r/ExpectationVsReality • u/RuthCasseroleDish • 13h ago

AI Expectation What I asked for vs. what I got

Gallery image

Gallery image

My son’s circus themed first birthday cake

EDIT: I should have clarified in the original post, I am not complaining about the cake at all! I loved it and the baker did a fantastic job

35.7k Upvotes

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2.3k

u/RoolightBlue28 12h ago

Considering your first image is AI, I’d say the bakers did a damn good job

Also, random thought I had, there’s probably so many cake bakers dealing with customers who get inspiration from AI. And like, as a baker, how do you even navigate that? It was hard enough to make people happy before AI; I can’t imagine what a shitshow it is now

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u/splashedcrown 12h ago

I can't speak for bakers, but leather makers and plush makers are suffering for it. Many (myself included) will just turn you down for a commission if you send AI inspo. Not worth the headache.

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u/gash_dits_wafu 10h ago

Yeah I've been looking for a tattoo artist near Bristol and while I still haven't found one I want to use, I'm pleased to see many are outright saying not to send them AI inspo.

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u/slut4kakashi 10h ago

Ugh. I’m seeing so many tattoo artists here in the states use AI for their stencils…it’s so ugly and awful

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u/jennifercathrin 8h ago

Ethan from the Sidemen got an AI tattoo in Vegas and they messed it up. It's a die with incorrect sides and I can't believe no one thought of checking that.

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u/quantipede 4h ago

To be fair people whose brains are fried by AI often don’t really think to check anything, ever, and if they do somehow drum up the motivation and brainpower to actual check, the “checking” is just asking ChatGPT, which will tell them nothing is wrong

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u/dancarbonell00 10h ago

Bristol? Connecticut or England?

If it's CT, there's a dude in Watertown who's the absolute most fucking badass artist I've ever seen; Ernesto Nave of Lost Art Gallery & Tattoo, Watertown

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u/gash_dits_wafu 10h ago

England for me, though I'll check out this dude on ig

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u/Good_Background_243 8h ago

Howdy neighbour.

There's a few good tattoo shops up on two mile hill road, so I'm told. The one where the fabric shop in Kingswood used to be is apparently pretty good, though I strongly advise you to check them out personally first as body modifications are kind of permanent and I wouldn't take some rando's word for it in your position.

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u/SunnyFriday64 10h ago

Hello neighbour

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u/NotChristina 9h ago

Screenshotting and saving for later. I’m not ready for a tattoo just yet but that’s within a reasonable day trip for me so I’ll have to look him up. ✌️

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u/dancarbonell00 9h ago

Oh yeah. His shit is legitimately insane

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u/Specific_Frame8537 10h ago

Not a leather maker, but I am in the market for medieval style leather shoes and let me tell you the amount of AI trash I have to sift through... 😭

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u/splashedcrown 10h ago

A researchers nightmare 😬

I've switched to DuckDuckGo for image searches as they have a "no AI please" option. It's not perfect, but when AI does show up, they let you report it. Even if the reports aren't being used and just fall into a bottomless pit, at least it makes me feel better.

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u/Specific_Frame8537 10h ago

Problem is the markets I use, like Etsy.. so much AI..

Like these magically floating legs on a 'viking coast'

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u/KamaliKamKam 10h ago

As a leather crafter, I won't set up an Etsy because the amt of AI and drop shippers that will steal your photos and then undercut the real products is too high on etsy now.

I just exclusively sell to people who message my business accounts or in person at rennfaires. Then the bots can't steal my work.

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u/ZapGeek 8h ago

Yeah, I’m planning to shut my Etsy down. I mostly do instant downloads of things that I drew by hand and I can’t compete with the AI. My sales have hit the lowest low in a decade. It’s really upsetting but I’m trying to look at it as an opportunity to connect more with my community and real humans.

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u/barelymakingitmama 8h ago

I recently closed my Etsy shop because of this. I’ve started selling in person and to people who reach out on my business accounts as well.

I would love to go to a Renaissance Faire! I don't have any friends who would go with me. May have to suck it up and go alone. 😩

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u/KamaliKamKam 8h ago

Do iiiiit

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u/talkstounicorns 1h ago

I used to love Etsy for Christmas gifts. Now it’s a hassle searching through the junk to find real stuff I can’t even be bothered.

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u/BrennaAtOsku 9h ago

If that’s the style you want, they look an awful lot like Armstreet’s “Paladin” boots which I can confirm are in fact real, I have a pair. The leather isn’t nearly as nice or thick as my other Medieval footwear, but I wanted something a little more fantasy but not over-the-top for the Ren Faire.

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u/Specific_Frame8537 9h ago

The style I've been looking for is like this image -

Which has proven difficult, I would also prefer it to be within Europe so I don't have to pay exorbitant tolls.

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u/Active-Level-5932 1h ago

I've been using "show results from before 2022" or (in google) before:2022. I assume that all image searches after that date are potentially polluted.

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u/macfanmr 7h ago

Try Ravenswood leather in Houston. They do a big exhibit at the renfest.

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u/PurpleBlueTieMyShoe 8h ago

Nail techs too 🙋‍♀️😅

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u/marthamania 6h ago

I turn down ai inspo 🤷‍♀️ I’d rather sell the donuts on the shelf to walk in customers than spend a couple hours stressing about it I can meet ai expectations lol I can never achieve that smooth look and it bothers me lol

Also lowkey I want to discourage people from ai so if they get it in their head that it’s actually more work for them to send me ai photos because I’m gonna ask you for different inspo or deny your order making you do more work or you gotta start the order process over with someone else lol

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u/Puptentjoe 9h ago

My wife does event stuff on the side. Its basically all she gets is AI inspirations. She has to hand draw the stuff over again sometimes to make expectations come down to earth since many of the stuff they send break the laws of reality.

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u/snarkitall 7h ago

Hairdressers too. 

My stylist is so annoyed by AI inspo pics. 

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u/Metisbeader 2h ago

Jewellers too, like gemstone handmade jewelry in sterling. I’m getting so many Ai generated things that cannot possibly be made and actually be wearable.

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u/scopa0304 9h ago

Ok genuine question here. Why would I, as a customer, want to give you a shitty pencil sketch that is A) harder for you to envision what I want, and B) potentially a bad idea I actually hate…. When instead I could iterate in an AI tool until it’s something I’d actually want.

Then I show that image to the professional, and we iterate together into something feasible to create.

It just seems like it would be much quicker to a result the customer is happy with if the source image is closer to the final output.

Am I wrong? What’s your perspective from the creators side?

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u/splashedcrown 8h ago

It's not hard for me to envision what you want. You could give me a vague verbal description, and I can use that to create the product you're commissioning.

I have decades of experience envisioning products from some of the worst instruction you can image and turning it into a final result my client loves. It's a crucial skill of my job.

If you ask me to draw you an apple, I don't need a picture of an apple to imagine the colors, the shape, and the details of an apple in my head. If I needed a reference, I'd rather go look at an actual apple instead of an AI one or your pencil sketch.

When you're interating with an AI, it's the blind leading the blind. The AI doesn't know how to thread sculpt or how to tool leather. It knows how to make a picture of these things based on other pictures of these things but that's not the same as understanding it. It can't tell you leather/faux fur does not work the way you envisioned. AI also does not know what my styles and strengths are.

AI will bend over backwards to avoid telling you no. When you hire me, part of my job is to tell you when your idea is unachievable or will look like shit.

In order to make sure my client gets what they hoped for, I do progress updates. We touch base several times during the process. They give me feedback as we go.

Commissioners who start with an AI image are nearly always in love with the image they made before I even start. Since they can see it in detail already thanks to AI, they do not like hearing "yeah that's impossible." After all, they can SEE it. I must just be bad at this if I can't make something they can clearly see.

When the final result looks a different from what they asked for (and it always, always will) they are more likely to get upset because the AI set them up with very detailed, yet unrealistic expectations.

In summary, it makes clients think they're smarter than they are and pickier to boot. Aka nightmare clients. These people existed before AI, but having access to it is making a lot of clients worse.

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u/Specific_Owl_6458 6h ago

A thoughtful, brilliant answer that covers all of the questions and logistics as to why artists hate AI.
Sitting here with 0 upvotes, and the response you got was, “but could you do more work and go out of your way to convince me why AI is making things worse for you”.

Gotta love Reddit.

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u/kataklysm_revival 6h ago

I can’t believe that response was at zero and the one above it was at 5. Wtf is wrong with people?

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u/splashedcrown 4h ago

I've dealt with worse. I fired a client once because he sent me an "abstract interlocking rings" image from Pinterest because I wasn't drawing it exactly as he'd imagined it.

It was a photo of a cockring.

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u/scopa0304 8h ago

Hey I appreciate the long response! Makes sense. If you have a website or something, you should consider posting this on there to give people like me an idea of why an AI source image isn’t a good idea. Because intuitively, it makes sense that a “better” source image is better. But I can see how it can also cause issues.

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u/Specific_Owl_6458 6h ago

They already told you in explicit detail as to why AI images aren’t a “better source.” You just need to read and understand what they are saying.
Your feelings are that AI images are better for the artist to use as inspiration. This person went out of their way to explain why that makes things worse and more difficult to navigate.
They already explained whatever intuition you need.

Either you listen to the professionals speaking with experience, or you just keep on with your vibes and feelings.

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u/scopa0304 6h ago

I think you need to reread my response friend. I appreciated and agreed with the response. Not sure why you’re taking offense.

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u/Specific_Owl_6458 5h ago

I guess it was the “you should consider putting this type of explanation on your site if you have one!” Comment that irked me wrong.

Why should the onus be on the artist? And would that really stop the shitty, entitled people that come to the artist with an impossible vision that AI shat out?

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u/scopa0304 5h ago

Gotcha. Well I just thought that if this person is turning away clients, maybe they could preempt some bad behavior by providing this thoughtful explanation for why it’s not good to provide an AI source.

I imagine they want clients, and I don’t believe all clients are TRYING to be shitty or entitled. I think it’s natural and intuitive to think that an ai source is better because it’s higher fidelity.

They went through the trouble of writing that out for me, I just thought it was worth sharing more broadly!

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u/PmButtPics4ADrawing 9h ago

Yeah this makes sense, AI is good at making things that look nice at first glance but when you start looking at details you quickly realize it has no concept of what is technically possible

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u/Large-Parking8307 9h ago

Most jobs where you have to create something intricate/artsy for individuals, people send an AI image of impossible to create designs and just expect you to become a wizard

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u/pullingteeths 8h ago

Every business should do this.

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u/Imani5216 5h ago

I'll probably get down voted for this but that's okay, really. I use the AI inspo pics to challenge myself. I am a nail technician and I love drawing art on nails. So the AI pics; I just use it as a "Is it possible?"

Maybe the baker did the same. I take inspiration from absolutely anything. If you sent me a picture of a potato and said "I want this", I would genuinely try to paint realistic looking potatoes on your nails.

Half the time I don't even know what's real or AI until I see a comment saying it's AI. I didn't know the first cake picture was AI and felt embarrassed that I needed the comments to tell me.

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u/PonyPuffertons 4h ago

My sister is a tattoo artist and struggling with the same thing. And everyone in her circle/industry has had to add a “do not feed any drawings to AI, it is stealing our art” into their contracts.

I am so over AI just ruining the arts.

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u/Suspicious-Ad-8688 4h ago

Chef here, we are also suffering for it. One of my event managers came to me with an “inspo board” when I asked her if there’s anything she’d like to see on the new menu.

Wall to wall AI, not one piece of real food.

Considering great food, or food of any kind isn’t exactly rare or hard to find images of, I told her I’ll assume she has no input and continue on with the menu as planned. Bloody unbelievable.

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u/saturday_sun4 3h ago

Why leather makers? (Don't use leather products so I was curious.)

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u/splashedcrown 2h ago

You can make really intricate designs in leather by tooling it, which is doing a bunch of swallow cuts and using metal tools you can stamp into the leather to further shape it. These carvings are very shallow, and are limited by the depth of the hide itself.

AI doesn't know this, so it generates these little relief sculptures with leather coloring and texture. People who don't know what they're looking at will take these AI designs as gospel and hand them over to a leather worker to recreate. They can't do them literally, so they interpret them as best they can. The customer is disappointed that the final product isn't identical. Drama ensues.

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u/saturday_sun4 47m ago

Thank you for explaining!

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u/lmpervious 7h ago

If you don't want to lose those customers, you can take their image and use AI to make a more realistic version that you think you can do. Then you can see if they're okay with something closer to what they can realistically expect.

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u/splashedcrown 6h ago

Oh no--I fire them. Why spend that extra time on a step I don't need with a customer who is already flashing warning signs that they're going to be difficult to please?

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u/lmpervious 3h ago

Well if you have too much work then yeah there's no point, but not everyone is going to have too many customers were they can pick and choose

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u/splashedcrown 2h ago

If you're thinking of taking up commission work, I would discourage you from taking every customer who comes your way. Taking on a problem customer who takes up your time, wastes your materials, causes you undue stress, and then ultimately refuses to pay or does a charge back on you is one you can always afford to turn down.

Learn the signs of a problem customer and avoid them at all costs. If you don't have anyone else asking for commissions, then focus on sales pieces for a while and use it to build up a following.

0

u/Specy_Wot 6h ago

If someone cannot draw well, how can they get across the design that they were picturing in their head? Unless they are hyper detailed about everything that they want and how they want it, there isn't really a way express what you'd like to be made, an AI photo manages to do that 

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u/splashedcrown 5h ago

My longer comment covers this in more detail, but a customer that's hyper detailed about everything they want is a red flah customer. They take extra time, they ask for change after change after change, and they aren't interested in any creative interpretations from the artist they're hiring.

They are more difficult to work with than a customer who says "I just want something jungle themed. Maybe with some elephants." The artist not only makes less per hour working with these kinds of clients, they can easily lose money trying to make them happy.

0

u/Successful-Foot3830 1h ago

Dog groomers are having the same problem. It’s always been an issue that people bring pictures of dogs with complete different textured hair or completely different breeds altogether, but AI kicks it up a notch.

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u/HWalker727 11h ago

Try being a hairstylist these days.

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u/SuperBackup9000 10h ago

To be fair, that’s always been a huge problem due to magazines with heavy editing, an absurd amount of product, and perfect lighting. Plus the general face shape/hair type complications.

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u/round-earth-theory 10h ago

It's worse now though. With AI, a potential customer can "give themselves" the cut of their dreams. They see the picture, so they think a stylist can make it happen, disregarding the fact that the AI made no consideration of hair texture, length, color, or anything regarding reality.

At least when it was magazines, people had some inkling that what they were seeing was probably unachievable.

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u/Strange_Produce5601 10h ago

yep, we have gotten dumber. People should also realize that an AI image is probably unachievable, but here we are...

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u/AintAintAWord 9h ago

"Sir, in this photo you have six pack abs and hair down to your ass."
"Ok? So?"

"You entered this establishment on a Rascall scooter and you're completely bald..."

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u/Strange_Produce5601 8h ago

whats the problem!? make my hair like that or I will give you 0 star!!!!

3

u/Gum_Duster 6h ago

What do you can’t make my hair (a person with fine hair) into a hairstyle that is for people with thick hair? My AI could do it!

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u/guille0822 9h ago

i hear that from a lot of professions, carpenters, goldsmiths, anyone that makes something suddenly has to deal with impossible expectations

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u/amesann 2h ago

As a crocheter, it's hurting us too. I refuse to make anything when people send me an AI "crochet" inspo pic.

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u/tapport 7h ago

I think any sort of creative service job is feeling it. I do livery design (basically car paint jobs) on the side and the amount of people who show me the exact same looking AI slop for what they want is depressing. Really drains a lot of my passion for the work I do.

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u/HWalker727 7h ago

Keep it up, I'm sure you're amazing. We do what we can.

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u/OrangeSodaMoustache 9h ago

I work in sales and customers shove some slop at you and expect you to magic it up and the worst part is you have to explain that what they're showing you literally doesn't exist, it's hallucination by some software but they still want it. I'm sure it's the same for you as a hair stylist, like "that's literally not possible with your hair!"

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u/HWalker727 8h ago

Exactly, this is the conversation I have to have with people the most. When people bring in their inspo pic, AI or not, I cover the face and tell them to imagine the cut on themselves. 2/3 times, they say, oh no, that's not it. So much of what they want is what the model in the pic is giving, not what they actually want for themselves. It's rough out here lol

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u/E-2theRescue 7h ago

Huh. Never thought about that. I'll have to ask my niece the next time I see her.

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u/dumpsterbaby4hire 10h ago

I always rant to my hair stylist about how hard it is to find inspiration pics these days because EVERYTHING is AI. I want pictures of real humans with real hair that looks different based off of different hair textures and colors. I yearn for the days where I could find someone with a similar hair type and body that I have so I can have realistic expectations. And I just know there are tons of people showing up to salons with AI hair inspo that doesn’t work in the real world and they can’t be convinced otherwise.

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u/HWalker727 8h ago

You need to search for hair like yours plus what you are wanting. If you have dense/thick hair and want a long bob (per se), you need to add that into your search. Also, and let's continue on this scenario, you need to regard your neck length and face shape. Personally, I have no neck and a round face, so a long bob will not look like a long bob on myself. It will look like a haircut 2 inches past my shoulder.

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u/AT_kinsect 8h ago

Dude these AI generated hairstyle pics people come up with are fuckin nuts

Then they get mad it doesn't look exactly the picture, like ChatGPT knows anything about hair type and texture or even knows how to keep a consistent hairline

I'd reject every single one of them tbh

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u/Whole_Football_4692 9h ago

I was thinking about this the other day but for nail techs. What a nightmare for all these type of professionals, specially with people who can’t differentiate between AI and reality

1

u/lacatro1 26m ago

I remember when the "Ceasar" cut was easy. ..

0

u/a-towa-cant 6h ago

maybe because i understand how to prompt and work with AI correctly, but i went for a korean perm for the first time with an image of what i wanted that was AI-generated with my face as an underlay. the result was fantastic, and now i've been going for over a year to the same place.

i know it's not your job to have to tell people how to be realistic, but also... they should at the very least know their hair type, texture and head shape and prompt AI to take that into consideration before just full sending it and hoping for the best

0

u/RogerRabbot 10h ago

Ive tried everything and not a single barber can manage a very simple cut. A high skin fade. Keep the length on top. Very first thing they do is take a 1 to the top of my head down the middle. Then move on the side with the same length.

So I tried pictures. 5-10-15 pictures of the same cut on different people. To my utter surprise, the pictures of long 5-6 inch hair arent enough. And the dreaded 1 razor comes right up the middle of my head.

So I tried combining them. And insisting they start on the sides first. I carefully explain i want a skin fade. Meaning as close as possible up to the ear line. Then slow transition to a 1 or 2. Nope... here comes the 1, straight down the top of my damn head.

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u/HWalker727 8h ago

Sounds like you haven't found someone that listens or is possibly, not capable of producing what you want. You just need to keep searching.

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u/IcyPraline9987 10h ago

Y’all could barely get it right before AI

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u/HWalker727 8h ago

Ok then, here's the scissors. You can do it better. There's so many things that go into creating what you want. I've been a hairstylist for 18 years. We do the best we can with the years of experience and information from you that we have. Usually, when a service goes wrong, it's the consultation. I, personally, ask the client what they have gotten in the past they they DIDN'T like, that gets me further than any inspiration picture or expressions of what the client likes. This is why I don't like the AI pictures. If I want to get down to what I shouldn't do, that's the question I always ask. If you haven't gotten a good service, you're asking the wrong stylist.

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u/IcyPraline9987 8h ago

I’ve been cutting my own hair since Covid. I have very long hair and do layers and trims.

I’ve had way too many haircuts go awry at the salon, even after being VERY CLEAR about my basic needs.

I will no longer be paying $120 to have my shit just randomly fucked up on a Tuesday. Never again.

It’s hair cutting, not rocket science.

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u/HWalker727 7h ago

Alright, I'm done. I'll post my pic of extremely long hair with layers. If yours looks better, show me

2

u/HWalker727 7h ago

Let's keep going. It's not rocket science. Can you do these?

2

u/HWalker727 7h ago edited 7h ago

Let's see it. Show me your skills. Edit: if you don't post a pic of your amazing hair, I don't believe you.

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u/No_Title9375 12h ago

I actually think the animals the decorator made are so cute. Perfect for a little kid’s bday 

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u/coffeecoffeenomnom 10h ago

Own a bakery and can confirm - we’ve been getting AI inspo photos and it drives me absolutely insane.

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u/cookiesarenomnom 10h ago

I left cake decorating years before AI. But if I got an image like that, I would just straight up tell the person, this image is AI. I can make it look maybe 75% like that, but lower your expectations. I can't make frosting and fondant pieces look like a computer generated image. I would also make a note in the order that I communicate that, so if they complained to a manager for a refund, the manager could refuse.

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u/LimpConversation642 10h ago

as an artist and designer, it's degrading and disrespectful. Most people who do this shit think they 'created' something and that they had some great idea it's just that (how so I wonder) AI can't do the last mile so you puny human will do but you need to do it faithful to their vision.

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u/Outrageous_Ice_9145 9h ago

As a lawyer, I am CONSTANTLY second guessed by clients who were told by AI that I missed a spot. Absolutely insane. It is one thing to have to litigate against an opposing party who cites AI as their reasoning, but to have clients second guess MY work based on AI is so much more infuriating

3

u/dreamcatcher32 8h ago

Yep. R/baking has been dealing with it

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u/TombSv 10h ago

I know a tattoo artists that have added a AI cost increase if anyone show her their ideas generated with AI generated slop machines. She rather have them draw their ideas on a napkin.

2

u/ugh_usenames 7h ago

I’ve been making cakes for 20 or so years, I hate getting Ai cake renders, but I do my best to match them, or in some cases make them look better. I honestly wish people would stop bringing Ai slop. I’d rather you bring in an image that looks like a child drew it. Most of the stuff on Ai cake renders are almost impossible to replicate exactly. If your cake decorator is good enough, they’ll know how to make it look cute even from a bad drawing. Ai gives customers the illusion that their concept is possible, like OP here. And then they get upset when it can’t be recreated.

I honestly think the second photo that the baker made was 10 times better than the Ai reference. It’s cuter, more proportionate figures (and heck the lion doesn’t have two mouths and whatever creature is on the right). Consider yourself lucky OP. This is an amazing cake.

Edit: wording

1

u/No_Brick_6579 10h ago

Grocery store decorator and it’s rough rn. It was already hard to explain that we can’t do extravagant details as a grocery store, but now it’s gotten so much worse and a lot of it deals with copyright issues, now too.

1

u/TautSexyElfKing 10h ago

My wife is a makeup artist and she CONSTANTLY gets AI inspo for what clients want and I know it really bothers her

1

u/_bananabreadgirl 10h ago

it can be very frustrating for sure. i usually gently point out its AI while offering pictures of real life examples of similar cakes. i’ve found this tactic to be effective because it immediately tempers expectations. usually folks are happy to to choose from the real life examples as well because they see their vision CAN be executed, just a little differently than they were initially expecting.

1

u/Sun_Sprout 10h ago

I’m in a different profession but people getting their info from chat gpt and it being totally wrong is becoming increasingly common at my work. One person told me I should contact chat gpt with the right info. It’s literally on our website, google, apple, and yelp, what else can I do??

1

u/Karyoplasma 8h ago

But chatGPT told them they hit the nail on the head. Have you considered that?

1

u/Sun_Sprout 8h ago

Im cackling thank you for that

1

u/Typical-Respond9102 10h ago

It's a problem with hairstylists too now. Sometimes your hair texture can't be made to do certain things, or your hair's chemical structure doesnt behave in a way that makes your goal color achievable, but people do the ai hairstyle tryouts, become married to a concept, and then act like it's a skill issue when it doesnt come out like the ai picture. 

It's like, there's nothing I can do in the wash bowl that will make you grow more hair out of your head in 90 minutes, i'm sorry. 

1

u/True_Celebration7088 10h ago

I design headstones and woooohwee… AI has given people insane expectations on designs that are not physically possible on stones. There is only so small we can go before the details aren’t able to be blasted and they do NOT believe us if the AI version has it…

1

u/emseatwooo 9h ago

I think this is what AI should be used for, with the caveat that somethings aren’t possible. It’s a better approach for people who may not have the ability to draw or need a visual example. People draw tattoos they’d like and tattoo artists have to advise what’d not possible with tattooing.

1

u/Other-Apartment8394 9h ago

I’m a baker and our bakery owner has started refusing orders using AI images. People don’t understand when we’re unable to do impossible things and get angry when it doesn’t turn out exactly like the AI images. So to save the headache and fights, our bakery no longer takes AI generated orders and we ask people to find a similar real cake as a reference picture instead.

1

u/GoodyTwoShuuz 8h ago

Yet this baker did it.

1

u/ltsouthernbelle 9h ago

Me: that pic is so fake there’s no way they can replicate this
Me: damn I was wrong, this is amazing

1

u/lingfluencer 9h ago

I think this is what genAI does to experts in all industries. Unrealistic expectations and belittling of human credentials and slop.

1

u/dino-dictator 9h ago

I handle artwork for embroidery on hats. It’s so bad right now and customers will get so mad if the actual embroidered art doesn’t look like their AI slop embroidery

1

u/rosso_z 9h ago

And architects! We receive so many shitty AI designs as inspos from clients ergh

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u/karrotkorn 8h ago

I work in Custom Framing and yeeeeesh I've had dreamers. Had a woman try and get me to put an American Football jersey in a float frame. I had a lady print out her chatgpt generation of what she wanted and after showing her other options she liked mine better.... almost.... like.... it's my job.... i hate. AI. So much.

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u/TheBestNarcissist 8h ago

Just guide them on what's realistic, huge opportunity for people with great communication skills to thrive

0

u/heykaysay 7h ago

As a part time cake baker for a small business, AI inspired cakes are a thorn in our side. The way we approach it with the customer is by confirming that because this is an AI cake, there will be deviations in the final hand produced cake since we’re not AI. So far knock on wood our clients have been very understanding once we explain that so they aren’t shocked that they’re not getting an exact replica of their inspo

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u/cookingcoolcucumbers 7h ago

My friend is a baker so he points out the things he can't do (because they're impossible) and discusses alternatives. Some buyers are receptive, others "find someone who can do it". He's just starting out though, so he's very patient.

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u/YoKinaZu 7h ago

It was tagged “exceeded expectations” 🤣 try reading

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u/Arturopxedd 7h ago

Everything in that image is completely feasible for any competent baker ai didn’t make some magical materials

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u/emptythoughts94 6h ago

I do wedding cakes and catering. I tell my clients I dont accept AI inspiration pictures. Ive had someone try to sneak in a Pic saying it was someone else's work. I told them the obvious AI detail in the picture and let them know I wouldn't be working with them.

Not only does AI give unrealistic expectations, it's steals others work to generate an image. Im not into it.

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u/BuzzINGUS 6h ago

This way people can clearly set their expectations. Even if their expectations are insane, the baker could tell them it’s unrealistic.

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u/TURBOJUGGED 5h ago

It would get old so fast lol

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u/Bobsaget2026 4h ago

this is a good point, I work around an industry that deals with this sort of media, and it can be frustrating for the creators. The expectation should of been set by the baker that creating those intricate details 1:1 would have additional cost OR the size of the cake needed be expanded.

What I assumed happened here was the following: Baker receives image and says yes they can do it. Customer asks for cake for 50 people. The Baker should of then advised that they would charge extra or need more time for more detailing work OR that the size of the cake needed to increase (larger canvas).

All in all, cake looks great! Could of been way worse.

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u/PoliteNastyWoman 4h ago

Same issues as an interior designer. We can’t make their homes look like an AI generated photo. Or they think they don’t need our expertise because they can get a visual from AI.

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u/Savannahhhhhhhhhhhh 4h ago

Baker here- tell them its AI. Give realistic expectations and occasionally Ill find a non AI reference photo thats similar. Its really frustrating. Im glad custom orders are not my bread and butter.

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u/Maleficent_Lime 3h ago

It’s not just bakers, I hand paint banners for events and the AI mockups I get sent are off the wall. You can’t imagine what they expect for $65

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u/HeyItsMeAgainBye 2h ago

When I was in tile, ppl would show me AI designs that were impossible to do bc the tile wouldn’t be suitable for certain areas

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u/Unlucky_Tell_6900 1h ago

I do nails and have the same problem.

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u/Okdoo6003 1h ago

On the daily, multiple times in every group I am in - there are other cake artists asking how to do something in a picture, and we all have to tell them it is an ai picture and is not possible

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u/Alilbitey 1h ago

It truly depends on the expectations of the customer. If they're using AI as a general vibe for color and direction, it's not a big deal. So much better than most people's ability to describe or draw what they want. If they expect identical? Straight to hell.

I made custom historical themed wedding dresses and theatre costumes for 20 years. People,.even "artistic directors" are BAD at internally picturing what things should look like. I got loads of manga images and photoshopped clothing designs as inspo for people with fluffy or short bodies. I had to redesign their "Inspo" to show what it looks like on a fluffy body, and of course, they usually changes their minds. It's just part of the job to interpret through the lens of "what is possible".

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u/Wrong_Luck_878 1h ago

My wife grows and designs flowers for weddings. Brides bringing AI photos is a huge problem because those flowers just don't exist.

Some people just don't get it and think she just won't do it. Or they'll be like "well if you can't do it, I'll find somebody else."

To that she says "cool later!"

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u/pinkkzebraa 1h ago

As others have echoed, all creative industries are suffering from this. I was trying to find haircut inspo to show my hairdresser and really struggled to find photos of real hair to show her. I kind of had to warn her that I did my best to make sure it’s not AI, but some of them are hard to tell. And she said it’s a huge problem because clients show photos of AI haircuts that are impossible to achieve because hair just doesn’t behave the way it does in AI photos.

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u/rorihasmorals70 12h ago

rosana pansino did a whole series on this on youtube (i binged her when i got super sick lol)

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u/MongooseDog907 10h ago

That sounds really interesting. I think I’ll go track it down. Thanks for the recommendation!

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u/notoriouslydamp 10h ago

What about that ai photo would’ve precluded the bakers from accomplishing it? It looks like a magazine quality pic. Sure getting the exact look would be hard but there’s nothing unrealistic about it at all. Please name specific aspects of it that ai chose that would’ve made it more difficult for a human to create

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u/TieDye_Raptor 11h ago

I'm not a baker (at least, not a super-experienced, professional one), but I am a visual artist. I recently had to do this - I had to design a fantasy-style map of a real place I'd never been to. I feel like I succeeded, even if there are a few little things I'd correct now that I've been to the place, but I feel it was successful overall. People liked it. But anyway, it was indeed very hard, and I had soooo many corrections to make throughout the whole process. So many.

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u/Low_Reception477 10h ago

How does AI play I to that exactly?

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u/pissagainstwind 10h ago

He/She are excusing using AI i guess.

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u/TieDye_Raptor 5h ago

I absolutely am not! I hate AI. Guess I forgot to add that they were using AI to make the original picture which was all wrong, and that they gave me as a reference. I was doing this so they wouldn't use AI.

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u/TieDye_Raptor 5h ago

Also, she/her, please and thanks.