When you go to a fan convention, you have to prioritize your time and who/what you want to see. While it would have been awesome to photograph most of the panels at the event, our schedule prevented me from doing so. Originally billed as a Goonies panel with Sean Astin AND Ke Huy Quan, for some reason, although Ke was in attendance, he couldn’t make the panel. I was pretty disappointed because Ke is delightful and I was looking forward to hearing his stories. That being said, Sean Astin seems like a genuinely nice guy. Recently elected president of SAG/AFTRA, he shared his concerns and insights about the rise of artificial intelligence. AI will result in a lot of negative consequences for artists like Sean and people like me who make their living creating graphics and websites. AI is also threatening photography and has made it so that many cannot tell a difference between what is real or not. AI has its benefits, such as assisting in cleaning up noise and blurring in photos that would ordinarily be thrown out. While I am still quite a novice in utilizing these types of features in AI, I still do not condone using AI as a source of content creation. Just like acting is art, painting is art, music is art… photography IS art. Part of the art process of photography is not just aiming the lens at your subject, it’s knowing the mechanics of your photography equipment, the settings that will produce the best photo, the composition of the shot and also the post-processing of the photo. Using AI to process your photos in minutes minimizes the integrity of the art. The photographer is the artist – NOT the machine. Photographers should know how to color correct, adjust exposure, remove blemishes, etc. A GOOD photographer will do these things themselves.
- Photographer: Kristine Fluck
- Time Photographed: September 26, 2025
- Equipment Used: Nikon D7200
- Lens Used: 70-200mm
