“The Devil of Blue”: image of a Blue Devil or Jab Jab, a traditional Trinidad & Tobago Carnival character, by Jason C. Audain, enhanced using artificial intelligence (AI); used with permission. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in photography is becoming more and more common, expanding from its main role of automating tasks like photo editing, enhancement and organisation, to facial recognition and 3D effects, to now creating the images themselves. While some professional photographers may rue the day AI began to have such an impact on their profession, autodidact Jason C. Audain, who is best known for his striking images of traditional Trinidad and Tobago Carnival characters, has been exploring its potential as a tool to take his photography to the next level. Could AI be the future of photography? What are the downsides? After noticing the interest generated by a series of AI-enhanced Carnival images he shared on his Instagram page, Global Voices had a chat with Audain via WhatsApp to pick his (very creative) brain. Trinidadian photographer Jason C. Audain. Photo by Audain and used with his permission. Janine Mendes-Franco (JMF): How did you get into photography? Jason C. Audain (JCA): My girlfriend at the time was into taking pictures of [Carnival] band launches, [so] I bought a cheap camera to help her take shots — just like a kind of backup singer — but then I saw men out there with proper cameras and I'm there with this stupid, little camera and I said, ‘Nah!’ You know … ‘man thing’ … I needed a bigger camera, so I ordered [one] but found my pictures weren't getting any better. All this time I was thinking the camera is what was taking the photos, until one day a [fellow] photographer played with the settings — [up to this point] I had been functioning on automatic — and I never went back. That's when my pictures started getting better, but even then, not up to the standard I wanted, which is when I found out editing is an integral part of photography, because back in the day, the darkroom was part of the process. To me, a photograph is kind of a blank canvas. When you edit is when you really start to bring it to life; when you start painting. Editing is adding yourself to the photograph, which is why I don't let anybody else edit my work. Editing is what makes the photo mine. JMF: What attracted you to photography? JCA: I have dyslexia, so that used to mess with me. Photography was something I was really good at [but] at first, I was just thinking about making money. At one point, I got a job that made me think, ‘Well, I don't need photography again.’ I sold all my equipment, got a PlayStation and big TV, until I realised something was missing, and it was the photography. I wasn't a big reader [because of the dyslexia] so when I discovered audiobooks, the first I ever listened to was “The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho, which talks about fulfilling your personal legend. I had the photos, so I started building a website, but of course I had to get new equipment. One day, close to Black Friday, my aunt called me and said she would help. After that, I couldn't fail. If ever I felt [discouraged] I would remember what she did, the faith she had in me. I went really hard at photography and gave up everything for it — work, woman. I would [shoot] every single day, come home, edit till three in the morning. I repeated that for about five years straight. I got good with repetition and determination. “The Robber of Midnight”: image of a Midnight Robber, a traditional Trinidad & Tobago Carnival character, by Jason C. Audain, enhanced using artificial intelligence (AI); used with permission. JMF: How did you begin to focus on photographing traditional Carnival characters? JCA: A friend wanted me to take some pictures at traditional mas. I was like, ‘This was here all the time?’ I couldn't ever remember seeing traditional mas. It blew my mind … even seeing [Carnival designer Peter Minshall's] “The Dying Swan” for the first time … my photography was suddenly starting to get some kind of meaning. Before, I was just taking pictures of any and everything. I did every kind of photography you could call: landscape, nature, macro, wedding, portrait, and it helped me become better; the combination of that knowledge gives my photos more power. JMF: What is it about traditional mas that makes it so compelling for you? JCA: For me, I was watching Carnival all these years, and it was good, but it was always missing something…the spirit. Normal mas is good for a release, but to me, traditional mas is a spiritual thing. And especially being around it now, I know it's a spiritual thing. To them [the masqueraders] it's a ritual. It's not just putting on a costume; it's going through a transformation.