With the explosion of artificial intelligence (AI), one is often left to wonder about the future of photography and where it is headed. While at the moment it seems quite dark, as AI is now the main focus of many businesses, it certainly will not be the case by 2050. In fact, the possibility of images aiding us in being tethered to reality seems like a far more plausible outcome. And that’s because of one major difference, which proves AI simply can’t be what we want it to be — a conscious machine.
How Human Perception is the Key to Photography
According to a study conducted by the University of Amsterdam, humans are able to outperform AI machines when it comes to intuition, perception, and action. To conduct the study, PhD student Clemens Bartnik, computational neuroscientist Iris Groen, and their team utilized MRI scans to see how humans are able to visualize a solution. For this, they showcased photographs of activities, both indoors and outdoors, and asked what the participants felt. For instance, when one saw images of a mountain path, a busy street, or a river, the participant could think of what could be done in that situation. “Even if you do not consciously think about what you can do in an environment, your brain still registers it,” says Groen.
On the other hand, when the most advanced AI was utilised for the same studies, the results were not exactly similar. “Even the best AI models don’t give exactly the same answers as humans, even though it’s such a simple task for us,” Groen says. With machines still finding it challenging to have human intuition or match human judgment, how can one expect to have the same creativity as humans do?
…photographs, no matter how seemingly mundane, continue to be the guiding light that can always shake our conscious up.
Photography Reveals Real Stories
Photography has always centered around the human experience. Images of D-Day by Robert Capa, Marc Riboud’s iconic photograph of a young woman confronting the American National Guard during an anti-Vietnam march, or Dorothea Lange’s era-defining photo, the Migrant Mother, would not have impacted us as much as they did if it was created by AI. At the heart of the debate, these photographs served as necessary documents that helped us to see the world and its various challenges. If AI is added to the equation, then meaningful human stories will take a back seat, with someone always being there to control the narrative for personal gains. In fact, we have seen the latter happening often, including the presidential elections of 2024.
In that regard, photographs, no matter how seemingly mundane, continue to be the guiding light that can always shake our conscious up. It does not have to be photographs of war, but even images of a father-daughter duo enjoying the sea can tug your heartstrings. While there is democratization of photography, the answer to photography’s sustenance lies in creating stories that matter. For any photographer to reach the peak of success, they have to create images that one will care to look at. This is what AI can never do — make us care about things. Sure, with augmented reality (AR), one can make their images a more immersive experience today, but again, that is indeed very gimmicky. People have created shows, including installations, that allow the viewer to step into the story and experience it in ways they would not behind their screens.
In 25 years from now, the world will change (that is, if we do not obliterate each other first), and technology will only continue to advance. But it doesn’t mean that we will stop searching for stories. If you look at the era of franchise in cinema today, it only proves why we need more noteworthy narratives that are original, and that, if they are not entirely tethered to the present period, are gateways to experiencing something different. To learn, to grow, to think.
Although photography faces the challenge of sustainability, especially for its creators, if that changes, we may see the medium in a whole new light. And given how AI is affecting everything, photography will stay around and become more relevant by 2050, even if we implant Neuralink chips in our brains.