Topic: controversial new photoshop feature: content-aware fill

[Alex]

Adobe Photoshop Project Manager John Nack previewed the "Content-Aware Fill" feature that will make its way into the Photoshop CS5 later this year. The Content-Aware Fill allows operators to remove parts of the scene without laborious retouching. The implications for image security, watermark removal, and creative expression are enormous.


http://blog.photoshelter.com/2010/03/wider-angles-photoshop-contentaware-fill.html


As a New York Times photographer, and a co-editor of the Lens blog, I take a very orthodox view of the role of Photoshop in image processing. Simply put: Less is more. I subscribe to the notion that journalistic images should not be manipulated to change the way a scene looked, even if it looks better. That said, the Content-Aware Fill feature on the new Photoshop seems to be very impressive. It will be a boon for photographers who work in those areas of our profession that rely on retouching. It will also make it easier for those photojournalists who choose to cheat. But the problem isn't the efficacy of the Content-Aware Fill feature. The problem is those photojournalists. In truth, the lines are already blurred. Over Photoshopping is already rampant and we see more and more photos that are technically virtuosic but have nothing to say. The question raised by this new tool is: Does the integrity of the image even matter? After all, photographs aren't objective. All of the decisions that a photographer makes while shooting affects the image the viewer sees. A foot to the left or a wider angle lens? And that's before editing the picture. Let's face it, life is not digital. It's analog and three dimensional.  But I think that integrity does matter. If all I can do as a photojournalist is do my best to try to tell the truth as I saw it, that's okay with me. And as far as image processing, I'm still going to believe that less is more.

[Sheri]

asa, si? De la tine nimic?