A photographer placed a real photo in an AI-generated image competition. He ended up winning the People’s Choice Award.
With the advent of images generated by artificial intelligence, more and more competitions have decided to open their competition to artificial “photo” categories. Miles Astray, a German photographer, tried his luck for the new AI prize at the prestigious 1839 Awards competition on June 12, 2024. He ended up winning the Bronze medal in the jury category and won the Public Vote Prize .
However, the young artist fooled everyone with a real photo, reveals the Android Authority media. His photo of a “headless” pink flamingo was taken in 2022 on an island off the coast of Venezuela, with a Nikon.
Moments after awarding the prize, organizers of the 1839 Awards removed the title of the photo from the list of winners. Android Authority can confirm that the page initially had “FLAMINGONE” as the winning image in both categories.
Alert about the limits and dangers of AI
Following this disqualification, the organizers of the competition reportedly declared: “ No one believes in the power of photography more than us. We asked Miles to work with us and provide a statement for a future blog post. As an artist, his voice will make a difference in this debate. However, after numerous internal discussions, we have decided to disqualify his entry in the IA category out of consideration for the other artists who submitted their works. »
Contacted by Android Authority, Miles Astray congratulated himself on having misled the jury. “ I am happy to see that this experiment confirmed my hypothesis: there is nothing more fantastic and creative than Mother Nature herself. I don’t demonize new technology and I see its potential, but currently I see its limitations and dangers even more clearly », says the photographer. This experience will have less merit in showing that AI does not have the last word in art.
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