Why you need this
AI image generation tools like Midjourney, DALL-E, and Stable Diffusion can create stunning visuals in seconds—but only if you know how to prompt them effectively. Most users get mediocre results because they don't understand how these tools interpret language, leading to frustration and wasted credits.
The problem: Generic prompts produce generic images. Writing "a cat" gives you a cat, but not the cat you envisioned. You need to specify style, lighting, composition, mood, camera angle, and dozens of other parameters—but figuring out the right vocabulary and syntax takes trial and error across hundreds of attempts.
This guide solves that. It provides structured prompt frameworks, tested techniques, and a visual vocabulary that helps you communicate your creative vision clearly to AI, getting dramatically better results from your first attempt.
Perfect for:
- Designers creating concept art, mockups, and visual explorations
- Marketers generating social media graphics, ads, and brand visuals
- Content creators needing custom images for blogs, videos, and presentations
- Creative professionals experimenting with AI art tools
What's inside
Prompt Anatomy Framework
The Core Structure:
- Subject: What's in the image (person, object, scene)
- Action/State: What's happening (running, sitting, exploding)
- Setting/Environment: Where it's taking place (forest, studio, cityscape)
- Style: Artistic approach (photorealistic, watercolor, 3D render, anime)
- Lighting: How it's lit (golden hour, dramatic shadows, studio lighting)
- Composition: How it's framed (close-up, wide angle, rule of thirds)
- Technical parameters: Camera, quality modifiers, aspect ratio
Example progression:
- Basic: "a mountain"
- Better: "a snow-capped mountain at sunrise"
- Excellent: "a dramatic snow-capped mountain peak at sunrise, golden hour lighting, wide angle landscape photography, vibrant colors, 8k resolution, professional landscape photography style"
Style Guides & Visual Vocabulary
Artistic Styles:
- Photography: Portrait, landscape, macro, street photography, editorial, product photography
- Digital art: 3D render, vector illustration, low poly, isometric, concept art
- Traditional art: Oil painting, watercolor, pencil sketch, charcoal, ink drawing
- Contemporary: Cyberpunk, synthwave, vaporwave, brutalism, minimalist
- Historical: Art nouveau, impressionist, baroque, renaissance, art deco
Lighting Techniques:
- Golden hour, blue hour, harsh midday sun
- Dramatic rim lighting, soft diffused light
- Cinematic lighting, studio lighting, natural window light
- Volumetric lighting (god rays), neon glow
- High contrast shadows, low-key lighting, high-key lighting
Composition & Camera:
- Close-up, medium shot, wide shot, extreme close-up
- Low angle (looking up), high angle (looking down), eye level
- Rule of thirds, centered composition, symmetrical
- Bokeh (blurred background), shallow depth of field
- 35mm, 50mm, 85mm, wide-angle lens
Prompt Templates by Use Case
Product Photography:
[product] on [background], professional product photography, studio lighting, clean composition, commercial advertising style, high resolution, --ar 1:1
Character/Portrait:
[character description], [pose/expression], [setting], [artistic style], [lighting], detailed face, high quality, professional portrait photography
Landscape/Environment:
[landscape type], [time of day], [weather/atmosphere], [artistic style], cinematic composition, vibrant colors, ultra detailed, professional landscape photography
Logo/Icon:
simple [subject] logo, minimalist design, [color scheme], flat design, vector art, clean lines, white background, professional brand identity
Abstract/Conceptual:
abstract representation of [concept], [mood], [color palette], [style influence], creative composition, artistic interpretation
Quality & Control Modifiers
Quality Enhancers:
- "8k resolution", "highly detailed", "ultra sharp", "professional quality"
- "masterpiece", "award winning", "trending on artstation"
- "photorealistic", "hyperrealistic" (for realistic images)
- "intricate details", "fine textures"
Negative Prompts (what to avoid):
- Common issues: "blurry, low quality, distorted, ugly, amateur"
- Anatomy issues: "extra fingers, malformed hands, bad proportions"
- Style issues: "oversaturated, underexposed, noisy, grainy"
Aspect Ratios & Sizing:
- Square (1:1) — Social media posts, profile pictures
- Portrait (2:3, 9:16) — Stories, phone wallpapers, Pinterest
- Landscape (16:9, 3:2) — Desktop wallpapers, YouTube thumbnails, presentations
- Wide (21:9) — Cinematic scenes, banners
Advanced Techniques
Combining Artists/Styles:
- "in the style of [artist name]" — Emulates specific artistic styles
- "inspired by [art movement]" — Broader aesthetic references
- Mixing styles: "photography meets watercolor", "3D render with impressionist influence"
Weighting & Emphasis:
- Use parentheses for emphasis: "(dramatic lighting)" increases importance
- Use brackets to reduce: "[background]" decreases prominence
- Numerical weights (syntax varies by tool): "cat:1.5 dog:0.8"
Iteration Strategies:
- Start broad, refine gradually
- Generate variations, pick best, describe what made it work
- Keep prompt journal of successful formulas
- Test one variable at a time to understand its effect
How to use it
- Social media graphics — Use product photography and portrait templates for professional-looking brand visuals
- Content illustration — Generate custom blog header images and article illustrations that match your brand style
- Concept exploration — Rapidly prototype design ideas and visualize concepts before investing in custom design
- Marketing assets — Create ad variations, thumbnail options, and visual content at scale
Example: Before & after
Before (generic prompt):
"A coffee shop"
Result: Generic, uninspiring storefront image with unclear focus
After (structured prompt):
"Cozy independent coffee shop interior, warm ambient lighting, customers working on laptops, plants hanging from ceiling, rustic wooden furniture, large windows with soft natural light, shallow depth of field, 50mm lens, professional interior photography, inviting atmosphere, earth tone color palette, golden hour light streaming through windows"
Result: Specific, atmospheric image that conveys the exact mood and setting you envisioned, usable in marketing materials immediately
Want to go deeper?
This guide covers image prompting fundamentals. For comprehensive guidance on AI creative tools:
- Guide: AI at Work Basics — Best practices for AI tools in professional settings
- Guide: Prompting 101 — Core prompting principles that apply across all AI tools
- Glossary: Prompt — Understanding how to communicate with AI effectively
- Glossary: AI — Understanding AI capabilities and limitations
License & Attribution
This resource is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY). You're free to:
- Share with your creative team or design community
- Customize for your specific AI image generation tools
- Integrate into design workflows and training materials
Just include this attribution:
"AI Image Prompting Guide" by Field Guide to AI (fieldguidetoai.com) is licensed under CC BY 4.0
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