Midjourney Prompt Architect
Generate production-quality prompts for AI image generation tools.
Prompt Architecture
Structure (in order)
[Subject] + [Action/Pose] + [Setting/Environment] + [Style] + [Lighting] + [Camera/Composition] + [Color Palette] + [Technical Parameters] + [Negative Prompt]
Component Details
Subject & Action
- Be specific: "a lone astronaut floating" not "a person in space"
- Include age, clothing, expression when relevant
- Use participial phrases for dynamic poses: "reaching toward a glowing orb"
Setting & Environment
- Time of day, weather, season
- Specific location details: "abandoned cathedral with stained glass"
- Atmospheric elements: "mist curling between pillars"
Style
Reference established art movements, artists, or media:
oil painting in the style of J.M.W. TurnerStudio Ghibli animation celmacro photograph, focus stackingBrutalist architecture, concrete, raw texturesukiyo-e woodblock print, Hokusai
Lighting (critical for quality)
golden hour, volumetric light, rim lighting
bioluminescent glow, neon reflections on wet pavement
chiaroscuro, Rembrandt lighting
studio lighting, softbox, three-point setup
harsh midday sun, deep shadows
Camera & Composition
35mm lens, f/1.4, shallow depth of field
drone shot, 200m altitude, bird's eye view
Dutch angle, low angle looking up
wide-angle distortion, fisheye
tilt-shift miniature effect
Color Palette
monochromatic blue, desaturated
complementary orange and teal
muted earth tones, ochre and sage
high contrast, saturated primaries
pastel, soft pinks and lavenders
Midjourney Parameters
--ar 16:9 # aspect ratio
--s 750 # stylize (0-1000)
--c 50 # chaos (0-100)
--q 2 # quality
--v 6.1 # model version
--no text, watermark # negative prompt
--tile # seamless tile
--iw 2.0 # image weight (for image refs)
Workflow
1. Understand the Vision
Ask clarifying questions if the request is vague:
- What mood or emotion?
- Any reference images or artists?
- Realistic, stylized, or abstract?
- Intended use (print, social, web, concept art)?
2. Draft → Refine → Test Cycle
- Write initial prompt from the architecture above
- Evaluate against common failure modes (see below)
- Add Midjourney-specific parameters
- Provide 3-4 variations with different creative directions
- Suggest negative prompts to avoid common artifacts
3. Batch Generation Template
For repeated themes, create a parameterized template:
[SUBJECT] in [STYLE], [SETTING], [LIGHTING], [CAMERA], --ar [RATIO] --s [STYLE_VAL] --v 6.1 --no [NEGATIVES]
Common Failure Modes & Fixes
| Problem |
Fix |
| Text appears in image |
Add --no text, letters, typography, watermark |
| Faces look distorted |
Reduce --s, add detailed face, symmetrical |
| Multiple subjects merge |
Specify two separate figures, clear spacing |
| Too busy/cluttered |
Reduce subject count, add minimalist, clean composition |
| Looks like AI art |
Reference specific artist/medium, avoid AI art, digital illustration |
| Inconsistent style across batch |
Fix seed with --seed [value], keep parameters identical |
| Watermarks |
Add --no watermark, logo, signature |
Prompt Examples
Cinematic Portrait
A weathered fisherman standing on a wooden pier at dawn, face illuminated by warm golden light, salt-crusted beard, holding a hand-woven net, calm sea reflecting orange sky, shot on Hasselblad 500C, 80mm lens, f/2.8, shallow depth of field, Kodak Portra 400 film emulation --ar 4:5 --s 800 --v 6.1
Architectural Concept
Futuristic brutalist library built into a cliffside, cantilevered concrete shelves overflowing with books, floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking a fjord, moss growing between cracks, dappled light filtering through geometric skylights, architectural photography, wide-angle lens, blue hour lighting --ar 21:9 --s 600 --v 6.1 --no people, cars, modern signage
Fantasy Illustration
A tiny fox spirit with iridescent fur sitting on a crescent moon, reading a scroll that unfolds into a river of stars, surrounded by floating lanterns, Japanese ink painting meets Art Nouveau, gold leaf accents on deep indigo background --ar 1:1 --s 900 --c 30 --v 6.1
Style Quick Reference
| Want This |
Use This |
| Photorealistic |
photograph, shot on [camera], [film stock], f/[aperture] |
| Oil painting |
oil painting, impasto technique, visible brushstrokes |
| Watercolor |
watercolor wash, wet-on-wet, soft edges, paper texture |
| 3D render |
3D render, Unreal Engine 5, octane render, ray tracing |
| Pencil sketch |
graphite pencil sketch, cross-hatching, on textured paper |
| Pixel art |
16-bit pixel art, limited color palette, retro game aesthetic |
| Anime |
anime style, cel shading, clean lineart, vibrant colors |
Cross-Tool Compatibility
These prompts work with minor adjustments:
- Stable Diffusion: Remove
-- parameters, add to negative prompt box
- DALL-E 3: Use natural language, drop camera specs
- Flux: Keep descriptive, reduce technical jargon
1---2name: midjourney-prompt-architect3description: Generate detailed, creative, and optimized prompts for Midjourney and other AI image generation tools (Stable Diffusion, DALL-E, Flux). Covers style specification, composition, lighting, camera parameters, and negative prompting. Use when creating image generation prompts, refining visual concepts, or building prompt templates for batch generation.4---56# Midjourney Prompt Architect78Generate production-quality prompts for AI image generation tools.910## Prompt Architecture1112### Structure (in order)13```14[Subject] + [Action/Pose] + [Setting/Environment] + [Style] + [Lighting] + [Camera/Composition] + [Color Palette] + [Technical Parameters] + [Negative Prompt]15```1617### Component Details1819#### Subject & Action20- Be specific: "a lone astronaut floating" not "a person in space"21- Include age, clothing, expression when relevant22- Use participial phrases for dynamic poses: "reaching toward a glowing orb"2324#### Setting & Environment25- Time of day, weather, season26- Specific location details: "abandoned cathedral with stained glass"27- Atmospheric elements: "mist curling between pillars"2829#### Style30Reference established art movements, artists, or media:31- `oil painting in the style of J.M.W. Turner`32- `Studio Ghibli animation cel`33- `macro photograph, focus stacking`34- `Brutalist architecture, concrete, raw textures`35- `ukiyo-e woodblock print, Hokusai`3637#### Lighting (critical for quality)38```39golden hour, volumetric light, rim lighting40bioluminescent glow, neon reflections on wet pavement41chiaroscuro, Rembrandt lighting42studio lighting, softbox, three-point setup43harsh midday sun, deep shadows44```4546#### Camera & Composition47```4835mm lens, f/1.4, shallow depth of field49drone shot, 200m altitude, bird's eye view50Dutch angle, low angle looking up51wide-angle distortion, fisheye52tilt-shift miniature effect53```5455#### Color Palette56```57monochromatic blue, desaturated58complementary orange and teal59muted earth tones, ochre and sage60high contrast, saturated primaries61pastel, soft pinks and lavenders62```6364#### Midjourney Parameters65```66--ar 16:9 # aspect ratio67--s 750 # stylize (0-1000)68--c 50 # chaos (0-100)69--q 2 # quality70--v 6.1 # model version71--no text, watermark # negative prompt72--tile # seamless tile73--iw 2.0 # image weight (for image refs)74```7576## Workflow7778### 1. Understand the Vision79Ask clarifying questions if the request is vague:80- What mood or emotion?81- Any reference images or artists?82- Realistic, stylized, or abstract?83- Intended use (print, social, web, concept art)?8485### 2. Draft → Refine → Test Cycle861. Write initial prompt from the architecture above872. Evaluate against common failure modes (see below)883. Add Midjourney-specific parameters894. Provide 3-4 variations with different creative directions905. Suggest negative prompts to avoid common artifacts9192### 3. Batch Generation Template93For repeated themes, create a parameterized template:94```95[SUBJECT] in [STYLE], [SETTING], [LIGHTING], [CAMERA], --ar [RATIO] --s [STYLE_VAL] --v 6.1 --no [NEGATIVES]96```9798## Common Failure Modes & Fixes99100| Problem | Fix |101|---------|-----|102| Text appears in image | Add `--no text, letters, typography, watermark` |103 Faces look distorted | Reduce `--s`, add `detailed face, symmetrical` |104 Multiple subjects merge | Specify `two separate figures, clear spacing` |105 Too busy/cluttered | Reduce subject count, add `minimalist, clean composition` |106 Looks like AI art | Reference specific artist/medium, avoid `AI art, digital illustration` |107 Inconsistent style across batch | Fix seed with `--seed [value]`, keep parameters identical |108 Watermarks | Add `--no watermark, logo, signature` |109110## Prompt Examples111112### Cinematic Portrait113```114A weathered fisherman standing on a wooden pier at dawn, face illuminated by warm golden light, salt-crusted beard, holding a hand-woven net, calm sea reflecting orange sky, shot on Hasselblad 500C, 80mm lens, f/2.8, shallow depth of field, Kodak Portra 400 film emulation --ar 4:5 --s 800 --v 6.1115```116117### Architectural Concept118```119Futuristic brutalist library built into a cliffside, cantilevered concrete shelves overflowing with books, floor-to-ceiling glass overlooking a fjord, moss growing between cracks, dappled light filtering through geometric skylights, architectural photography, wide-angle lens, blue hour lighting --ar 21:9 --s 600 --v 6.1 --no people, cars, modern signage120```121122### Fantasy Illustration123```124A tiny fox spirit with iridescent fur sitting on a crescent moon, reading a scroll that unfolds into a river of stars, surrounded by floating lanterns, Japanese ink painting meets Art Nouveau, gold leaf accents on deep indigo background --ar 1:1 --s 900 --c 30 --v 6.1125```126127## Style Quick Reference128129| Want This | Use This |130|-----------|----------|131| Photorealistic | `photograph, shot on [camera], [film stock], f/[aperture]` |132| Oil painting | `oil painting, impasto technique, visible brushstrokes` |133| Watercolor | `watercolor wash, wet-on-wet, soft edges, paper texture` |134| 3D render | `3D render, Unreal Engine 5, octane render, ray tracing` |135| Pencil sketch | `graphite pencil sketch, cross-hatching, on textured paper` |136| Pixel art | `16-bit pixel art, limited color palette, retro game aesthetic` |137| Anime | `anime style, cel shading, clean lineart, vibrant colors` |138139## Cross-Tool Compatibility140141These prompts work with minor adjustments:142- **Stable Diffusion**: Remove `--` parameters, add to negative prompt box143- **DALL-E 3**: Use natural language, drop camera specs144- **Flux**: Keep descriptive, reduce technical jargon
Lord1Egypt