The rise of generative AI in beauty imagery has significantly impacted hairstyling, as clients increasingly present AI-generated photos as inspiration. Stylist Rita Contreras highlights that while these images may be aesthetically appealing, they are often unrealistic, leading to challenges during consultations. Contreras emphasizes the importance of educating clients about the distinctions between AI-rendered hair, which is flawless and immune to environmental factors, and real hair, which can be affected by these variables. This phenomenon echoes similar experiences in other fields where artistic representations do not align with practical realities.
Rita Contreras, a hairstylist in Brooklyn, said that in the past six months, the number of clients walking in with AI images has ballooned. While the fake photos often fool her clients, Contreras can spot an AI image a mile away, she said; the details are too flawless, the hair too glossy.
I have to just say, 'This is not a real person. This is not real hair,' Contreras said. She spends time before each appointment talking clients through the differences between AI hair (immune to bad lighting and weather) and real hair (vulnerable to both).
This reminds me of when my dad, a civil engineer, would come home from work and comment how someone came in with unrealistic building sketches. The plans might look nice, but in reality, the supposed buildings would crumble in an earthquake, if they were able to stand at all.
Collection
[
|
...
]