The six parts of an image prompt
- Subject. What is in the picture, specifically. "An orange tabby cat", not "a cat".
- Setting. Where and when. "On a rainy Tokyo street at night."
- Style. Photo, watercolor, 3D render, flat illustration, pencil sketch.
- Lighting. Golden hour, neon, soft studio light, overcast.
- Camera. Close-up, wide shot, low angle, shallow depth of field.
- Negative prompt. What to leave out: text, watermark, blur, extra fingers.
1. A pet photo
Before: A cat in a city.
After: An orange tabby cat sitting on a rainy Tokyo street at night, neon signs reflected in puddles, realistic photo, low angle, shallow depth of field, cinematic lighting. Negative prompt: blurry, extra limbs, text, watermark.
2. A product shot
Before: My coffee mug for an ad.
After: A matte white ceramic coffee mug with steam rising, on a light oak table beside an open notebook, soft morning window light from the left, clean product photo, 45-degree angle, plenty of empty space on the right for text. Negative prompt: logos, clutter, harsh shadows.
3. A book or blog illustration
Before: Picture for my blog about saving money.
After: A flat vector illustration of a young woman dropping coins into a glass jar labeled "Trip", warm pastel colors, simple shapes, plain light background, wide 16:9 format. Negative prompt: realistic photo, text other than the label, dark colors.
4. A portrait
Before: A wizard.
After: Portrait of an elderly wizard with a long silver beard and a deep blue hooded robe, holding a glowing crystal, digital painting in a classic fantasy style, warm candlelight from below, close-up from the chest up, dark stone background. Negative prompt: modern clothing, text, extra hands.
5. A logo idea
Before: Logo for my bakery.
After: A simple flat logo icon for a small bakery called [name]: a rolling pin crossed with a wheat stalk inside a circle, two colors (warm brown and cream), clean lines, centered on a white background, no gradients. Negative prompt: photo realism, extra text, busy details.
Let Quill write it
In PromptMaster, tap the Image chip or paste a rough image prompt. The grade shows what is missing, and with Pro the rewrite adds the visual details and a negative prompt for you. The same checks that make a good text prompt apply: say what you want, who it is for, and the shape of the result.
Questions
What is a negative prompt?
A list of things you do not want, such as text, watermarks, or distorted hands. Some image tools have a separate field for it.
Do these work in ChatGPT and Gemini?
Yes. The structure works in chat models that make images and in dedicated image tools.
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