ChatGPT as a darkroom tool

[benderscameracorner]

Personally I enjoy my darkroom time too much to spoil it by bringing in unnecessary technology Having the Massive Dev timer on my phone is about as far as I need to go.

You understand that there are free AI models in which the adage "the advice given is worth exactly what you paid for it" is very true; and commercial subscription based models which are increasingly being used at a professional level in many fields?

I know personally that some being used in engineering design are very good indeed, when driven by a qualified person in the field.

This is very true. In our engineering firm we have a corporate account (required to keep our IP private and track everything) and there's a significant difference in the, well shall we say competency of the paid business version, versus a free account. I've used the latter to verify some fairly middling electrical engineering calcs and its inability to get basic technical math correct reliably is a worry. I always love the response "oh, you're absolutely correct..." when you respond to its previous answer with a correction. Thanks buddy...

Lack of access to copyrighted Standards really does limit its usefulness, admittedly.

Credit where credit due, it is somewhat decent at coming up with complex or lengthy Excel tables. This summer I'm hoping to code a basic iPhone app with its help... that'll be an interesting test.

 

[MattKing]

I muse about this while thinking about much earlier experiences trying to bring newer technology to bear on older challenges - in particular my early efforts while reasonably successfully partially automating some custom legal document generation for my business use.
Colouring that musing is some of my marveling at being at the discussion ringside during some of the backroom discussions about how Photrio keeps running.
And the available, extremely computer nerdiness of some of the AI tools that are clearly simplifying and refining that process make it clear that those tools, when employed by knowledgeable hands - not mine - present great possibilities for huge improvements.
So I'm keen to see what those who have those knowledgeable hands might do with the melding of the creative and the logical/objective that my favourite avocation - photography - presents.
It reminds me at least slightly about what Ansel Adams et al tried to do with the Zone System.
That and some of the early technology like preview monitors and auto colour balance in the photofinishing world.
I think it is a mistake though to look at the sort of "replacement for an encyclopedia" applications of AI as being what we should expect of it.

 

[loccdor]

You understand that there are free AI models in which the adage "the advice given is worth exactly what you paid for it" is very true; and commercial subscription based models which are increasingly being used at a professional level in many fields?

I know personally that some being used in engineering design are very good indeed, when driven by a qualified person in the field.

Yes, and the one which gave me a false traffic ticket was doubtless in that suite of professional products. So is the one which replaced the human in the customer service situation and made it impossible to talk to someone to get that erroneous charge resolved. So is the product that flags my wife's college coursework as AI-generated: all professional, paid-for products.

In the original post I stated about 5% of uses are very positive, I think that's what we're talking about with your second sentence. I never denied that there is some successful application of AI.

 

[koraks]

People, the thread is about AI and its application in darkroom work. There are plenty of places to have a critical discussion on other applications and other technical & ethical issues; feel free to make a thread in e.g. the Lounge.

 

[xkaes]

It reminds me at least slightly about what Ansel Adams et al tried to do with the Zone System.

OMG, AI and the Zone system. The latter is confusing enough for most people without throwing AI into the mix. Talk about an opportunity for hallucinations!

Then throw in a good dose of darkroom practices? That's enough to put anyone in the Funny Farm.

 

[warden]

OMG, AI and the Zone system. The latter is confusing enough for most people without throwing AI into the mix.

Well you could always have AI deliver its advice in a rare endangered language to complete the trifecta. Tanema, for instance.

 

[Jan de Jong]

Another example how I use AI:
I wanted to see if walnut leaves could be used for anthotypes, so I started with the simplest approach: boiling the leaves in water to make an extract. The result was a strong brown solution that looked promising as a coating.

Normally, anthotypes bleach in sunlight, so I expected fading. But the coated paper behaved differently — instead of losing density, the exposed areas darkened. That was unusual enough that I asked AI about it.

Right away, it pointed me to juglone, the main compound in walnut leaves, and explained its quinone‑like structure. Quinones are known for their photo-chemical reactivity, and that gave me the clue: juglone doesn’t bleach like most plant dyes, it actually deepens under UV.

So the combination of hands‑on trial and AI’s chemical knowledge made the discovery clear. It wasn’t about AI giving me a magic answer — it was about connecting the dots faster and understanding why the process behaved differently.

This is a simple example but shows how AI can assist, the knowledge, facts come from the aggregate knowledge, the creativity and innovative combinations have to come from the human.

¨

 

[xkaes]

It's worked for me -- AKA, helped me out -- sometimes, but so far, more often than not, I'm asking it a pretty obscure question, and because it lacks enough information, it comes up with the best it can offer -- and it's wrong. Sometimes just a little, sometimes a lot.

So at this point, everything it comes up with, I end up having to verify by other means -- AKA, doing double duty!

 

[Jan de Jong]

It's worked for me -- AKA, helped me out -- sometimes, but so far, more often than not, I'm asking it a pretty obscure question, and because it lacks enough information, it comes up with the best it can offer -- and it's wrong. Sometimes just a little, sometimes a lot.

So at this point, everything it comes up with, I end up having to verify by other means -- AKA, doing double duty!

I’m lost here — what you wrote doesn’t connect to AI in the darkroom. Maybe you’re not using it at all? In that case, your comment is more about avoiding AI than applying it.

 

[gbroadbridge]

I’m lost here — what you wrote doesn’t connect to AI in the darkroom. Maybe you’re not using it at all? In that case, your comment is more about avoiding AI than applying it.

The human was hallucinating, not the AI.

 

[xkaes]

I’m lost here — what you wrote doesn’t connect to AI in the darkroom. Maybe you’re not using it at all? In that case, your comment is more about avoiding AI than applying it.

Maybe you missed my earlier post about AI thinking that my Yashica 15mm enlarging lens was a fisheye lens. I also suggested, like others, that AI in the darkroom can be helpful for neophytes, but is less helpful -- and even a waste of time -- for more seasoned darkroom users.

If you expect me and others to only write about how great AI is in the darkroom, you're barking up the wrong Forum.