I’m trying to generate some cool images using an AI tool, but I can’t seem to get the prompts right. The results don’t look how I imagined. Can anyone help me with tips or examples for crafting effective AI image prompts? I really want to learn how to do this better.
Oh man, AI image prompts can feel like they require a PhD in mind-reading sometimes. Here’s the deal: clarity is king. If you say “a cat,” you’ll get some weird cat. Try “tabby cat wearing sunglasses on a skateboard, 90s neon colors, photorealistic.” Get super specific: lighting, style (oil painting, cyberpunk, cartoon, etc.), mood, and details. List adjectives. Want a castle at sunset with dragons? “Majestic medieval stone castle, golden hour sunlight, dramatic clouds, fire-breathing dragon in flight, cinematic, high detail, epic fantasy.” If you DON’T want something, put “—no text, no watermark, no people.” And yeah, sometimes you have to try it a couple times—it’s like the AI is stubborn on Tuesdays. Also, using reference artists helps: “in the style of Hayao Miyazaki” or “like a Wes Anderson movie.” Play with those and never trust your first result. AI’s got trust issues.
Yup, @espritlibre pretty much nailed the “be hyper-specific” trick, and honestly, they’re not wrong. But I’ll toss in a different angle: sometimes being TOO specific backfires. I’ve found AI can get weirdly literal or fixated if you hit it with a conveyor belt of descriptors—like, give it one artist reference and it does great, use three and suddenly your “Miyazaki x Tim Burton x Picasso vampire penguin” just looks like a smudged potato with teeth.
Here’s my ‘anti-overkill’ tip: Think in hierarchies. Start BIG—what’s the core subject and mood? Then add one or two distinctive “flavors” (like “surreal cyberpunk” or “vintage sepia”). Don’t try to cram every adjective that surfaces in your brain. Less is honestly more, cause AI’s sprinkles details onto the basics. Also, not everyone wants to try “cinematic, photorealistic” every time. Try “loose watercolor, soft focus, dreamy atmosphere” for something more abstract or subtle—it can surprise you.
Also: Negative prompts! Sometimes they work, sometimes they’re totally ignored. Don’t waste too much stress on “no people, no text, no fire hydrant” unless you really hate hydrants (or text). When the output gets too weird, simplify the prompt and rerun it instead of endlessly adding new limits.
Last thing, honestly? Try weird combos. Like, “ostrich playing chess at 3am in a jazz club, noir lighting.” Sometimes pure randomness gets you closer to “cool” than methodical description. And don’t let failed results get you down—half the fun is in the “wtf did I just make?” moments.
Best advice? Throw out the rulebook, but keep a cheat sheet in your back pocket. While @kakeru swears by being ultra-specific and @espritlibre warns not to overload the AI with descriptors, I’d say experiment with “prompt modularity.” Build prompts like LEGO blocks: start with a clear subject, tack on a style, then add a weird twist or restriction if you have a vibe in mind (e.g., “Victorian astronaut cat — Surrealism, muted colors”). This way, you can remix parts without starting from scratch.
One thing both missed: context matters. AI image tools often interpret time-periods, cultural references, or foreign words in unpredictable ways. Want 80s? Mention “vintage computer graphics” or “Atari palette”—don’t just hope “retro” does the trick. And don’t sleep on aspect ratio hints; “wide landscape” or “vertical portrait” can shift the whole composition.
PROS for this approach ('):
- Modular prompts are easy to tweak
- Combines both specificity and flexibility
- Encourages discovery of unexpected aesthetics
CONS:
- May require several tries for dialing in ideal results
- Sometimes the AI “forgets” earlier parts of your prompt
Compared to the focus of @kakeru on stacking details or @espritlibre’s “less-is-more experimentation,” modular prompting gives you more middle ground—a balanced way to corral AI weirdness without losing creativity.
And don’t forget: sometimes the wild, incomplete prompts reveal the coolest surprises. AI art is about discovering what you didn’t know you wanted.