Prompt Writing Strategies for Photorealistic AI Imagery
One of the design parameters of eliciting visual outputs from generative AI systems has to do with how the image reads in terms of previously established digital media formats, such as photography and illustration. The images and prompts below are from my university course Digital, Virtual and AI Photography (I also have a free Udemy version of the course) in which I have selected examples from the student project work that show various prompt writing techniques for obtaining compelling photorealistic content. I also note the AI platform used, in between the prompt and the resultant image.
See Also:
Understanding the Domain of AI Synthography
A List of Generative AI Platforms for 2D Digital Art
Prompt Examples
Generate a black and white, portrait style photograph of a bull moose in a field, in winter. Place the subject in the foreground and capture the bull’s face looking directly towards the camera. Use an aperture f stop 1:4 and a shutter speed of 1/1000 to capture the subject’s eyes in sharp focus. Include a forest in the distant background.
- Platform: Writesonic > Photosonic
a photo of an asian elementary student standing against a window in a school corridor looking outside of a window on a cloudy day, photo, realistic, simple, minimalism, wide angle shot, gloomy atmosphere, rule of thirds composition — ar 3:2
Note that this image matching the rule of the thirds principle is very occasional, in fact 3 of 4 results that Midjourney gave me still placed the student at the centre
- Platform: Midjourney
a black and white photo of a person under an arched brick doorway, face hidden by dark, low exposure, centered
- Platform: Perchance
Create a photograph of an orchid as the center of focus amidst a vibrant and diverse bed of flowers. The orchid should stand out with its intricate details, unique shape, and vivid colours. The photograph should be shot on a lensbaby lens to create a ganzfeld effect. This technique should create a sense of depth and isolation, making the orchid appear as if it’s floating in a sea of colour.
- Platform: DALL E
photorealistic image of a Monobloc chair submerged at the bottom of the ocean. The chair is position off center. the lighting is grim.
- Platform: pixlr
Vintage black and white photograph of a central meeting place at the bottom of a staircase with atmospheric lighting and a diverse group of people from different social classes, reminiscent of Ho Fan’s style, high contrast, candid moments, gritty texture, urban setting, shot with a 50mm lens and f/16 aperture.
- Platform: openart.ai
High quality photograph of sliced fruit dropping into a bowl in analogous colors. water droplets taken with a very fast shutter speed. pink and orange hues. dramatic lighting.
- Platform: Hotpot.ai
Close up photograph of a pristine (Dark Green Metallic Paint) 1989 Porsche 911 Turbo (no front license plate) parked in a dense forest, sharp focus, old winding road, no shoulder, ravine, Appalachia, autumn, (autumn colours), vivid, ((falling leaves)), film, f2, 50mm, full frame sensor, bokeh, professional, sunset, cinematic lighting, warm lightning, (lens flare), analog photo, raw, ((vignette)), polaroid, polished, beautiful, shiny, gorgeous, epic, stunning, highly detailed, intricate detail, enhanced, symmetry, great composition, perfect lighting, elegant, best, ambient, sleek, smart, color, rich deep
- Platform: Fooocus running Stable Diffusion XL
A bookstore window on a rainy day. Focus on the raindrops on the glass to create a blurred effect, using warm tones to signify warmth and comfort in the bookstore.
- Platform: DALL-E
Detailed photograph taken with fish-eye lens of the Monaco Formula 1 circuit during sunset. Fish-eye lens effect should exaggerate the curvature of the track and the surrounding landscape, creating a spherical distortion that makes the viewer feel immersed in the scene.
- Platform: Dall-E
A house in a clearing. The surrounding is full of heavy mist and the sky is a gloomy blue. The house is shades of blue. Highly detailed and high contrast with little exposure to make the scene look lonely and receding.
- Platform: Dream Studio
black and white photo of three male wearing hanfu and doing target shooting in a range, with light from the side and shallow focus, photo, realistic, historical, warm tone, monochrome, warm colour temperature — ar 4:3
- Platform: Midjourney
Detailed film photograph shot with wide-angle lens of a street photography style portrait of cat wearing sombrero dancing in a parade.
- Platform: Bing Copilot Designer
grey scale image, looking on a busy street like time square, one woman is still, looking back at camera while everything move around her. everyone at same scale, street photography, photo, hyperrealistic, backlighting, toned image, landscape photography, 50mm lens, 1/2 shutter speed
- Platform: Adobe Firefly
A macro photograph of a stunning Blue Morpho butterfly perched delicately on top of a single bright pink Dahlia flower. Iridescent blue wings display intricate patterns and shimmering colours that change with the angle of light. Sharp focus on the butterfly showing the fine details of its wings and subtle textures of its body. Layered petals on the flower complement the butterfly providing vivid contrast in color and texture. Soft and natural lighting highlighting the iridescent quality of the butterfly and velvety texture of the flower, background is a dreamy blur of greens and pinks, shallow depth of field, DSLR, 4k, High quality, HD, Fujifilm XT-4, ((film grain)), excellent composition, cinematic atmosphere, dynamic
- Platform: Fooocus v2.2.0 running Stable Diffusion XL Checkpoint JuggernautXL_v9Rundiffusionphoto2
(A Corgi merged into a fresh loaf of bread), (bread:1.5), expressive soulful eyes, a warm golden-brown coat, a crusty bread texture. The kitchen setting is imbued with a soft, natural glow. It rests on soft white linen. Shallow depth of field, stunning detail, cute, creative, professional photograph, surreal, perfect, coherent, sharp, best quality, Fujifilm X-T1, DSLR, HD, 8K
- Platform: Fooocus v2.2.1 running juggernautXL_v9Rdphoto2Lightning
A minimalist and staged photo of a Chinese dragon dancer underwater and in the middle of the sea, wearing traditional regalia of the Chinese culture. Lunar New Years decoration is also submerged underwater and surrounds him. It should be a professional photograph that is gives off a sense of intensity.
- Platform: Dreamstudio
