Is Digital Taxidermy Really Custom, or Is It Just AI Filters and Templates?

This is the question I hear most often, and it’s completely fair. When people see some of the work out there in the digital taxidermy space, they wonder whether it’s truly hand-made or if it’s just a quick AI prompt with a generic background slapped on. The doubt usually comes from seeing results that feel repetitive or impersonal—same poses, same lighting, same scenes showing up again and again. They want to know: is this real artistry, or is it automated, low-effort, one-click stuff?

The honest answer is that digital taxidermy can be either, depending on who’s doing it. Some providers lean almost entirely on AI generation tools and pre-made templates, which can produce fast results but often lack the personal touch and originality that make a piece feel like it truly belongs to the hunter. At Eden Heirlooms, we take a different path—one that combines AI as a starting point with extensive hand-crafted artwork to create something that is genuinely custom and unique to each client.

Here’s exactly how the process works on my end.

We begin with an AI image generator to create a base layer: a rough background scene and a starting body pose for the animal. That gives us a foundation quickly. But that’s where the AI stops being the driver and becomes only a tool.

From there I move into what I call the artwork lab—my own editing workspace—and the real work begins. I place the animal’s body into the background scene myself. Then I start layering adjustments: fine-tuning the lighting so it matches the mood of the hunt, shifting the atmosphere and weather appearance, adjusting the overall tone to reflect what that day might actually have felt like. Every single detail is blended by hand until nothing looks pasted or artificial.

Next comes the part that makes it theirs. I study the client’s submitted photo carefully and add every defining mark: unique throat patches, battle scars, exact skin or fur color variations, anything that tells the story of their specific animal. I treat it like painting—building up layers until it feels authentic.

Finally, the antlers (or horns, or lack thereof). I take the exact antlers from their photo and apply them manually. I adjust angle, sizing, coloration, shadows, hues, and blending until they sit naturally on the skull cap and look indistinguishable from a real photograph.

Because no two hunts are the same—no two family memories, no two days in the field—every scene I create is completely original. I never reuse a background, never copy a pose from one client to another. The combination of the client’s photo, their brief description or preferences, and my hand-worked adjustments ensures that each piece is one-of-a-kind. It’s not just their antlers at the center; it’s their story.

That’s why the proof stage matters so much. I send a digital preview first, and we revise together until everything—pose, lighting, scars, antlers, scene—feels exactly right. Only when the client approves do we move to final high-resolution output or canvas printing.

So no, it’s not just AI filters or templates. AI helps with the initial sketch, but the final result is built through careful, deliberate, human artistry. The goal is always the same: to make the piece look and feel like a photograph that could only have come from that hunter’s day in the field.

If you’ve ever wondered whether digital taxidermy can truly honor your trophy the way a physical mount does, the answer is yes—when it’s done with this level of care and originality. Your hunt deserves nothing less.