Yesterday, I searched for “I need a new headshot.”
I have to admit, it’s been a long while since I’ve searched that term and I was shocked at the results. The page was dominated by AI. Before I could see a single link, an AI chatbot was explaining the benefits of AI headshots. The links below it? All AI generation companies.
This isn’t just a glitch; it’s a fundamental redesign of the internet and it only gets noticed when it directly effects you.
Google used to be a gateway – an index to the web designed to help you find information on external websites. It was a tool for exploration, built on the idea that the best answer lies somewhere else, and its job was to send you there.
Today, Google is an answer engine and a final destination. The goal is no longer to send you somewhere else; it’s to keep you there. By synthesising answers directly on the results page, it attempts to be the end of the journey, not the beginning.
In practice, this feels like a doorman who refuses to let you inside to browse the catalogue.
You walk up to the building looking for answers. The doorman (the AI header) blocks the door. He won’t let you enter to see the shelves or even flick through the glossy magazines. Instead, he stands in the way, handing you a flyer for a machine that can print a face in seconds, tells you it’s “efficient,” and sends you on your way without ever letting you see what’s actually inside.
You aren’t being guided; you’re being kept from the catalogue because the destination wants to sell you its own answer.
So, I did what any lazy professional would do. I opened my own AI assistant and typed: “Write a blog post about why human headshots are better than AI, optimized for search engines.”
It produced a response in seconds. It was grammatically perfect. It included all the right keywords: “professional branding,” “authentic presence,” “corporate headshots.” It was also completely hollow. It sounded like a “polished mask.” (and there were “z”s where there should have been “s”s.)
Here’s the reality: I’m bored with the AI chatter too. But it’s here, and we have to work alongside it.
Here, I do use AI. But it is strictly a tool, never a creator.
I use it to explore ideas, to help me structure complex thoughts, or to organise administrative data. But there are two non-negotiable rules I follow:
- It is always fact-checked. AI hallucinates; I verify. Every statistic, every claim, every date is checked against reality before it sees the light of day.
- It keeps no memory of me. I use instances that do not store my data or learn from my inputs. In a world where privacy is increasingly scarce, I believe this matters. My client data, my creative processes, and my personal reflections remain mine alone.
But I never let it create the work. Just as I refuse to use generative AI to create a face that never existed, I refuse to let it write the words that define my practice.
Why? Because the real value of a portrait isn’t the final image; it’s the human connection that happens before the shutter clicks that leads to it.
When I guide you through a session, I am reading your micro-expressions. I am noticing the tension in your jaw and suggesting a breath to release it. I am sculpting light around your specific features to reveal you, not a generic ideal. An algorithm can mimic the look of a headshot, but it cannot replicate the emotional safety required to let your guard down and be seen.
So, what are photographers to do in this new world?
It’s a good question. The answer isn’t to fight the doorman or try to shout louder than the algorithm. You cannot out-algorithm an algorithm.
Instead, we have to stop relying on the library to bring people to us. We have to become the destination ourselves.
- Be a Lighthouse, Not a Megaphone: A lighthouse warns of danger and points towards the safe harbour. Instead of chasing search terms owned by AI, I focus on publishing content that signals values. I am sending a signal to humans looking for depth. You don’t find a lighthouse by searching for “light”; you find it because you are looking for safety.
- Direct Connection Over Organic Search: If the catalogue is hidden, we must hand-deliver the invitation. This is why I prioritise building genuine relationships with community connectors and organisations who value authenticity. When a trusted human recommends you, no AI doorman can block that introduction.
- Own Your Platform: This blog and my direct conversations are spaces where the AI doorman has no jurisdiction. Here, there are no synthesised answers. Just direct communication between us. In a world of “zero-click” searches, creating space for “deep-click” relationships is the only sustainable strategy.
- Double Down on the “Human Hand”: The more the web becomes synthetic, the more valuable the tangible becomes. My refusal to use AI for creation isn’t a limitation; it’s the product. You aren’t just buying a JPEG; you are buying the certainty that a human being looked you in the eye, adjusted the light, and cared about the result.
The “gateway” era of the web might be over. But the era of human stewardship is just beginning.
The AI doorman can block the catalogue and synthesise an answer, but he can’t replicate the experience of finding the right book. Only a human can sit with you in the silence, wait for the “performance” to fade, and reveal the person standing in front of the lens.
AI can give you a picture that looks like a professional. Only a human can give you a portrait that feels like you.
So, while AI helped me structure this idea, the words you are reading now are mine. They are imperfect, thoughtful, and human. Just like the portraits I make.
If you are ready to bypass the doorman and find your place in the catalogue, let’s connect.
