AI and the Creative Process
Ethical AI
Welcome to the new era of creative collaboration, where Artificial Intelligence (AI) and human expertise join forces to revolutionize your brand’s visual presence. Using ethical AI means knowing which content to harvest from generative AI and what to avoid.
For ideation and brainstorming, AI is a fantastic tool providing rich concepts and exceptional color palettes at an astonishingly quick pace. When it comes to photos and identifiable artwork, there may be ethical pitfalls with regard to copyright infringement. Using Adobe Firefly helps mitigate this risk, as Adobe’s generative AI is trained on content Adobe owns. Knowing what to keep and what to leave behind is a matter of constant education as this field continues to evolve, and understanding the ethics will separate creative professionals from media hacks.
- Websites — Gone are the days of generic templates. At least, if you know how to leverage AI with site tools such as WordPress and Figma. Using the power of generative AI, ui/ux design has never been more compelling. A single AI session can turn out multiple interface designs, often providing high quality vignettes that give designers fresh ideas. The challenge comes with porting the design over to the site builder. Because I have years of experience designing and coding websites, I can take what AI creates and make it work in WordPress or Figma. To the very pixel. Few designers, and even fewer developers, have this skill.
- Brand development — Whether choosing a color theme to complement an existing brand or a palette to develop an entirely new brand, AI offers a huge advantage over traditional tools. In just minutes, you can begin exploring multiple color themes, applying them across various media like websites, logos and brochures, and even visualize how the colors might look in an office, store or other virtual space. I can guide you through the process of selecting and refining AI-generated concepts as you align new assets with your brand’s identity and goals.
- Photo brainstorming — Stock photography is often hit or miss. Finding compelling, fresh photography can be a challenge, often requiring that we scroll through subpar stock images to find quality shots. Creating a complete moodboard using this method is time intensive. With generative AI, photos can be rendered in minutes, even allowing for the application of camera lenses, view angles, and film types. In fact, there are currently more than 220 prompts that can be applied to any given photo. When combined with specific locations, the process begins to feel a lot like a photo shoot.
- Illustrations — As with generative photos, it’s best to use AI to help brainstorm illustrations while being careful to use original or licensable work in final production. This often extends to logos, which can be prototyped very quickly but should be drawn as vector in the final form.
- Production and copyright — AI-generated photos help speed along the creation of assets like moodboards and digital mockups. To avoid copyright infringement, it’s imperative to use the right AI tools. For mockups and concepts, most AI models will work. For final production, Adobe Firefly is currently the best choice. It’s also a solid practice to use AI photos as a roadmap for selecting quality stock photos in final production.
