Sony to incorporate Generative AI in ZV-E1 vlogger camera

ahalpert

ahalpert

Major Contributor
It looks like Sony will be releasing a firmware update this summer for its new ZV-E1 camera that will incorporate their proprietary "image-to-image" generative AI module. Basically, you'll be able to toggle an "AI Enhance" function and then when you take your picture, the camera will analyze the subject and scene and generate a new image with "photographic accuracy" that has an improved composition and lighting.

This doesn't sound like something I would use, but it could certainly be helpful to beginning photographers as an educational tool to help them refine their compositions. And I'm glad that actual cameras and photography aren't being left behind in the rush to AI.

There's also mention of an additional "AI Beauty Enhance" feature that will make mild adjustments to any faces in focus, though they don't have an ETA on that firmware update.

What do you guys think? Is this something you would use?

https://www.cined.com/sony-zv-e1-re...abilities-enhanced-autofocus-and-powerful-ai/

https://www.newsshooter.com/2023/03...c-zv-e1-12mp-full-frame-ai-processing-camera/
 
The automation is appropriate for the times and useful to have when you want that accuracy and help, but the technology is continuing to ruin - or change - traditional photography...nothing will be authentic anymore (but I guess most things in life aren't really).
 
Don't worry, "Authentic" has not existed for eons and this AI is just the latest in the ongoing strive for what looks great. If you want "Authentic" try talent with no script, no makeup, no cosmetic surgery, natural hair colour, no lightening, no filters, no grading, no compositing, no effects, no CGI. Sounds like my home videos from the 80's and nobody wants to see that :) I say bring it on. If I want natural, I don't need the movies, I just have to walk out my front door.
 
Once you start defining authenticity like that then you'll have to list many more things about everything in life...I'm just talking about taking a picture with your own two hands without any help and calling it a day, ha.
 
I was just trying to be funny taking it to the extreme. On a serious note, I think these "features" are less about "real" AI per say, and more about migrating features from the edit suite into the camera body. Eg, the Beauty Enhance feature would be good for these bloggers who just want to push out some 30 sec reel and don't want to drag it through post. Even Resolve has a Beauty Enhance featurel..... though I'm not sure what it does. Plus there is plenty of FX6 users shooting with baked in looks (cinetone) to avoid grading.
 
Why do I get the feeling we are going to see "AI" slapped on the front of every new feature for the next couple of years. Reminds me of the "i" and "e" prefix trend from the 2000's.
 
jmone said:
Even Resolve has a Beauty Enhance featurel..... though I'm not sure what it does.
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It smooths out skin blemishes and softens things a bit. It works pretty well, but it brings rendering to it's knees. Without the filter, rendering might be at 40-60 fps, but with it turned on, maybe 5 fps if I'm lucky. If you think noise reduction is slow, the beauty filter is a killer.
 
jmone said:
Why do I get the feeling we are going to see "AI" slapped on the front of every new feature for the next couple of years. Reminds me of the "i" and "e" prefix trend from the 2000's.
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Same as with "HD" and "HDR". Don't you have a pair of "HD" sunglasses? I saw a microphone at B&H the other day that advertised as being HD and HDR. Buzz words that get slapped on everything.
 
jmone said:
I was just trying to be funny taking it to the extreme. On a serious note, I think these "features" are less about "real" AI per say, and more about migrating features from the edit suite into the camera body. Eg, the Beauty Enhance feature would be good for these bloggers who just want to push out some 30 sec reel and don't want to drag it through post. Even Resolve has a Beauty Enhance featurel..... though I'm not sure what it does. Plus there is plenty of FX6 users shooting with baked in looks (cinetone) to avoid grading.
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The ZV-E10 has a 'soft skin effect' which works on blemishes. It's nice on the low setting but gets fake-looking if you max it out. I guess maybe that feature could be used for those quick turnaround times when necessary, but not sure why the E1 didn't get it but maybe the 'beauty enhance' is similar.
 
By the way, happy april fool's day everyone. This probably isn't funny to anybody but me. And maybe it's too close to reality / not far-fetched enough. But the zv-e1 isn't getting generative ai. Thank God. The ai features it has are more like auto-framing based on cropping the image, I believe.
 
ahalpert said:
By the way, happy april fool's day everyone. This probably isn't funny to anybody but me. And maybe it's too close to reality / not far-fetched enough. But the zv-e1 isn't getting generative ai. Thank God. The ai features it has are more like auto-framing based on cropping the image, I believe.
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hilarious. I was filtering for joke posts on my usual round of site reads...and this completely went under the radar for me (didn't look at your links). It reads as completely plausible and probably in two years will show up in an actual camera.
 
ahalpert said:
By the way, happy april fool's day everyone. This probably isn't funny to anybody but me. And maybe it's too close to reality / not far-fetched enough. But the zv-e1 isn't getting generative ai. Thank God. The ai features it has are more like auto-framing based on cropping the image, I believe.
Click to expand...

Earlier this morning, Facebook showed me a "click bait" page with AI generated images of classic cars. There were about thirty of them and maybe a couple looked like done by a photo camera. They rest looked like CGI from 2010. Small steps.

BTW, ZV-E1 frame compositing is quite simple. It takes a usual (for 2023) auto focus bracket of the subject and then just builds a wide screen frame around it a la professional closeup. It might indeed be useful to a beginner ... a beginner with three grand for the camera and a decent lens.
 
DLD said:
Earlier this morning, Facebook showed me a "click bait" page with AI generated images of classic cars. There were about thirty of them and maybe a couple looked like done by a photo camera. They rest looked like CGI from 2010. Small steps.
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I thought of you when I saw this viral clip of ai-generated video of Will Smith eating spaghetti. This might be the last year that human actors can still get work! (heh heh heh)

https://arstechnica.com/information-...eat-spaghetti/
 
ahalpert said:
I thought of you when I saw this viral clip of ai-generated video of Will Smith eating spaghetti. This might be the last year that human actors can still get work! (heh heh heh)
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That's basically what it was, with a static image having more detail. It looks like it still lacks top notch ray tracing (and/or time)

PS. I clicked on the YouTube link and got a front page with the CVP's new Red Raptor XL review.
 
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