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Hands-on with DALL-E 2, the AI Image Generator Taking the Web by Storm

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2 years ago

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There was loads of discuss AI generated photos and visible artwork. One of many tasks that I discovered most spectacular was DALL-E 2. This can be a new AI system that may create real looking photos and artwork from an outline in pure language.

DALL-E 2 is at present invite-only so I entered my e mail to the waitlist. Just a few days later, the invite arrived. As a substitute of specializing in extra significant work, I fooled round with the system. Right here’s what I acquired…

Pure Language Descriptions

I’m primarily a panorama photographer, so I wished to check when AI will substitute me. My first description that I typed in was “snow coated mountains with a rainbow and a flying unicorn”. And DALL-E 2 created this,

“SNOW COVERED MOUNTAINS WITH A RAINBOW AND A FLYING UNICORN”
“SNOW COVERED MOUNTAINS WITH A RAINBOW AND A FLYING UNICORN”
“SNOW COVERED MOUNTAINS WITH A RAINBOW AND A FLYING UNICORN”
“SNOW COVERED MOUNTAINS WITH A RAINBOW AND A FLYING UNICORN”

Clearly, I can hold my job for now! Subsequent, I attempted one thing extra real looking, “stunning waterfall with loads of inexperienced moss and rocks within the foreground.”

“BEAUTIFUL WATERFALL WITH A LOT OF GREEN MOSS AND ROCKS IN THE FOREGROUND”
“BEAUTIFUL WATERFALL WITH A LOTS OF GREEN MOSS AND ROCKS IN THE FOREGROUND”
“BEAUTIFUL WATERFALL WITH A LOTS OF GREEN MOSS AND ROCKS IN THE FOREGROUND”
“BEAUTIFUL WATERFALL WITH A LOTS OF GREEN MOSS AND ROCKS IN THE FOREGROUND”

If these above are actually AI-generated, I’m impressed! It appears actual. So I continued with “autumn forest within the mist.”

“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST”

A bit uninteresting so I added “autumn forest within the mist with mushrooms on the bottom.”

“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND”

Spectacular once more! Let’s strive one thing more durable, “autumn forest within the mist with mushrooms on the bottom and a deer within the again.”

“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND AND A DEER IN THE BACK”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND AND A DEER IN THE BACK”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND AND A DEER IN THE BACK”
“AUTUMN FOREST IN THE MIST WITH MUSHROOMS ON THE GROUND AND A DEER IN THE BACK”

Much less spectacular… I do like how the AI added the birds and the way the mushrooms began to levitate.

Importing My Personal Pictures

DALL-E 2 provides an choice to add your personal photos after which the system generates variations. This sounds attention-grabbing too and is perhaps a fair larger check of the AI’s energy. The AI has to “learn” the picture after which create significant alternate options. How did it work? Let’s see.

Lake Bled, Slovenia – The unique supply picture.

My picture of Lake Bled in autumn appeared like an ideal instance to check. The composition, the colours, and the topic are all distinct and needs to be straightforward to copy.

Listed below are the ensuing variations, created by AI:

Subsequent, I wished to check how DALL-E 2 generates individuals within the picture. I uploaded certainly one of my journey portraits and acquired this message:

Truthful sufficient, it is sensible. So I attempted with a extra silhouetted individual, with out a recognizable face. This time it labored.

Views from prime of Taljanka, Albanian mountains — The unique supply picture.

Listed below are the AI-generated variations:

The photographer and his digital camera in hand are each unnaturally skewed and distorted. The mountain layers are all very real looking and clearly modified.

Modifying Present Pictures

When you add your personal photos, there may be an choice to edit them just by utilizing a brush on part of the picture and describing in textual content what you wish to create on this space. Listed below are just a few outcomes…

“BLACK BIRDS FLYING”
“BLACK BIRDS FLYING”
“BLACK BIRDS FLYING”
“BLACK BIRDS FLYING”
“LAND ROVER DEFENDER PARKED IN THE GRASS WITH A ROOFTOP TENT”
“LAND ROVER DEFENDER PARKED IN THE GRASS WITH A ROOFTOP TENT”
“LAND ROVER DEFENDER PARKED IN THE GRASS WITH A ROOFTOP TENT”
“LAND ROVER DEFENDER PARKED IN THE GRASS WITH A ROOFTOP TENT”
“FLOCK OF SHEEP GRAZING IN THE GRASS”
“FLOCK OF SHEEP GRAZING IN THE GRASS”
“FLOCK OF SHEEP GRAZING IN THE GRASS”

As you’ll be able to see, not very spectacular. It’s enjoyable, however not real looking by any means. The land rovers are fairly okay, however the sheep or the birds are clearly faux. Right here beneath are the unique photos I used to create the above variations:

Conclusion

AI has undoubtedly made big progress in the previous few years. We’ve seen music composed by the computer systems, deep fake videos of famous dead people, and now photos being created by merely typing in textual content descriptions! I’m not certain if AI is the precise time period as these are a set of algorithms that be taught and enhance with increasingly more knowledge being fed to it. In any case, the outcomes I acquired with taking part in round have been higher than anticipated. There are numerous utterly foolish outcomes, however typically the algorithm will get it rather well.

I can see how helpful this may turn into sooner or later. And the way straightforward will probably be to abuse it. The expertise nonetheless remains to be in its infancy. For the time being I see it roughly as a toy to experiment with. Perhaps in just a few years this may change and we are going to see a flood of fantastic photos that don’t have anything to do with actuality. Then I imagine, the craft of true pictures will solely turn into extra valued.

In regards to the writer: Luka Esenko is a photographer based mostly in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The opinions expressed on this article are solely these of the writer. Esenko teaches photography workshops in and round Slovenia and he’s additionally a co-founder of Photohound. Yow will discover extra of his work on his website, Twitter, and Instagram. This text was additionally revealed here.

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