Generative AI is a useful tool, but I enjoy writing to my clients. I think they appreciate the personal replies too. While I might use it to automate mundane tasks, I prefer the human touch both when sending and receiving correspondence.

Each to their own, of course.

You are right that it needs to be double-checked. I recently, for fun, got Copilot to write a document, then got it fact-checked by ChatGPT, which found errors. It corrected the errors, and I ran it through Google. It found more faults. I fed that back into Copilot and asked it to check, and it found fault with the corrections.

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

The confidence problem can be worse than the accuracy problem. When Copilot gives the wrong operating temperature for your camera, it delivers that answer in exactly the same tone and format as when it’s correct, with no signal in the output to tell you which situation you’re in. The cross-checking approach described here is the sensible response, but it eats most of the time-saving the tool was supposed to deliver.

I use AI for client correspondence and the admin side of running a photography business. For broad questions it holds up well enough. For anything specific (particular gear specs, venues I regularly work with through LemonLens, current supplier pricing) checking is still necessary. A tool that confidently gives the wrong answer to a specific question can be more hazardous than no answer at all.

Thank you, Erika. Most top-end cameras have a degree of weatherproofing, some better than others. The OM System cameras, which were called Olympus when I wrote this article, have better than most with an IP53 rating. If you are interested in them, please feel free to get in touch. I am quite happy to chat about what’s available.

Many thanks Bernhard. I hope you have a happy New Year!

Bernhard

Hi Carlo, Sorry in the delay in replying to you; life’s events overtook me over the last week or so.

You are right. Legacy lenses tend not to be as sharp as new digital lenses as the glass manufacturing technology has improved. That lo-fi soft look combined with the different colour rendering brings a retro look that many people find appealing, but I get that it is not everyone’s cup of tea. Furthermore, old zoom lenses were never anywhere near as crisp as primes. Again, technology has narrowed that gap considerably over the last few years and my pro-end zooms are pin sharp.

Shooting in 4K will certainly emphasise the limitations of a legacy lens as the definition of the sensor is greater than that of the lens. It’s one of the disadvantages of ever-higher pixel counts that sensors overtaking the clarity of the best glass.

Excellent. I look forward to seeing your results.