Field notes
Learn to read a photograph.
Good editing does not start at a slider. It starts by reading the picture: what the light was doing, where the eye goes, whether the frame is right. Read that well and the edit almost decides itself. These are short readings of real photographs, in plain words, the way we teach the assistant to see.
EssayWhy ChatGPT changes your faceYou asked for better light and got back someone who looks like your cousin. What the model is really doing, and how to get the edit you wanted.
EssayWhy AI edits make skin look plasticThat smooth, poreless glow isn’t a filter anyone chose. It’s what happens when a model repaints skin from memory, and there is a better way to flatter a face.
GuideEditing a whole shoot at onceDevelop one photo the way you want, then copy that look to the rest, flip through to check each frame, and export the set in one go.EssayEditing that leaves your face aloneWhy generative AI editors quietly change faces, and how to get a better photo without becoming a stranger in it.
ReadingThe break in the stormHow to read a photograph before you touch it: the light, the eye, the frame, and the different ways one alpine shot could be finished.