Whilegenerative AI has produced some laughable results, artificial intelligence has reached the point where it can manage annoying repetitive tasks in a short amount of time. For photographers and other visual artists, one of those irksome repetitive tasks that software could take over is the process of removing objects and replacing them with something else. Such an AI-based tool is already inside a program many photographers know:Photoshop. The new Photoshop generative filluses AI to fill a gap in a photograph.
While Photoshop’s generative fill can be used to also remove objects, Adobe has since launched an AI-powered remove tool. That’s the better option for removing something from a photo, where generative fill is the best choice for creating something entirely new in an image. However, the more I’ve experimented with Photoshop generative fill, the more I’ve realized there’s a trick to getting the best results from the generative AI. If you are ready to save hours of editing, here’s how.
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How to use Photoshop Generative Fill
Generative Fill starts with making a selection in Photoshop
Originally available only as part of the Photoshop beta, generative fill has since launched to the latest editions of Photoshop. To use the tool, you’ll need a subscription that includes Photoshop, like one of Adobe’s photography plans. The AI is also too data-heavy to run on the device, so you’ll also need an internet connection.
Once you have the latest version of Adobe Photoshop and Wi-Fi, you’re ready to use generative fill.
If you want to remove something from the image and match the empty spot to the background of the image, try using the AI-based Remove Tool instead of Generative Fill. It’s faster and tends to be more accurate.
Adobe Photoshop generative fill tips and tricks
These generative fill prompt tips will increase the odds of getting a better result
While the steps to using Photoshop generative fill are straightforward, what you type into the prompt box isn’t as simple. Using the wrong terms or phrases can result in garbled or undesired results.Adobe listsa few different tips to help users write the most effective prompts, including:
How does Photoshop generative fill work?
The tool uses Adobe Firefly
If you’re wondering how Adobe added a tool that looks a little bit like magic to its app, the secret is something called Adobe Firefly, which is basically the AI model that powers generative fill and other AI-based tools. Adobe’s been working on Firefly for ages, in the same way that Google’s been tinkering on Gemini, and while it’s a hugely complicated model, it works a little like those text-generation models, except for imagery.
A key feature for creatives is that Adobe says the Firefly database is made up of licensed images. Unlike other programs that siphon images from the web, the images used to train Photoshop generative fill were licensed.
Why is Photoshop generative fill not showing up or grayed out?
Generative fIll needs an internet connection
The Photoshop Contextual Task Bar that’s used to carry out generative fill is essential to using the tool. If Photoshop generative fill isn’t showing up or grayed out, there could be a number of ways to troubleshoot, depending on the reason the box isn’t appearing in the app:
Can you get Photoshop Generative AI for free?
Not exactly, but you can try out Adobe Firefly for free
Adobe Photoshop is not free software, so outside of the free 7-day trial, you can’t access the generative fill tool for free. However, Adobe Firefly has a web-based version that is free to try out. Using Adobe Firefly on the web doesn’t have the same capabilities as Photoshop, but it can give potential new users an introduction to Adobe’s generative AI. Adobe Firefly’s online tool also serves as a preview of beta features that could be coming to future versions of Photoshop.
