Mastering Image Prompts

Style, composition, lighting, and advanced techniques for DALL·E, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion.

Strong image prompts combine subject, style, composition, and lighting. Here’s a simple framework.

Subject + style

Start with what you want (subject) and how it should look (style). Example: “A vintage coffee shop interior, watercolor style, soft edges.”

Add framing and perspective: “wide shot,” “close-up on the cup,” “from above,” “symmetrical,” “rule of thirds.”

Specify light: “golden hour,” “studio lighting,” “dramatic shadows,” “soft diffused light,” “neon at night.”

Terms like “highly detailed,” “photorealistic,” “cinematic,” “minimalist,” or “dreamy” help steer the result.

Midjourney: Use parameters like --ar 16:9, --v 6. Style names (e.g. “in the style of Studio Ghibli”) work well.
DALL·E 3: Natural language is enough; mention style and composition clearly.
Stable Diffusion: Positive/negative prompts; use quality tags (e.g. “masterpiece, best quality”) and avoid unwanted terms in the negative prompt.