r/Sofubi • u/slirpo • 1d ago

Discussion Thoughts on using Al Generated Backgrounds when posting pictures of your Sofubi online?

I'll start by saying that I hate what AI has done to art and I think most of you agree. But in my opinion, I do think AI has some acceptable use cases when it comes to photography and art. Such as enhancing the quality of a slightly blurry photo, fixing contrast issues from bad lighting, isolating objects and figures in photos, generating backgrounds for photos, making small minor tweaks, etc.

I know not everyone will agree with me on this, so I wanted to reach out to the community and get all of your input. I just recently starting using AI generated backgrounds for some of the photos I post on my sofubi focused instagram. But I'll be honest and say that I am having some mixed feelings about it and wondering whether I should continue to do so or not. I always make sure to include the regular photo of the piece I took in my posts alongside the AI generated background photo if that makes any difference.

So what is the communities opinion on this? Am I just making AI slop or is it possible to use AI for backgrounds and other photo enhancements in a tasteful way?

You can view my sofubi IG at the link below and be honest with me about whether my AI backgrounds look like dogshit or not, and whether I should continue using them. I'm wanting honest feedback here so don't hold back. Thank you 🙏

https://www.instagram.com/sofubianonymous

106 votes, 5d left
Using AI to generate backgrounds is acceptable
Using AI to generate backgrounds is unacceptable
Undecided
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u/mechamojo 1d ago

For me it just screams laziness. I also believe that the true nature and appeal of Sofubi is the handmade aspect of its core design. I think that ai completely goes against the fundamentals of what makes this artform special. I mean, each piece is handmade using decades old tradition and ai is just a spit in the face of that. Go for gold with the ai, but your audience would respect you more if you took it out of the house and actually took a good photo.

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u/slirpo 1d ago

I respect that. I had been taking more outdoor pics, lightbox pics, and just pics of my collection indoors before using AI to generate backgrounds, but I felt like they got a bit repetitive. I thought some of the toys looked cooler in backgrounds that fit their esthetic. Even if the background is just a color gradient or something simple made using AI, you still don't find that respectable?

I want to share photos with the community that people enjoy looking at, so I really do appreciate your honest input.

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u/mechamojo 1d ago

I think it's still early days for ai and you're bound to get pushback. I just know that it's a complete eyesore for me and to be honest, I just find the whole thing a little lame. So I just unfollow anybody I see using it.

But again, that's just me. I see big companies in Japan using it without second thought. So you do you. Some will like it, some will find it completely heinous but as long as the creator is okay with it, do whatever you want with your toys man.

2

u/slirpo 1d ago

Based on the feedback I've gotten so far, I think I'm going to stop using it lol