Adobe Photoshop will gain a new generative AI tool that will allow users to swiftly extend photos and add or delete objects with text suggestions. Generative Fill is one of the first Creative Cloud products to take advantage of Adobe’s AI picture generator Firefly, which was introduced as a web-only beta in March. Generative Fill is available in beta today, but Adobe claims it will be fully released in Photoshop later this year.
Generative Fill, like any other Photoshop tool, works within individual layers in a Photoshop image file. It will give you three alternatives whether you use it to expand the borders of an image (also known as outpainting) or generate new items. Users can leave the prompt empty when outpainting and the system will attempt to extend the image on its own, but it works best if you give it some guidance. Consider it as a more user-friendly version of Photoshop’s existing Content-Aware Fill tool.
I haven’t had the opportunity to attempt Generative Fill myself, but I did see a live example. It’s both remarkable and far from ideal. Some of the items it generated, such as automobiles and puddles, did not appear to be natural parts of the image, but I was impressed with how effectively it handled backdrops and filled in vacant spaces. It also managed to transfer over characteristics from the modified shot, such as replicating light sources and reflecting existing sections of an image in produced water, in some cases.
Such achievements will come as no surprise to designers familiar with AI picture production tools, but as is always the case, it’s the incorporation of this technology into standard products like Photoshop that brings it to a far wider audience. Users can leave the prompt empty when outpainting and the system will attempt to extend the image on its own, but it works best if you give it some guidance. Consider it as a more user-friendly version of Photoshop’s existing Content-Aware Fill tool.
Content Credentials, a “nutrition label” system that attaches attribution data to photos before sharing them online, telling viewers if the content was developed or altered using AI, is also supported by Generative Fill. You can confirm an image’s Content Credentials by viewing it on verify.contentauthenticity.org, which provides an overview of information.
“By integrating Firefly directly into workflows as a creative co-pilot, Adobe is accelerating ideation, exploration, and production for all of our customers,” said Ashley Still, Adobe’s senior vice president of Digital Media. “Generative Fill combines the speed and ease of generative AI with the power and precision of Photoshop, empowering customers to bring their visions to life at the speed of their imaginations.”
Generative Fill isn’t yet available in Photoshop’s complete version, but you can try it out now by downloading the desktop beta program or as a module within the Firefly beta app. Adobe anticipates a full release of the public Photoshop app in “the second half of 2023.”
Adobe has been incorporating AI-powered technologies into its products for quite some time. Last year at Adobe Max, the company introduced new Photoshop capabilities such as higher-quality object selections driven by Sensei, another of Adobe’s AI models. Adobe has stated that it plans to integrate Firefly with Adobe Express, a cloud-based design platform that competes with services like Canva, but there is currently no word on when it would be made available. Firefly is already utilized in Adobe Illustrator to recolor vector-based pictures.
