a lot harder for a lot of folks to make a living competing.
3.25.2023
Wanna Compete with stuff like this? Really? I'd rather take a walk or read something interesting.
9 comments:
We Moderate Comments, Yours might not appear right after you hit return. Be patient; I'm usually pretty quick on getting comments up there. Try not to hit return again and again.... If you disagree with something I've written please do so civilly. Be nice or see your comments fly into the void. Anonymous posters are not given special privileges or dispensation. If technology alone requires you to be anonymous your comments will likely pass through moderation if you "sign" them. A new note: Don't tell me how to write or how to blog! I can't make you comment but I don't want to wade through spam!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
You may not like the look or the idea of it but the bean counters sure will and they're the ones with their hands on the EFTs.
ReplyDeleteTo continue from the previous post: look at the photo of the woman. Do you really think it compares in feel or quality to your film portrait? To me it looks cheesy -- like something that came out of a photo booth. That's fine if you're a plumber making an ad for an under-the-windshield-wiper flier, but what if you're an executive trying to inspire confidence? You want to look like Velveeta?
ReplyDeleteTell me you're a monster without saying "I'm a monster":
ReplyDelete"Just tried https://t.co/eagIrJPSaH 🔥
Looks like the job of a photographer might become a thing of the past soon! pic.twitter.com/GEB8Zk6ceM
— Damon Chen (@damengchen) March 17, 2023"
(From DIYPhotography's story about this service)
I see they're directing this at the "remote teams" market, where I could see the utility of it - esthetically, it probably beats out mandating photos against white for people scattered all over the country/world, and it certainly works out better from a cost standpoint. For $29, though, it won't be long until people start doing this on an individual basis, and it can't help but start hitting headshot photographers' bottom lines.
This is the second story I've seen today about this, or stuff like this. The other one is here:
ReplyDeletehttps://petapixel.com/2023/03/24/levis-to-use-ai-generated-models-to-increase-diversity/
I must admit I find this all very intriguing. At what point will discerning customers really make the switch. Kirk, you seem to have some pretty dedicated customers who have used you continuously for headshots. Do you really think they are on the verge of abandoning you for AI? I'll be "watching this space" with interest to see how it develops.
ReplyDeleteFor photographers, I think the big gap in abilities for AI is that it isn't taking in information about the person or situation in the room, right in front of us. It's only drawing from previous images, books, conversations, stuff on the web etc.
ReplyDeleteIn this case, it can analyse the photos of the person, but it can't understand the nuances of their character, and the kind of emotion they want the photo to convey. It's not there picking up their tone of voice, mannerisms and body language. In this post-AI world, surely we have to be clear about what skills we have that no AI could replace, and then work on those.
Oh by the way, wait until we have super sharp 360 degree cameras placed all over events. AI will take the footage and create event photography, isolating interesting subjects and softening the background. Again, the question is what's left that Ai will never do? That last 10% of skill reading emotions, and making a photo to communicate it.
The only place where I think AI would not be able to succeed is photographing live events, particularly weddings, but also events like conferences, etc. There will likely remain a niche market for wedding photographers and the like, but for how long if camera manufacturers start leaving the market? And just how many photographers can such niche markets support with a livable income?
ReplyDeleteKen
The people who would buy this drivel for $29 would never hire a real professional anyway.
ReplyDeleteAh. Steve R. Are these the same people who would never have used royalty free stock? Or canned background music for videos? Or iPhone screens for advertising? Or social media influencers? I guess we can discard a bunch of Fortune 500 clients if that's the case.
ReplyDeleteWanting it so doesn't make it so...