Losing Jobs to AI

[Fashion Photographer]

I am seeing increasing job postings for desperate startups trying to find someone who can take their clothing photos
and put it on a model using AI, and I mean desperate as in if they shoot the same collection with a fashion photographer they will go bankrupt

One client is a large social media dating app agency in the US and he was telling me that after our 2 year run of shooting 600 models they have turned
to AI for creating dating ads which are working and he agreed that the clothes and lighting look plastic, but he was adamant to not look back to every shooting!
and when asked about the video ads, he started scratching his head

Photography is here to stay, nobody will ever us AI for their wedding photos etc etc, however I predict that this AI for fashion business trend
has a 50% change of survival at best, just like the 3D TV trend of 10 years ago fell flat on its face once everyone started getting headaches wearing the goggles

look, this year I shot 600 gowns on 30 models in 7 different locations and delivered 14000 color graded
photos to the client to pick through in a week, and this would take a century to type up on AI chat box and wait for the results "IT" gives you!
notice its never the case where you design the shot, you just get to pick one of 4 that the computer throws back at you from mixing up
millions of google images that have been fed into its blender....

your thoughts

 

[lookatme]

Truthfully I am intrigued by AI.

From my casual viewing, some of the AI fashion images I’ve seen browsing on Instagram are more beautiful than anything coming from the thousands of current working photographers, stylists, models, editors, “movement coaches,” creative directors, advertising executives…

How wasteful is that? Think of the millions upon millions of dollars spent to pay these people who come up with absolute garbage when someone from their living room laptop and a $20/month subscription can create something breathtaking and provoking.

I also am very curious to see where AI generated full-length feature movies can go. Even after all these years CGI is still not convincing and these bloated big budget movies continue to fail…could AI come in and give us something truly inspiring and cutting edge? I like the idea that AI provides a limitless tool for imagination.

Additionally, from my own experience, there are so many people out there being paid exorbitant amounts of money for doing very little. I know many corporate people who send a few emails a day and somehow collect near 6-figures. AI can do that for free. Let’s cut the fat.

I’d like to see the “threat” of AI force our society to reevaluate our careers and ask ourselves if WE are actually contributing value or are we just collecting a paycheck?

There are things AI cannot, and I believe never will, replicate…I do believe in the human spirit…but we need to get our ****s in gear.

 

[Daniel Rg Crandall]

I am seeing increasing job postings for desperate startups trying to find someone who can take their clothing photos
and put it on a model using AI, and I mean desperate as in if they shoot the same collection with a fashion photographer they will go bankrupt

One client is a large social media dating app agency in the US and he was telling me that after our 2 year run of shooting 600 models they have turned
to AI for creating dating ads which are working and he agreed that the clothes and lighting look plastic, but he was adamant to not look back to every shooting!
and when asked about the video ads, he started scratching his head

Photography is here to stay, nobody will ever us AI for their wedding photos etc etc, however I predict that this AI for fashion business trend
has a 50% change of survival at best, just like the 3D TV trend of 10 years ago fell flat on its face once everyone started getting headaches wearing the goggles

look, this year I shot 600 gowns on 30 models in 7 different locations and delivered 14000 color graded
photos to the client to pick through in a week, and this would take a century to type up on AI chat box and wait for the results "IT" gives you!
notice its never the case where you design the shot, you just get to pick one of 4 that the computer throws back at you from mixing up
millions of google images that have been fed into its blender....

your thoughts

I think there is a space for building relationships with all of these companies demanding AI replace humanity (as they search for a PERSON to do the IA work for them, ironically) and helping them with realistic expectations. Let's face it, AI is doing a lot of the work in creative programs now, ie: Photoshop, et al. SO you can tell people you know how to work with professional AI tools if you just know Photoshop.

The reality is they still need an artist to do it, and make sure it's done well and done right. But there IS an upsell if you can claim to be using AI to make your creative workflow more efficient. In the end, that's what they are looking for; "How can you make me more money!?"

There's a panic in all industries right now, and AI WILL be taking some jobs. But there is plenty of room for creative people to work with AI tools to create… Sometimes I hate this digital world. I think I consider moving to a hippie farm about once a day. But then I do appreciate the creative tools and communication that make our lives so easy. If you become the connector to bring those AI tools realistically into the workplace, then you are invaluable. If you try to hold onto the old way, then you're deciding to blaze your own trail. It IS possible—but it can feel like a lonely uphill battle. I've been through a lot of entrepreneurial startups, even as a child… but that's a different topic.

 

[Xierralta]

Hello! Newbie on the forums here!

I've been thinking a lot about this AI situation and how it will affect our teams of creatives (photographer, MUAH, stylist, models) who actually play a role in producing the content. I see AI taking a big step forward in the next 5 years, especially in the fashion industry, and I do agree that we need to embrace it and own it to keep us in the line of work. Even if it's done sitting at home on a $20 subscription, ultimately it's the job of 4x the people. Many producers or creative directors will keep their jobs in the agencies, but those 4 profiles I mentioned will become useless in the minds of many who ignore how hard we all work to produce the content. After those 5 years, it will plateau for sure, like the 3D TV trend.

But I think most of our income, or at least the trend that will come to shield our work, is to grab an actual film camera and do analog work. Many already do it, but if cassettes are coming back, maybe we need to definitely get film back even if it's expensive. And with luck, Kodak and Fuji will see the market opportunity and start making films again. But again, this is how I see it right now after this last semester of a lack of calls or emails asking me to shoot stuff.

AI should be a tool to help people, not to replace them. AI should help us get to the end result in a more efficient way, not just be thrown at us. But I really doubt 90% percent of people will understand it that way.