Some people want truth, some just want entertainment: Steve McCurry on photography in the age of AI

Steve McCurry has spent decades finding the extraordinary within the everyday. From women in red saris caught in a Rajasthan dust storm to faces framed by the windows of Indian trains, steam engines disappearing into the mist at Darjeeling, and, most famously, the unflinching gaze of the ‘Afghan Girl’. On the sidelines of an intimate Leica India session at Museo Camera in Gurugram, the legendary photographer and Leica global brand ambassador spoke to Business Today on the India he has watched change, the instincts that continue to guide his eye, photography in the age of AI, and why the pleasure of the work still lies simply in going out and taking photos. Edited excerpts from the interview:-

Q: Having travelled through India over several decades, do you feel the country itself has changed more, or has the way you look at it changed more?

SM: Well, I’m not sure if the way I look at it has changed, but India has changed dramatically, as has the world. The whole world has changed, so it is just inevitable. 

As a photographer, I try to look at what is unique about India. What is special? What is the Indianness of it?

If you go to the Delhi airport, I don’t think anybody is particularly fascinated by it as a subject. It is a great airport. It is functional and beautiful, and I was just there a few hours ago. But it looks like every other airport in the world, and as a subject, I’m not really drawn to that.

I’m drawn to things that are more cultural—things that have been around.

Q: When you look at a scene, what still catches your eye after all this time? What are the first things you look for?

SM: It is several things simultaneously. You are looking at the light and the composition. You are looking for a moment and some interaction or human element.

It could be a dog or a cat, but there is some sort of interaction going on. There are a lot of things that you are looking at simultaneously.

Q: Is there a country or region that you would like to revisit or explore further?

SM: Iran. But it’s not possible unfortunately due to the current (war) situation. I think that the Northeast part of India would be a place to explore further. Although I have been to several areas there, I would like to explore it further. I visited Darjeeling several times and captured the steam engines at the Ghum railway station.  

I would also like to go back to Tibet and continue working there.

Q: Is there a photograph you would like to revisit or approach from another perspective?

SM: I think you can always do better and photograph things in different ways.

Often, you look at your work and think, “I wish I had done this. I wish I had done that. I wish I hadn’t photographed it so tightly.”
But you can’t second-guess yourself too much. You can regret not doing this or not doing that, but I think you just have to move forward and not think about it too deeply.

Q: The photograph commonly known as the “Afghan Girl” has become one of the most iconic images in the history of photography. At the time, did you anticipate the legacy it would have or how it might shape the way people looked at refugees?

SM: No. At that moment, there was no thought about that. I knew it was a powerful picture but there was no way to anticipate the impact it would end up having.

Q: How do you feel about it now?

SM: It is a powerful picture, one that is appreciated greatly and draws responses from people.

Q: Do you relate most strongly to the photographs that became iconic, or are there other pictures that you feel better represent your photography?

SM: I think you go out and do your work, and then you let the chips fall where they may.

Sometimes people like the pictures, and sometimes they get published. It is unpredictable what works, what doesn’t work and what people respond to.

Most of the fun and most of the joy are in going out and making the pictures. Hopefully, people will connect with the picture and the spirit of it.

Q: Photography was once a profession shaped by magazines, agencies and commissioned assignments, which could require photographers to travel for months at a time. What is the new face of photography, and how should young photographers navigate it?

SM: Photography for your own pleasure is one thing, and photography as a profession is something else.

My recommendation is to practise photography as a creative outlet and not necessarily try to pursue it professionally—unless you feel that you absolutely have to do it—because it is difficult.

Q: Photography has already been transformed by digital and editing tools, and we are now in the age of artificial intelligence. What is your view of AI, and how do you think it will affect photography?

SM: If you are working in advertising, fashion, food, cars or illustration, AI can be effective. But this is not true of documentary photography or photojournalism, which requires truthful representation.

Q: Does it concern you that AI-generated images can appear so lifelike that it is becoming difficult to determine whether they are real?

SM: I think it comes down to authorship and authenticity. If people know the author of a piece, that can help establish its authenticity. 

But with Instagram, the internet and everything else, there is no way to be completely sure. If somebody is interested in reality and the truth, that is a different matter. 

Some people want truth, and some people just want entertainment. If you’re in bed scrolling and want to know about something authentic in the world, you will go to a reliable news source. It depends on what you want.



Q: How should someone find inspiration every day? 

SM: Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working (quoting famed artist Pablo Picasso).

But that does not mean everybody has to be a professional photographer. If you want to take photographs for your own pleasure and you are an accountant, a doctor or whatever, it doesn’t matter. You can go out whenever you want—on a Saturday night or when you are on a vacation.

Being an artist or a professional is a different story. I don’t want to give the impression that everybody has to do photography as a profession, because that is not realistic.

Unfortunately, one of the sad things about life is that you have to actually work. You have to get out of bed in the morning, and you have bills to pay. Even at my age, I still have to earn a living.

Photography can be like enjoying playing the piano or playing tennis. You don’t have to be a professional photographer. Do it because you love photography.