AI Image Generation: A Practical Look
A Real-World Tutorial
So here’s what I’m thinking:
There’s a lot of angst about AI putting humans out of business. I mean it’s more complex than that, but that’s the emotional dis-appeal of AI in a nutshell. Taking food off the table, putting artists out of work, huge infringements on existing works, and so forth.
But I’m also thinking, “What if I start with an image of my own creation, e.g., a photograph? Lord knows I take enough of those. If the process starts with my own work, who’s got a problem with that?
So, with that in mind, here’s a case study based on my own experience.
The Photograph That I Started With
This is Kef in his natural environment.
Tools: I subscribe to the paid version of ChatGPT 4. It has the ability to be the middle layer of communication between me and whatever magic comes out of the system. That includes the ability to take my prompt and produce images directly by utilizing a direct connection to DALL-E 3.
I gave it my photo. My initial prompt was this: Generate an iteration in the style of Matisse cutouts
ChatGPT responded: I can generate an image inspired by the style of Matisse's cutouts. Let's create a composition featuring a black cat in an interior setting with vibrant shapes and colors reminiscent of Matisse's art. I'll initiate the request for you. Please wait a moment while the image is being created.
Who said anything about “vibrant shapes and colors?” No time to ponder that. The response was quickly followed by this:
ChatGPT: Error creating image. I'm unable to generate images in the style of specific artists such as Henri Matisse due to content policy restrictions. However, I can create an image with a similar abstract and vibrant feel, using bold shapes and colors that evoke the spirit of Matisse's cutouts without directly copying his style. Let me know if you would like me to proceed with this adjusted prompt.ME: Yes.
ChatGPT: Error creating image. It appears there are issues with generating the image as requested. I won't be able to provide an image at this moment. If there's anything else I can assist you with or if you have another request, please let me know!Well, alrighty then. Apparently, ChatGPT has some built-in guardrails. No worries.
ME: Create an image with an abstract and vibrant feel, using bold shapes and colors almost as if they were cut out of colored paper
ChatGPT: Here is an image with an abstract and vibrant feel, using bold shapes and colors reminiscent of colored paper cutouts. This visual captures the dynamic and rhythmic interplay of shapes and colors as you requested.Buh BAM! This knocked my socks off. No cat, but then I didn’t mention one.
ME: Excellent. Make a version that appears to be painted. Show the texture of the brushstrokes as well as the underlying canvas
ChatGPT: Here is the image reimagined as a painting, with visible brushstrokes and the texture of the canvas beneath the vibrant colors and bold shapes.Again, very interesting. I like it, but I want that cat!
ME: Make a version of this picture that appears to be painted. Show the texture of the brushstrokes as well as the underlying canvas
ChatGPT: I will generate an image that interprets the scene as a painting, with visible brushstrokes and canvas texture. Please wait a moment while the image is being created.ChatGPT: The scene has been reimagined as a painting, capturing the essence of the original image with visible brushstrokes and the texture of the canvas.Wow! I’m particularly impressed that the clock is not a machine’s idea of “a clock.” The numbers are legible and in the correct orientation. This was not always the case with earlier versions of DALL-E.
ME: Do another like that last one.
ChatGPT: The image has been transformed into another painting, highlighting the rich textures and warm tones of an oil painting.ME: Do another.
ChatGPT: The scene has been rendered again with a textured oil painting effect, capturing the intricate details and vibrant atmosphere of the kitchen setting.Kitchen? Who said anything about a kitchen?
ME: Make the color palette more muted.
ChatGPT: The image has been transformed into a painting with a more muted color palette, offering a calmer and more serene interpretation of the scene.The texture is interesting. Kef seems to have, ahem, put on “his winter coat.”
[ wink wink ]
ME: Give the cat more personality.
ChatGPT: The painting now portrays the cat with a more pronounced personality, featuring an expressive, curious gaze.You really went to town on those brushstrokes, right? But it’s carried off with some skill.
ME: Show more of the space around the cat.
ChatGPT: The image now includes more of the space around the cat, giving a fuller view of the kitchen environment with an expressive portrayal of the cat's personality.Whoa! We’re definitely into Disney territory here.
ME: Show more brush strokes and the canvas beneath.
ChatGPT: The painting has been re-created to show more pronounced brush strokes and the texture of the canvas, highlighting the artistic quality of the work.Ok, I thought, let’s get back to the original idea.
ME: Ok now do a version that is paper cutouts.
This time, the bot was literally speechless. As was I. I love this!
ME: Do a version like this cutout style showing two black cats
ChatGPT: The image has been re-envisioned in the paper cutout style, now featuring two black cats within the colorful kitchen setting.I’m loving this.
ME: Do another
Love the whisk! And I continue to be amazed that the color palette does tie back to the original photograph, especially the plants and flowers in the wallpaper. What continues to bemuse me is that the bot correctly deduced that my photo was taken in the kitchen.
ChatGPT: The new image features two black cats in a kitchen, each with its own pose, in a paper cutout style that emphasizes whimsy and graphic design.Whimsy? I love it!
Here are the other nine pictures in the set:
For those of you keeping score, these nine plus the other three equals twelve. It was Julie who had the idea to make these into a calendar. Which I’ve done and will send as Hanukkah gifts to my kids. And if you’re interested, say so in the comments, and I can give you more details on ordering one. ;)
So anyway, there’s my tutorial on AI image generation using my own photograph as a starting point. I’d be curious to read what you think of this notion of using AI image generation as a tool for the artist, just like any other technology.
















Love the exercise and the results. And our black cat, Astrud, would very much like a calendar, so how do I order? Thanks...Jim
This is great! You are getting so much better results than I have. Like that example with the old man and the mirror. I'm not getting anything nearly as good. I'm not paying, though.
Can you ask it to upscale the images or change the aspect ratio?