As I’ve been enjoying round with AI artwork instruments, I made a decision to replace the related photographs for our programs. I wished to give you a extra distinctive and private expression than utilizing the previous inventory photographs as we’ve been doing for the previous few years.
This was a comparatively small mission, and it gave me a pleasant cause to delve into some attention-grabbing AI instruments to raised assess their capabilities. I positively discovered loads and really a lot loved the expertise.
With many of the photographs I iterated dozens of instances, feeding incremental photographs again to the AI instruments and prompting them to maintain evolving these photographs in instructions of my selecting.
I additionally did some basic picture modifying to get the photographs the way in which I wished them to look. Usually I’d do some edits alongside the way in which to nudge the AI to discover in a unique course.
I started by feeding the AI completely different phrases that I related to a given course, together with the title of the course, my title, and many topical key phrases that relate to the course. Then I set the AI to generate not less than 100 photographs to start with, typically a couple of hundred, so I may see a pleasant divergent set of conceptual concepts. From there I may choose my favorites and evolve a few of them additional.
I went by means of many rounds of diverging to generate extra concepts after which converging by creating extra refined variations of ideas I like. Lastly I did some fine-tuning.
The expertise was like having a workforce of artists to maintain creating extra artwork, and I may maintain guiding them and giving them suggestions until they created one thing that glad me.
I don’t anticipate or want different individuals to love my creations. My aim was to exchange the inventory picture photographs with creations which are significant to me, filled with symbolism and imagery that genuinely connects with every course. I wished to lift my customary for genuine and private expression. I’m not searching for to impress anybody, and I’m positive some individuals is not going to like the photographs. I’m completely okay with that. I actually like how these turned out although.
I smile now once I take a look at the Programs web page since I’ve a private connection to every picture. I not assume, “I ought to actually substitute that inventory picture with one thing extra expressive.”
Submersion
The primary one I made was the Submersion picture.
Submersion is about exploring Subjective Actuality, which could be like stepping by means of a portal, so I like that this seems to be portal-like. SR can be a lens that can be utilized, so the lens-like look works properly too.
With this picture I did little or no modifying and largely used what the AI created, though I did generate many a whole bunch of different photographs earlier than discovering this one. I like the way it conveys so many points of the Submersion expertise in a compact visible type, particularly how one can’t actually grasp the world of SR till you lastly dive in and discover it. It seems to be like some form of deep aquatic world inside, however you’ll by no means know what it’s wish to be in that actuality until you go inside and expertise it for your self. I really like how this picture invitations us to discover what’s in there.
I particularly just like the intricate look of the border across the portal. I intentionally prompted the AI to create one thing intricate and detailed.
Rachelle additionally famous that this picture reminds her of an previous diver’s helmet, which is one other good affiliation to the course.
I discover this picture very stunning too. I really like the wealthy complexity of it.
Octo Intensive
The subsequent picture I created was for the Octo Intensive workshop that we did on-line in October 2021.
This was a one-time workshop, so I’m solely utilizing this picture for the recorded model that Aware Development Membership members can entry as a part of their membership.
The Octo Intensive was about 8 ideas of motivation, therefore the Octo theme. At first the AI was producing lots of bizarre octopus photographs that had been too literal, so I needed to tone down the octopus prompting and nudge it to do extra with the opposite ideas. Finally we began converging in an attention-grabbing course.
I like methods to ribbon represents a prize, award, or reward, and there are embedded diamonds as effectively, representing the various rewards of sustaining sturdy motivation. The octopus owns its place within the midst of these rewards, like in fact that’s the place it belongs. Its eyes look a bit like gem stones too – a reminder to follow intentionality by specializing in our wishes.
Deep Abundance Integration
For Deep Abundance Integration, I began with a tree in a circle after which advanced it loads from there, ultimately developing with this.
I put lots of thought into the symbolism that I included on this one. There’s a tree and leaves for progress. The leaves are textured for nuance and subtleties within the progress journey. The tree has branches for the various type of abundance. There are leaves under (internal journey) and leaves above (exterior rewards).
The guts jewel is to remind individuals to observe their path with a coronary heart and for a logo of wealth and luxurious. The water has ripples for the various ripples that we will create with an abundance mindset. Dawn is going on within the background (sunny days forward).
The copper coloration was Rachelle’s thought. I prefer it as a logo of groundedness and depth because it’s mined from the earth. She additionally got here up with the guts thought.
The sky represents limitless growth (i.e. the sky’s the restrict).
I like photographs that appear like they might be actual bodily objects as a substitute of simply making flat 2D photographs. I prefer it when photographs convey depth and texture, like I may attain out and contact them. This jogs my memory that the expansion concepts in these programs are accessible. They aren’t merely concepts – we will combine them into our lives and make them actual.
Stature
This new Stature picture took took the longest, however I really like the way it turned out.
There’s a bronze individual with outstretched arms, and there’s an animal-like face within the glass behind. The eyes of the face additionally operate as a Superman-like cape for the determine.
There’s extra symbolism embedded on this… akin to placing steel (sturdy) in entrance of glass (fragile).
Stature is a course on character sculpting, which is like reworking the wild, beast-like elements of ourselves into the sturdy selves that we want to change into. But we don’t abandon the beast aspect as a result of it helps us in our human journey.
Amplify
The Amplify picture merges a microphone, speaker, and light-weight bulb multi function. I really like the straightforward class of this one.
This was the quickest and best course picture to create, and I felt like I used to be actually within the movement of working with the AI to develop it. It nonetheless took many iterations, however we made attention-grabbing progress at every step and converged fairly rapidly.
Amplify is a course on inventive movement and artistic productiveness. The mic represents discovering our voice. The sunshine bulb is for inventive concepts, and for the reason that gentle bulb is similar object because the mic, it’s a reminder to behave on impressed concepts instantly. The speaker within the background is there to amplify the message, and it additionally seems to be a bit rippled to signify the ripples we will create.
This picture additionally has a construction just like a trophy, representing the success aspect of inventive achievement.
And the picture is compact and easy, reminding us that we will simply create with out overcomplicating the expertise.
Tech-wise although, that configuration would ship a ton of audio suggestions from the speaker proper into the mic, in order that’s symbolic of listening to the decision of 1’s viewers so loudly you’ll be able to not ignore it. It’s just like the speaker is promoting that it’s time to step as much as the mic and begin expressing your self.
Guild
Guild is a course on social alignment, so I wished to convey many alternative points of an excellent social circle in a single picture.
Within the completely different faces, you’ll see range and playfulness. However there’s additionally lots of uniformity, which represents creating alignment in your social circle.
The characters are in sync, however the items aren’t all completely sq. since we’ll absolutely make investments extra in some individuals than in others. There’s a gold twine across the exterior since good pals are like gold.
All of us put on masks at instances, so the problem of intimacy is to look past the floor and get to know the characters behind the masks. Not everyone seems to be masked to the identical diploma.
There’s a mixture of heat and funky colours since individuals could be heat or chilly too – and typically each.
Self-Expression
Does working with AI instruments circumvent the inventive course of, such that the AI does all of the heavy lifting?
I don’t see it that method in any respect. Utilizing such wealthy instruments permits me to focus extra consideration at a unique stage. As an alternative of serious about brush strokes and colours, I can deal with which means and symbolism and the general construction of a picture. I can take note of decrease stage particulars too, however I don’t must get slowed down in inventive expertise that don’t curiosity me, like studying to attract, paint, or sculpt.
That may hassle some individuals who invested years in a few of their inventive expertise, which I can perceive as a former sport developer. I may simply as simply say that to be a real artist, it is best to make your individual canvases, paints, pencils, brushes, and so on. I may say that it’s dishonest in the event you play a musical instrument that another person constructed and that an actual artist would construct their very own. However in fact that’s garbage. All of us lean on the work of the previous, and to me this expertise isn’t any completely different in that regard. There’s simply extra previous to lean on now.
I’ll say that I didn’t attempt to copy or emulate any recognized artist’s model with these photographs, residing or useless. I by no means fed within the title of an artist or individual (apart from myself) for any of the prompts I used. That wouldn’t have felt good to me, and it will have run opposite to my objective for this exploration.
These photographs might violate individuals’s expectations. Proper now I don’t know of any pals on this area making these sorts of photographs to affiliate with their merchandise. I’m positive some individuals would discourage me from going this route as effectively, simply as individuals tried to discourage me from moving into running a blog again in 2004.
To me these photographs are all significant. They signify a lot of what I put into the programs. I truly desire photographs that make individuals do a double-take. If individuals see these as odd or uncommon, I think about {that a} good factor.
Despite the fact that individuals typically invite me to converge on their expectations, Actuality has been rewarding me for divergent habits for many years, and I belief my instincts. Presently my instincts inform me that this can be a fascinating toolset to proceed to exploring with.
I don’t have destructive associations to co-creating with AI. I leveraged AI ideation instruments for the Octo Intensive and for the Guild course, and I felt this added worth to these experiences. Different contributors appreciated the AI’s contributions as effectively, which helped us to discover some attention-grabbing instructions.
Furthermore, I’ve gained some helpful private progress insights from co-creating with AI instruments. As I labored with prompting photographs to evolve in a sure course, it jogged my memory of the significance of iterative upgrades in my life as effectively. Within the brief time period, progress might seem like minimal, however the compounding results could be profound ultimately.
I’m reminded of a time that my first spouse Erin and I put up an indication in our lounge that mentioned, “$5000 monthly,” again once we had been struggling financially. That easy signal did the trick, and we quickly received to that revenue stage and effectively past. It was like prompting ourselves to create what we wished, inflicting our mindsets to shift a bit extra every day. These micro-shifts can actually add up over time.
I used to be additionally reminded of the significance of mixing intentionality with flexibility. Once I tried to over-control the AI, I might typically hit a plateau as a result of I wasn’t enjoying to the AI’s strengths. In these conditions it was higher to provide the AI extra inventive flexibility, so it may evolve photographs even in violation of my prompting. Nevertheless it wasn’t clever to let the AI be too divergently inventive for too lengthy since we may get misplaced within the vastness of the chance house and by no means converge on an thought. I discovered different methods to leverage the AI to refine a messy or flawed idea right into a extra refined one.
At its greatest this was a transcendent expertise. I really like the synergy of mixing my strengths with the AI’s strengths and dealing within the zone the place we will every contribute our greatest creativity for attention-grabbing outcomes. Typically I might see a brand new picture and smile, marveling on the AI’s cleverness or brilliance. Its concepts typically impressed me to go down completely different paths than I’d beforehand had in thoughts. The place we ended up with every picture was often very completely different from the place we began.
That is good reminder to carry the same mindset to our targets. Be intentional but in addition versatile since you’re not 100% in management. You’re co-creating this journey with Actuality, and you could play to its strengths to ask the very best movement of cooperation.
I stay very optimistic about the way forward for co-creating with AI. It looks as if such a rewarding path to maintain exploring. It elevates the inventive expertise away from the mundane and in the direction of the divine. I really like how such instruments are extending the vary of what I can create and categorical and with whom.