I started tinkering with some out takes, using black and white filters. Eventually, I arrived at this image. I’m still thinking about it. I’m still not sure if it’s good or garbage.

I do like how the bazillion leaves seem to be shimmering and fluttering.

On to everybody’s favorite topic, generative AI.

I’ve been in a sniping discussion with very pro-AI folks. on Twitter. That was going as you might expect.

They say that AI democratizes art. I heard that about digital photography. Most of those democratic based photographers haven’t taken pictures in a long, long time. There seems to be a lot of mid-range equipment on used camera gear websites.

I started looking at some of these pro-AI producer’s work. Most of it is terrible. They really don’t have any artistic ability or skills. They certainly have no taste.

I was listening to Pivot Podcast with Kara Swisher and Scott Galloway. Scott thinks that the marginal producers will be left behind and will lose paying work or their jobs. Those folks with real talent and skills will simply use AI to research or enhance their work.

He has a fairly large writing staff. Whenever they produce something that doesn’t come close to hitting the mark, he says that it looks like AI wrote it.

He’s not abusive in any way. In fact, he took the entire staff to dinner at a very trendy restaurant located under the Brooklyn Bridge in Dumbo.

That’s really not the point.

The real point is that there is a little glimmer of hope as the world turns.