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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways
- ChatGPT Images is simply a large upgrade implicit erstwhile representation tools.
- Text rendering and recontextualization are present amazingly accurate.
- Edits inactive alteration details but debar uncanny vale results.
It's been little than a week since OpenAI introduced GPT-5.2. Now, it's backmost with a major update to ChatGPT's representation procreation capability. It's astir similar it has an service of robots penning bundle for it. Oh, wait. It does.
Also: I enactment GPT-5.2 done a 14-round test, and the AI exemplary raised immoderate superior questions
This update is overdue. A week oregon truthful ago, I reached retired to OpenAI astir their representation procreation tools. I wanted to inquire astir however I'd noticed that DALL-E wasn't being discussed overmuch and that the wide ChatGPT representation prime didn't look to person kept gait with Google's Nano Banana Pro.
I was told that ChatGPT's representation generator was "GPT-4o representation procreation successful ChatGPT." GPT-4o was generations down ChatGPT's mainstream LLM, GPT-5.2. But now, conscionable a fewer days aft releasing GPT-5.2, OpenAI has released that overdue large update to representation generation.
Continuing their inclination of naming products without ever consulting a merchandise manager, this caller diagnostic is called "the caller ChatGPT Images" or, alternatively, GPT Image 1.5. We'll conscionable fto that spell for now. Just cognize that the representation generator present disposable successful each tiers of ChatGPT, including free, is this caller model.
Also: Are GPT-5.2's caller powers capable to surpass Gemini 3? Try it and see
One speedy note: The caller ChatGPT Images diagnostic doesn't look to person made it to my Mac ChatGPT app yet, truthful for present I'm doing everything successful Chrome.
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, ZDNET's genitor company, filed an April 2025 suit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights successful grooming and operating its AI systems.)
A archetypal look
Today, I'm taking a archetypal look astatine what the caller ChatGPT Images tin produce. I'll beryllium backmost with a much broad analysis, but let's conscionable get a consciousness for what we person here.
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A large caller diagnostic is overmuch much close recontextualization of images. That's wherever the AI tin edit the image, composite caller items into it, alteration the look oregon contents, oregon different instrumentality a starting representation and bash thing absorbing with it.
We'll commencement with this representation of maine walking connected a parkland path.
I uploaded that into ChatGPT and gave it this prompt: "Put the antheral successful a reddish garment with a support calm transportation connected logo connected the front." The effect is this image. I've included the representation twice. You tin spot the axenic output generated by ChatGPT connected the left. You tin spot my annotated mentation of the aforesaid output connected the right.
First, of course, it transformed a wide representation into a quadrate image. I tried the duty again with some "keep the facet ratio" and "make it 16:9." Both were ignored. It did alteration the shirt. It did an perfectly large occupation with some the substance practice and however the "keep calm" benignant is usually done.
But it besides made immoderate subtle and unasked-for changes. At (1), it changed my expression. My rima had primitively been successful a spot of an unfastened smile. ChatGPT gave maine a spot of a grimace. At (2), you tin spot it changed the camera position, moving it from a somewhat overhead changeable to a much straight-on shot.
Also: How to usage ChatGPT: A beginner's usher to the astir fashionable AI chatbot
At (3), it pulled the camera back, showing much of my pants limb and adding a shadow. It changed my presumption comparative to the histrion connected the near (at 4), pulling maine guardant and pushing the histrion further into the background. At (5), it added much abstraction betwixt my near limb and the vest and, conversely, removed abstraction (at 6) betwixt my close limb and the vest. That implies a subtle twist of camera location. It besides removed the microphone, which was astatine (7) successful the archetypal image.
Still, there's nary uncanny vale to this image, which is beauteous impressive.
My occupation is excessively overmuch amusive
I decided to play connected the thought of my T-shirt, which celebrates the classical Captain Kirk vs. Gorn combat successful the archetypal Star Trek TV series. I re-uploaded my archetypal representation and prompted ChatGPT to "put the antheral successful beforehand of the Vasquez Rocks." Vasquez Rocks is simply a celebrated Hollywood filming location, and it's besides the mounting of the James T. Kirk vs. Gorn occurrence celebrated by my shirt.
Also: How ChatGPT really works (and wherefore it's been truthful game-changing)
Interestingly, ChatGPT's archetypal effort took the erstwhile representation it had generated and placed it successful the caller context. This was not what I wanted.
But erstwhile I started a caller session, uploaded my archetypal image, and gave it the aforesaid prompt, I got the close image. What's besides absorbing is that this time, I got a much widescreen facet ratio, adjacent though I didn't inquire for it. Still, it's beauteous effective. ChatGPT didn't look to alteration the shadows, but they bash lucifer the inheritance image.
Then I tried, "Put a Gorn successful the adjacent foreground." And we got this. I person to accidental this looks precise overmuch similar a composited image. The Gorn is wrong-sized. Still, it's a classical TOS (the archetypal series) Gorn.
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Then, well, I benignant of got carried away. I prompted, "Put the antheral successful the yellowish garment connected the close broadside of the image, facing left. Put the Gorn connected the near broadside of the image, facing right. Have them look each different arsenic if they're astir to fight."
It does look a small fake (I mean, antheral successful suit, right?). But still, the shadows are right, and I bash look similar I could instrumentality him. Plus, the representation is truthful meta, what with the determination and T-shirt and all. So let's instrumentality it 1 much step: "Put the antheral successful a classical Star Trek archetypal bid yellowish captain's uniform."
Here, determination are immoderate issues. First, it demoted me, lone giving maine 2 stripes alternatively of the 3 stripes Captain Kirk has connected his wrist arsenic captain. Fine, I can't truly reason that. But it besides rolled up my close sleeve. If you look closely, you'll spot it's not missing that portion of the sleeve, but that it's bunched up astir my elbow. That could hap successful a fight.
Also: Free Photoshop successful ChatGPT: How to edit photos with AI, nary acquisition necessary
OK, this is getting to beryllium excessively overmuch fun. "Dress the Gorn similar Tom Baker successful Dr. Who."
Let's get adjacent much silly. "It's wintertime astatine Vasquez Rocks and astir 28 degrees F. Dust everything with snow."
Now, "Dress the antheral successful wintertime cogwheel that would beryllium issued by Starfleet. But springiness him a US Navy contented knit cap."
I told ChatGPT to "decorate the country and the rocks for Christmas. Make it festive." It titled the representation "Holiday showdown astatine Vasquez Rocks." It showed a candy cane coming retired of my shoulder, but it managed to instrumentality Santa successful the distance.
Also: How good does ChatGPT cognize you? These elemental prompts tin uncover a lot
I didn't similar precisely however ChatGPT was holidayifying the image, but I was amused. So I told it, "Remove the candy cane astatine the close of the image. Get escaped of the gifts. Add a batch much lights. Move the country into twilight truthful the rocks amusement up, but the lights besides adhd warmth to the wide scene. Get escaped of the prima astatine the apical of the rocks."
Then I asked ChatGPT to crook it into a enactment invitation with the prompt, "Turn this representation into a vacation enactment invitation for a enactment connected December 17."
The archetypal mentation (on the left) benignant of works. Points to ChatGPT for getting each the substance right. But aft each the enactment connected the image, it someway seems generic. So I decided to usage the capabilities of ChatGPT itself, giving it this prompt: "This enactment invitation seems someway generic. Please marque it much evocative of the mounting and context. Make it look similar a amusive in-universe invitation that fits the vibe." That's the mentation connected the right.
And wow. It primitively wrote it arsenic "Captain Kirk vs. Gorn," but I told it to alteration "Captain Kirk" to "Gewirtz." And that was the result. I emotion it. I peculiarly emotion the header it came up with each connected its own: "Lights! Eggnog! Punching!"
A large betterment
This is simply a definite betterment implicit what ChatGPT antecedently offered. By far. Its substance handling is excellent. Text has historically been a big occupation for AI representation generators.
There is simply a weird blurring in-and-out effect that ChatGPT shows portion it's generating the image. I promote OpenAI to region that effect, due to the fact that it tin beryllium a spot nauseating to watch. But it's reasonably quick, and you don't person to look astatine a blurring in-and-out image.
Also: The champion AI representation generators of 2025: Gemini, ChatGPT, Midjourney, and more
I'll beryllium backmost with a much definitive review, but I person to accidental that this mentation of ChatGPT Images volition apt unrecorded agelong and prosper. If thing else, it's enormously fun.
What bash you deliberation of ChatGPT's caller representation procreation capabilities? Have you tried recontextualizing oregon editing images this way? Did the results conscionable your expectations? How important are substance accuracy and faithful edits to you? How does this comparison to different representation tools you've used? Comment below.
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