Photography in the Age of AI

Photography requires light.

In today’s rapidly evolving art world, the definition of art and photography is becoming blurred.

As AI tools gain popularity, so does the criticism and confusion around what counts as real photography. But photography, like all forms of art, has always evolved.

From darkrooms to digital cameras and now AI-powered workflows, the essence of photography will never change.

It’s time we clarify the different forms emerging in this landscape and give each the space and respect it deserves.

I believe photography and art in today’s world spans at least six distinct categories and some are being lost or misunderstood in the current conversations:

AI as an Editing Tool (Topaz, Noise control in Lightroom & Photoshop, the remove tool etc.)

This isn’t cheating, it’s refinement. Tools like Topaz DeNoise, Lightroom AI masking, or Photoshop’s generative fill (when used to clean up dust or remove rubbish) are part of a modern photographer’s workflow. These tools enhance the quality of the original photograph and allow artists to correct imperfections their camera couldn’t.

This is no different than using a darkroom to dodge or burn.

AI as a Creative Add-On (Moons, Animals, Skies)

This is where photography becomes photo manipulation. Adding a moon or animal that wasn’t in the original frame means stepping into the realm of digital collage. It’s not “cheating”it’s a choice. It’s using your photo as a canvas and painting with pixels. It deserves its own category: photo-based digital art.

AI-Generated Images (Prompt-to-Art)

These aren’t photographs, even if they look like them. They’re AI-generated art.

Beautiful, fascinating and powerful in their own right but created from language, not light.

The distinction matters, especially in contests and galleries where photography is expected to reflect what the camera saw, not what a prompt imagined.

Composite Photography

This technique blends multiple photographed elements, sometimes from different times or locations, into one seamless scene.

It still uses actual photographs, but the result is often a scene that didn’t exist in real life.

This can be powerful storytelling, surrealism, or conceptual art, but it moves beyond traditional documentary photography - the purest form of photography.

Photographic Stitching (Panoramas, some Astro)

This is still photography in its purest form, just done in pieces. Think of astrophotographers capturing 30+ shots of the night sky to create a single frame, or landscape photographers stitching wide-angle scenes. It’s about overcoming the limits of one shot and achieving clarity, scale, or detail through meticulous blending of the same moment or location.

Mixed Media: Photography Meets AI & Art

This hybrid category combines everything: stitched photographs, added AI elements, illustration, or even digital painting. It’s experimental and expressive, and sometimes confusing to traditionalists.

But it’s also where some of the most exciting creative work is happening.

It shouldn’t be rejected; it should be labelled clearly and celebrated for what it is.

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Photography is evolving and that’s something to embrace, not fear.

But with that evolution comes the need for clearer language, transparency and respect across categories.

Not everything is a photograph, but that doesn’t make it less valuable as art.

As artists, collectors and viewers, we owe it to the medium - and each other - to be honest about the tools we use and the stories we tell.