8 Ways Artists Can Really Benefit from Generative AI

Although AI art creation tools receive backlash from artists for many reasons, in reality, they can actually benefit from Generative AI. Today's article will explain ways you can use Generative AI to your advantage, then become a better artist.

1. Brainstorm topic ideas

At some point in your artistic journey, there will be periods where you have no ideas in mind. But thanks to technological advances, introducing new concepts and topics is easier than ever. Generative AI can really help generate new ideas and find avenues you might want to explore.

To test this, the author of the article asked ChatGPT to come up with some new street photography ideas where he lives. The author tells the software how much experience he has and what device he owns with the following prompt:

'Give me some creative new street photography ideas. I live in Copenhagen and am an experienced photographer with seven years of experience. I own a Fujifilm XS-10 camera.'

Roughly translated : 'Give me some creative new street photography ideas. I live in Copenhagen and am a photographer with 7 years of experience. I own a Fujifilm XS-10' camera.

The author received 16 suggestions, along with some tips to improve your street photography - something you can try in any creative field. Beyond AI, here's how to keep ideas flowing for your creative projects.

2. Create prototypes

Many people tend to throw away all their plans when going out to take photos because things often don't go as expected. But at the same time, having a rough idea of ​​the types of art you want to create can at least give you some direction. For this reason, it is recommended to create a prototype first.

You can use Generative AI to create drawing prototypes. For example, if you give a prompt to one of these tools, you can use the results to come up with ideas for your work. Generative AI can also help turn ideas into reality - once you have an idea of ​​what AI can do, you can evaluate what you can do better.

Below is an example of AI artwork created in DALL-E 3:

Since creating excellent prototypes depends on high-quality input, check out these tips and tricks for creating AI prompts that really work.

3. Establish a routine

Work, family and the stresses of modern life are all constant, but it's important to keep up with creative options for your happiness.

If you're not sure where to start, consider using Generative AI to help you keep up with your interests. Here is an example of the prompt given to ChatGPT:

Help me create a weekly routine for keeping up with my photography hobby. I work 40 hours per week Monday through Friday, but I have a flexible schedule as I work remotely. I'd like to spend one hour a day doing my hobby, if possible. I don't have kids, but I do have relationship commitments.

Please help me create a weekly habit for my photography hobby. I work 40 hours per week Monday through Friday, but have a flexible schedule when working remotely. I would like to spend an hour a day doing my hobby if possible. I don't have children yet but have relationships that need attention.

Here is part of the response received to the above prompt:

Try out some of these custom GPTs for more workflow setup options. You should experiment with what you get and add your own twists to make sure everything fits into your daily and weekly routine.

4. Research new tips and tricks

Generative AI can be a great tool to learn more about your current career, and you can use it for this purpose in two ways:

1. Ask for helpful resources related to your favorite art form.
2. Directly ask the AI ​​engine for tips and tricks related to your artwork.

It's still a good idea to combine this with your own research elsewhere so you don't limit your options. When you combine these things together, you will create much better digital art.

5. Discover new creative principles

If you love an art form, you may be very creative and willing to try new things in the future. When you're ready to try something new, doing your research before you start can help you get ahead.

The advice here is similar to the previous section - you should combine your own research and prompt AI for the best results. Additionally, you can also ask the AI ​​for ideas on creative pursuits to find something that's right for you.

6. Editing

Besides ideation and research, did you know that Generative AI can also help edit your work? Many editing tools incorporate some AI features, with Photoshop's Generative Fill feature and Lightroom's AI being prominent examples.

Generative AI can help edit many aspects of artwork, including color, brightness, removing grain, reducing opacity, or replacing entire objects. This way, you will complete your tasks much faster than adjusting everything manually.

When using Generative AI to edit your work, you may not always get optimal results. For example, when using the Auto feature to adjust saturation, your artwork may look too dramatic.

If that's the case, you can undo your changes or make further manual improvements.

7. Organize creative projects

Like any task, organizing art projects can become difficult as you accumulate more files and folders. To make sure you don't lose track of things, using AI to organize creative projects is a good idea.

Generative AI can help organize projects by creating tags, moving tasks, etc. For example, PhotoPrism is an AI-powered tool that can organize photos based on facial recognition, etc. .

Despite legitimate concerns surrounding AI and the creative arts, the technology can bring some benefits to artists. You will find it easier to generate ideas and perfect your work. Furthermore, it is possible to curate content and create schedules to ensure that you can create a suitable timetable for your routine.