A fill-in-the-blanks template that consistently produces editorial-quality portraits. Covers subject, gear, lighting, and colour grade explicitly so shots stay repeatable.
Tap any [variable] inside the prompt to fill it in.
[SUBJECT], shot on a [CAMERA] with a [LENS] lens at f/[APERTURE], [LIGHTING], [LOCATION], shallow depth of field, [GRADE], editorial photography, shot for [PUBLICATION], no text, no logos, no watermark
--ar 3:4 --style raw --stylize 250
Variable cheat sheet:
- SUBJECT — age, ethnicity, hair, notable features, expression, clothing
- CAMERA — body model (e.g. Hasselblad X2D, Canon EOS R5, Leica M11)
- LENS — focal length (e.g. 85mm, 50mm, 35mm)
- APERTURE — number (e.g. 1.4, 2.0)
- LIGHTING — descriptor (e.g. golden-hour side-light, overcast soft-box, hard rim back-light)
- LOCATION — concrete place and time of day
- GRADE — colour grade (e.g. warm amber, cool cinematic, high-contrast monochrome)
- PUBLICATION — magazine to mimic (e.g. Vogue, The New Yorker, National Geographic)
Example, filled in:
A 32-year-old Kenyan woman, cropped coily hair, soft smile, tailored navy linen shirt, shot on a Hasselblad X2D with an 85mm lens at f/1.8, overcast soft-box key light with a warm rim, rooftop in Lagos just after sunset, shallow depth of field, warm amber grade, editorial photography, shot for The New Yorker, no text, no logos, no watermark
--ar 3:4 --style raw --stylize 250
Explicitly naming the publication (Vogue / The New Yorker / Nat Geo) is what made this click for me. The style transfer is way cleaner than 'editorial lighting'.
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thalia_writes1d ago
+1. I also name the photographer for moodier shots ('shot by Gregory Crewdson style'). Midjourney v7 handles it surprisingly well.
3
aqua_dev1d ago
--stylize 250 is my default now. Anything over 400 starts bending faces; anything under 150 looks like a Canon ad.
Explicitly naming the publication (Vogue / The New Yorker / Nat Geo) is what made this click for me. The style transfer is way cleaner than 'editorial lighting'.
+1. I also name the photographer for moodier shots ('shot by Gregory Crewdson style'). Midjourney v7 handles it surprisingly well.