In everyday life, you've probably asked yourself: "Is this still real photography?" I understand that thought. I've had it myself.

When I work on a shoot, I pour my whole heart into it — my feel for the moment, the light, the mood, the person in front of me. And that feeling is exactly what I want to see in the final image. Sometimes the camera alone isn't enough for that. A cloud passing at the wrong moment. A shadow that distracts. A detail that pulls the eye away from what matters.

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Photography has always been more than simply pressing the shutter. From the darkroom to Photoshop to today, post-processing has continuously evolved — and has become an integral part of the creative process.

This is where AI comes in — and I'm open about it, because I consider it a matter of course. My images are refined using AI-powered tools. That doesn't mean the magic of the moment is lost — quite the opposite. AI helps me make visible what I already felt when I pressed the shutter: the mood, the light, the emotion.

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What AI does in my work:

AI tools support me with precise retouching, optimizing light and color, and removing distracting elements — tasks that once required hours of manual work. In my view, never to distort reality, but to reveal the best of it. Just as the darkroom once did, just as Photoshop did after that — every generation of photographers has had its tools. The result: more time for what truly matters, for the person in front of my camera.

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What AI will never replace:

AI can imitate styles — but never my artistic signature or my vision. Nor the instinct for the right moment. The way I see people. My feel for light. The connection between me and my clients. The story behind every image.

No AI can create that — I captured it.

That's me, Sara Bubna.

AI is a tool for me, like a brush for a painter. It shapes the image — but the soul behind it comes from me.