In a surprising twist, a photographer has defied AI by submitting and winning a photo contest for generative images with an actual photograph he captured. Miles Astray's photograph titled "F L A M I N G O N E" (2022) depicted a lanky pink flamingo with its head tucked into its feathers as it scratched its belly on a white-sand shore. Despite initially securing third place and winning the people's vote, the image was later disqualified from the AI category of the 1839 Awards Color Photography Contest. In a blog post, Astray explained his intention: "I submitted this genuine photograph to the AI category of the 1839 Awards to prove that human-made content remains relevant, and that both Mother Nature and human interpreters can triumph over machines. Creativity and emotion cannot be reduced to mere digits. " This unexpected turn of events echoes a similar situation from the previous year when German photographer Boris Eldagsen won a Sony World Photography award for an AI-generated "photo" created using the DALL-E 2 prompt engineering technique.

Eldagsen, however, declined the award after revealing his use of AI to the jury panel. After receiving the award, Astray disclosed to the jury, comprised of imaging professionals from prominent organizations such as the New York Times, Getty Images, and Phillips, that "F L A M I N G O N E" was an authentic photograph. As a result, the 1839 Awards organization decided to disqualify Astray's entry, a decision that the photographer himself agreed with. Lily Fierman, co-founder, and director of Creative Resource Collective, the company managing the 1839 Awards and other photography contests, expressed appreciation for the message conveyed by Astray's submission. In an email to Hyperallergic, Fierman stated, "We acknowledge the significance of Miles' statement in the AI category, and we agree that it is important, relevant, and timely. " However, Fierman and the team recognized the unfairness to other contestants who adhered to the contest rules, explaining that while they understood the intention behind Astray's entry, they did not want to prevent other artists from having a chance to win in the AI category. Both parties hold no hard feelings, and 1839 Awards has even invited Astray to write about this topic for them. Fierman concluded, stating, "No one believes in the power of photography more than we do. " Reflecting on the experience, Astray shared with Hyperallergic that "F L A M I N G O N E" was the perfect depiction to emphasize his point, as the scene itself was extraordinary yet rooted in a simple, natural occurrence: a flamingo scratching its belly.