# Complete prompting guide

A clear structure for writing prompts that give you the image you have in mind.

A prompt is a description of the picture you want. The clearer it is, the less the model has to guess. This guide gives you a simple structure that works with every model in the [studio](/studio).

## The six parts of a prompt

| Part | Question | Examples |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Subject | Who or what? | an old fisherman, a glass sneaker, a fox astronaut |
| Setting | Where? | a misty harbor, a marble counter, the surface of the moon |
| Light | What light? | golden hour, neon signs, soft window light, Rembrandt lighting |
| Camera / lens | How is it shot? | close-up, wide angle, 85mm portrait, macro, top-down |
| Style | What kind of image? | photo, watercolor, 3D render, anime, oil painting |
| Mood | What feeling? | calm, dramatic, playful, mysterious |

You don't need all six every time. Subject plus two or three others is usually enough.

## Examples

```prompt
Close-up portrait of an old fisherman with a grey beard, dark background, Rembrandt lighting, 85mm photo, calm and thoughtful mood
```

![Old fisherman portrait](/showcase/g15.webp)

```prompt
Macro photo of a hummingbird drinking from a pink flower, frozen wings, soft green background, morning light, vivid colors
```

```prompt
Watercolor illustration of an old town square with a yellow tram, cobblestones, pastel buildings, light rain, cozy mood
```

## Do

- **Lead with the subject.** Put the most important thing first.
- **Be specific.** "Red velvet armchair" beats "nice chair".
- **Name the light.** It changes the whole picture.
- **Use a style word.** Photo, illustration and 3D render give very different results.
- **Describe what you want,** not what you don't want.

## Don't

- Don't stack many unrelated ideas in one image.
- Don't write "no people" or "without text". Models often add the thing you mention. Describe an empty scene instead.
- Don't expect exact counts of many small objects.

## Text in images

1. Pick a model that handles text well: **Nano Banana Pro**, **GPT Image 2** or **Ideogram**.
2. Put the exact words in quotes.
3. Say where the text goes and how it looks.
4. Keep it short: a headline, not a paragraph.

```prompt
Minimal coffee shop poster, a latte cup on a teal background, the headline "AUTUMN SALE -30%" in bold white letters at the top
```

> [!TIP]
> Stuck? Ask the [AI chat](/chat) to expand a short idea into a full prompt using the six parts above.

## Related

- [Editing prompts and mixing styles](/guide/prompt-editing)
- [Prompt templates](/guide/prompt-templates)
- [Useful prompts](/guide/useful-prompts)