Writing Image Prompts

Anatomy of a strong prompt

[Subject] + [setting] + [style/medium] + [composition] + [lighting] + [colour/mood] + [details]

Example:

A minimalist ceramic coffee mug with a small panda logo on a light oak desk,
morning sunlight from a window on the left, soft shadows, shallow depth of field,
product photography, 50mm lens, neutral beige and white palette, clean background

Vocabulary that helps

Negative prompts and exclusions

Tools that support them let you list what to avoid: blurry, extra fingers, watermark, text, distorted logo. Others accept "without text" style instructions in the main prompt.

Aspect ratios

Choose the shape for the destination: 1:1 for social posts, 16:9 for website heroes and thumbnails, 9:16 for stories and short videos, 4:5 for portrait social posts.

Iterate deliberately

1. Generate several variations from one prompt.
2. Pick the best, then change one element at a time (lighting, angle, palette).
3. Use the tool's variation, remix or seed features to stay close to a good result.
4. Keep a log of prompts and settings that worked.

Reference images

Most tools accept reference images for style or composition. Use your own photos or properly licensed material; uploading someone else's copyrighted work to copy it is not acceptable.

Exercise

Write prompts for three uses of the same product (a website hero 16:9, a social post 1:1, a story 9:16). Generate four variations of each, iterate once per image changing a single element, and keep a prompt log.

Check yourself

• What seven parts make up a strong image prompt?
• Why change one element at a time?
• Which aspect ratio suits a website hero?