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Introduction

Prompting Guide

Prompting Guide

How to Write Better Prompts with Posternity

Posternity uses plain, natural language to understand your visual requests. There are no hidden codes, weights, or advanced flags to tweak — just describe the image as you would to another person.

🧠 Key Principles

  • No weighted prompts — You can't assign importance using things like ::1 or parentheses — simply describe what matters most first in your sentence.
  • No technical flags or codes — Posternity doesn't use parameters like --ar, --v, or --style. Just write naturally.
  • No hex codes or RGB values — Instead of #E4BC73, say "golden yellow", "soft peach", or "warm beige". Descriptive color language works best.
  • Order matters — The earlier a subject appears in your prompt, the more weight it's likely to carry. Put your most important subjects and ideas up front.

🌍 Multilingual Support

You can write prompts in many languages, but English yields the most consistent results — especially when your image includes text. Non-Latin scripts (like Arabic, Chinese, Cyrillic) may not render accurately.

Using Posternity's Magic Prompt will automatically translate and enhance your prompt in English.

✨ Style Tips

While short, tag-like prompts (e.g., "old photo, winter, snow, cabin") may work, Posternity's AI performs better with full sentences or structured phrases. Think about how you'd describe the image to a friend:

✅ "A vintage photograph of a snowy mountain cabin at sunset, soft film grain, warm golden tones."

Well-structured language helps the model understand context, composition, and relationships in your image.

📝 Writing Effective Prompts

Structure Your Prompts

Good prompts follow a logical structure:

  1. Main Subject — What is the primary focus?
  2. Setting/Environment — Where does it take place?
  3. Style/Artistic Direction — How should it look?
  4. Technical Details — Lighting, composition, quality

Use Descriptive Language

  • Be specific — "Golden retriever" instead of "dog"
  • Include emotions — "Joyful expression" or "melancholic mood"
  • Describe lighting — "Soft morning light" or "dramatic shadows"
  • Mention composition — "Close-up portrait" or "wide landscape view"

🎨 Style and Artistic Direction

Artistic Styles

  • Photography — "Professional headshot", "street photography", "macro photography"
  • Digital Art — "Digital painting", "3D render", "vector illustration"
  • Traditional Art — "Watercolor painting", "oil painting", "pencil sketch"
  • Vintage Styles — "1950s advertisement", "Victorian era", "Art Deco"

Quality and Resolution

  • Image Quality — "High resolution", "4K", "professional quality"
  • Camera Effects — "Bokeh background", "shallow depth of field", "film grain"
  • Post-Processing — "Color graded", "HDR", "vintage filter"

✅ Prompt Examples

Portrait Photography

  • "Professional headshot of a confident businesswoman in a modern office, soft natural lighting, shallow depth of field, high resolution"
  • "Vintage portrait of an elderly man with a weathered face, black and white photography, dramatic lighting, film grain texture"

Landscape and Nature

  • "Serene mountain landscape at golden hour, misty valleys, pine forests, warm color palette, cinematic composition"
  • "Macro photography of a dewdrop on a flower petal, shallow depth of field, natural lighting, high detail"

Creative and Artistic

  • "Surreal digital art of a floating city in the clouds, steampunk architecture, warm sunset lighting, highly detailed"
  • "Watercolor illustration of a cozy coffee shop, soft pastel colors, hand-painted style, warm and inviting atmosphere"

🚫 Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Too vague — "Beautiful sunset" → "Dramatic sunset over ocean with orange and pink clouds"
  • Conflicting styles — "Realistic cartoon" → Choose one style and be consistent
  • Over-complicating — Keep prompts focused and clear
  • Ignoring composition — Mention framing, angle, and perspective

💡 Advanced Tips

Using References

You can reference artistic styles, photographers, or specific techniques:

  • "In the style of Ansel Adams landscape photography"
  • "Art Deco poster design with geometric patterns"
  • "Studio lighting like Richard Avedon portraits"

Iterative Refinement

Start with a basic prompt and refine it:

  1. Basic: "Dog in park"
  2. Better: "Golden retriever playing in autumn park"
  3. Best: "Happy golden retriever running through fallen leaves in autumn park, golden hour lighting, shallow depth of field, professional photography"

🔧 Using Magic Prompt

Posternity's Magic Prompt feature automatically enhances your prompts by:

  • Adding technical details for better results
  • Improving grammar and structure
  • Adding artistic and technical specifications
  • Optimizing for the selected AI model

Simply enable Magic Prompt and let our AI improve your prompt automatically!