AI generated images are not simply “fake photographs”, but a different way of making pictures that sits alongside photography rather than replacing it. They raise questions about authenticity, trust and authorship, yet they also create room for new creative roles such as AI image artists, prompt specialists and curators. Researchers and media scholars point out that photography itself has never been purely truthful, because framing, editing and context always shape what we see. Instead of treating camera photos as “true” and AI pictures as “false”, they suggest focusing on who created or commissioned an image, why it was made and how clearly it is labelled. Studies show that many people struggle to reliably tell AI images from camera shots, which makes transparent labelling, institutional trust and basic media literacy more important than ever.
At the same time, AI tools expand visual culture by letting artists, designers and everyday users prototype ideas, build stylised visuals and explore fictional scenes that could never exist in front of a lens. In this emerging ecosystem, “AI image maker” becomes a distinct creative profession with its own skills, ethics and responsibilities, rather than a cheap shortcut that makes traditional photography meaningless.
