Photography is absolutely art. Humans put a lot of thought and intent into what and how they photograph and how they process and exhibit the photos.

I'd say that some stuff like JWST images definitely count as art, and some such imagery is far more technical and research focused than purely emotional. Maybe some visually boring but scientifically significant images aren't artistic to laypeople. Nuance here is totally fine.

I vehemently disagree that all machine output is art.