Is AI Just Evolution?

Focus Group Description

Artificial intelligence has pushed itself into everyday photography conversations. It tends to polarise people fast. So this focus group makes room for a direct, practical discussion: is AI simply the next step in how images get made, or does it undermine authorship, labour, and copyright? The aim is not to land on a single answer. Instead, we will pressure test assumptions and hear what emerging photographers actually think.

First, we will dig into ethics and ownership. Specifically, where training data comes from, what consent looks like, and when “influence” turns into outright infringement. Then we will shift to the business reality. AI has already started changing expectations. So we will talk about what clients may demand next and what skills can keep photographers valuable. Finally, we will bring it back to personal choice. Where do you draw the line? Would you use these tools? Does your answer change if the source images include people you know?

About the Mentor

Pete Muller is a commercial photographer with over twenty five years of experience. He lived through the transition from film to digital. He saw how quickly entire support industries disappeared, from processing and scanning through to knock on effects across production workflows. Because of that, he brings a grounded view of what technological change does to creative work. He also considers what photographers may need to do to protect their value.

Format
This is a 40 minute interactive roundtable discussion. The mentor will set the scene with a few prompts, and then the session will run on participant questions and debate.