My Introduction To AI

AI-modified images captured with a vintage Minolta AF Zoom 35–70mm f/4 lens mounted on an equally dated Sony DSLR-A350 APS-C digital SLR.

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It was a slow start for me as I began interacting with Gemini, Google’s AI model, via the Ask Gemini toolbar icon in Chrome. After a few stutters, editing and generating AI edits with short and simple prompts (or Queries) became more familiar. I initially tried the edits with a batch of digitized analog photos from a vintage Minolta Maxxum 7000 35mm SLR fitted with a Minolta AF Zoom 35–70mm f/4 lens, and continued for the rest of the exercise.

On the A350, the 35–70mm f/4 is equivalent to a 52–105mm standard zoom lens on a full-frame camera, a versatile zoom range ideal for everyday snapshots, portraits, street photography, and environmental portraits.

Images with the camera and lens setup were used for this feature, and the AI dialog box is assessed directly in Google Chrome via the Ask Gemini tab in the toolbar icon.

To edit pre-shot images, the image needs to be copied from its source and pasted into the AI edit browser, and then prompted with a simple and straightforward 'Edit and sharpen image' command; that prompt will do to get the images edited...

Or, with a simple conversation, start with a 'Give me 3 creative suggestions to change the mood or style of this photo'...

To get Gemini to generate an AI image, use a slightly longer and more descriptive prompt such as: 'Create a CCD sensor image of a purple orchid with minimal dewdrops in soft focus shot against a darkened garden background with a Sony DSLR-A350, Minolta AF Zoom 35–70mm f/4 lens'.

While it seems exciting enough to bring forth the idea that photographic imagery can now be developed with AI alone, one must not forget that real-world photos are interactions with a physical sensor or film plane to capture authentic moments, genuine historical events, and real-time light.

[Prompt: Image of a Sony DSLR-A350, and Minolta AF Zoom 35–70mm f/4 on a plain backdrop]

Generative AI, with its prompts and processing constraints, may not be suitable for immediate photojournalistic visuals, where, in fields like journalism, forensics, legal documentation, and family archives, a photograph will serve as a record of truth in a way an AI-generated image does not.