Over the years, in our journey as visual creators, we have borne witness to tectonic shifts in technology. I personally experienced such a transformation when photographers made the shift from film to digital. It wasn't merely a change, but an awakening, an explosion of new possibilities that forever altered our approach to capturing and processing images. This shift to digital added a reactivity that enhanced the collaborative dimension of image crafting, enabling multiple creatives to contribute to the final product through real-time digital edits, remote shooting assistance, and post-production tweaks. Yet, it became clear that those among us who resisted this move were, in effect, hampering their own evolution. They deprived themselves of the opportunity to advance and thrive as modern-day commercial image makers. Today, we find ourselves on the precipice of another profound revolution with the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). AI, akin to the digital revolution before it, offers us a robust new toolkit, pushing our creative boundaries and once again redefining our approach to photography. The parallels are unmistakable, and we are resolved not to let the lessons of the past go unlearned.

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AI allows us to venture into previously unexplored terrains of creativity, enabling us to create composite images with a precision and ease that would have been unthinkable in the past. It can predict and visualize outcomes, guiding our composition and lighting choices before we even press the shutter. We see an exciting world of experimentation opening before us, with AI algorithms capable of automated post-processing, saving time while maintaining, or even enhancing, the quality of our work. AI doesn’t stop at creating new images; it can breathe new life into existing ones, converting compositions and supplementing our existing photography in ways we can only begin to imagine.

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Creating Composite

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One of the most exciting ways we've used AI in our work is in the creation of composite images. We've found that we can use both AI-generated elements and photographic elements to create a single, composite image. This approach was instrumental in a project we did for Verizon. We used photographs of one of their emergency response vehicles and AI-generated backgrounds to achieve a final composite that would have been impossible to photograph in a single shot due to budgetary constraints and availability limitations of the vehicle. The results were stunning images that perfectly met the project's needs while also showcasing the power of AI in photography.

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Predictive Visualization

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Another exciting application of AI in our photography is predictive visualization. This strategy allows us to simulate scenes and concepts before ever taking a photo. Imagine being able to see exactly how a fashion campaign would play out—from wardrobe selection to hair, makeup, set direction, and lighting. All these can be visualized down to the finest detail even before we embark on the production phase of the project. This predictive ability does not only help us plan our shoots more effectively, saving time, resources, and money, but it also enables us to present our clients with a more accurate campaign comp before the campaign moves into production. This way, they can visualize the final result, approve the direction, and feel confident about the outcome, enhancing collaboration and reducing uncertainties.

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Automated Post-Processing

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Generative AI can be trained to perform certain post-processing and production-oriented tasks, all while maintaining the creatives unique style. This innovation has significantly sped up our editing process, allowing us to dedicate more focus to the craft of the final product. By automating routine editing tasks, we've been able to utilize AI in the post-production arena in various ways. From using neural filters in Photoshop to clean up skin, to automatically recognizing and tagging images that need to be culled out of a group of portraits, AI has proven invaluable. A particular job that comes to mind involved an image masking task. We had previously photographed a 360° image series of a client's product and needed to remove the background from hundreds of images. With AI, this task took merely hours, as opposed to the days it would have taken in the past.

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Enhancing Photo Quality

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AI algorithms can also be used to improve the quality of a photo taken with traditional methods. This could include reducing noise, enhancing resolution, or adjusting colors. For instance, we've used AI to upscale a low-resolution image, preserving detail and sharpness in a way that traditional upscaling methods can't. Similarly, AI has helped us reduce noise in low-light images and adjust the colors in an image to make them more vibrant and true-to-life.

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Supplementing Existing Photos

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Generative AI can be used to fill in missing or desired elements in a photograph. For example, if we took a picture and later realized it would be better with a different aspect ratio, generative AI could adapt the image without needing a reshoot or hours of post-production work. This ability to alter and enhance existing photos opens a world of possibilities for us, allowing us to create images that were previously impossible or impractical.

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In conclusion, the shift from film to digital unlocked a realm of possibilities in image creation, a pattern we see echoed with the integration of AI into our craft. We stand at the threshold of an exciting new era brimming with potential; rather than displacing creatives, this new technology is likely to introduce even more contributors to our industry. However, this progress also presents us with a challenge and responsibility - to learn, adapt, and master this remarkable new tool.