Photographer Disqualified After Winning AI Art Contest with Real Photo

The winner of an AI Photography competition was a real-life photo of a Flamingo, which not only received one prize but two.

The tech industry’s obsession with AI has led to the emergence of AI photography contests, which should not be unexpected. Programs such as Midjourne, Dall-E, and Stable Diffusion have made significant progress, often fooling viewers into believing that AI-generated images are genuine.

In a reversal of roles, a real-life photograph has won an AI photography contest, instead of an AI image being mistaken for the real thing as previously seen. This marks a change in the usual outcome.

Miles Astray, a photographer, submitted his photo of a Flamingo titled ‘F L A M I N G O N E’ to the 2024 1829 Awards, a collection of competitions focused on photography. The striking wading bird is captured in all its pink splendor, showcasing its otherworldly beauty.

Screenshot of the 2024 AI category winners for the 1839 Awards. — 1839 Awards

The photo did not only win one award, but two – the Bronze award in the judge’s category and the Peoples Vote Award. Although the photo may appear otherworldly, it was not created using AI. In reality, it is a genuine photo of a flamingo hiding its head from view.

According to the initial report from Android Authority, the winning photo was captured by Miles Ashtray using his Nikon D750 camera and not with the use of Stable Diffusion. Ashtray took the photo at a beach in Aruba in 2022, using a 50mm lens attached to his DSLR camera. He then submitted the photo under the AI category and also encouraged his followers on social media to vote for it in the People’s Choice Award.

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A post shared by Miles Astray (@milesastray)

During a conversation with Android Authority, Ashtray openly shares his reasoning for submitting the photo into an AI competition. The photographer intentionally entered his work as a way to address the potential “ethical implications”of AI.

Miles Ashtray’s statement, “Mother Nature herself is the pinnacle of creativity and wonder. I recognize the potential of new technology but am currently more aware of its limitations and potential dangers,”was proven to be a clever disguise. It was no surprise when the 1839 Awards disqualified his entry, which was part of a larger category for AI-generated images that were submitted by numerous other photographers. According to a representative from the 1829 Awards, “While we understand the intention behind his submission, it did not meet the requirements for the AI-generated image category. We do not want to prevent other artists from having a fair chance at winning in this category,”as reported by the website Petapixel.

Despite its removal from the 1839 Award AI category, F L A M I N G O N E can still be seen on Miles Ashtray’s Instagram account.