AI Statement from PSSA

Photography is the art, application and practice of creating images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film.

The Photographic Society of South Africa (PSSA) is the preeminent organisation in South Africa dedicated to the art and science of photography. It stands as the officially recognised body representing amateur photographers across the nation, committed to protecting their rights and the integrity of their work.

PSSA’s objectives are to:
• unite individuals interested in photography
• encourage the highest possible standards of photography
• embrace the future of photography while continually supporting the present
• advance the interests of photography in all aspects amongst its members

Being a photography body, PSSA prohibits images that promote practises where all elements of images have not been created by the author by photographic means. Images created or modified using Generative AI technology are not allowed in any PSSA-affiliated event or competition. These Generative AI restrictions apply whether or not text prompts are used in the AI generation process.

Generative AI technology consists of:
· In-painting (where AI fills in generated elements not captured by the photographer or removes and replaces elements from a photograph with AI-generated content),
· Out-painting (where AI extends beyond the original boundaries of the photograph using generated elements); and
· Image-to-image AI (where AI transforms an entire photograph based on text prompts or style references)
· Text-to-image (where images are generated from scratch based on text entered into a prompt description)
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THIS DOES NOT REFER TO "CONTENT AWARE FILLS" (CAF) in editing programmes, as CAFs use your own pixels from your own image. The above points refer to images, part of images and pixels created and generated by AI.