“Why not just use your phone?”

Here, in this world of developing artificial intelligence and automatic portrait filters, a simple justification for any kind of digital art or professional photography can be difficult to put into words.

What is the substantial difference between an edited photograph and an instantly generated, believably realistic image of the same subject?

There are infinite such questions, and as many answers. While the dialogue continues, I will carry my cameras, both film and digital, with a sincerity of purpose and an artistic integrity that will never occur within the synapses of a purely digital, derivative mind.

Art is human, and long may it be so.