Cheatsheet

Image Generation

Quick reference guide for crafting effective image generation prompts.

Tip

For comprehensive guidance with detailed examples and explanations, see the Image Generation guide.

Prompt formula

[Subject] [Behavior] [Style] [Environment]

A purple prune character, reading a book, animation style, in a living room

[Subject] [Behavior] [Style] [Environment]

low angle shot of a happy knitted purple prune character with expressive eyes, cute arms and a roundish body, reading a book, animated style, award winning design, in a cozy dimly lit living room during a rainy day

Basic

Advanced

Primary Subject - What/who is the focus? - Be specific: “young woman with short black hair” not “person” - Include details: age, appearance, clothing, expression
Subject Behavior - What are they doing? - Use descriptive actions: “reading”, “walking”, “smiling”
Visual Style - Artistic medium/aesthetic - Examples: “photorealistic”, “oil painting”, “anime style”, “watercolor”
Environmental Context - Setting & atmosphere - Location: “living room”, “mountain peak”, “urban street” - Lighting: “golden hour”, “soft studio lighting”, “dramatic shadows” - Mood: “peaceful”, “energetic”, “mysterious”

Troubleshooting

Length	Use Case
Short (10-20 words)	Simple concepts
Medium (20-50 words)	Optimal for most uses
Long (50+ words)	Complex scenes with many details

Problem	Solution
Image doesn’t match prompt	Simplify, use more specific words, check word order
Poor quality	Add quality enhancers, specify lighting, add technical terms
Unwanted elements	Use negative prompts: “blurry, low resolution, pixelated, distorted, extra digits, watermarks”
Style inconsistencies	Choose one primary style, remove conflicting keywords

Keywords

Style keywords

https://huggingface.co/datasets/pruna-test/documentation-media/resolve/main/prompt_guide/image_generation/anime.jpeg?download=true

“anime style”, “cel-shaded”, “large eyes”, “vibrant colors”, “dynamic poses”

Quality enhancers

Keywords
“ultra-sharp focus”, “professional grade”, “high resolution”, “cinematic composition”, “award-winning design”, “museum quality”

Common subjects

https://huggingface.co/datasets/pruna-test/documentation-media/resolve/main/prompt_guide/image_generation/portraits.jpeg?download=true

“portrait”, “headshot”, “professional”, “candid moment”, “group photography”

Image Editing

Quick reference guide for crafting effective image editing prompts.

Tip

For comprehensive guidance with detailed examples and explanations, see the Image Editing guide.

Prompt formula

[Modification] [Change Target] [Preservation]

Add a knitted purple teddy bear, next to the character reading a book, matching textures and fabric while preserving the overall style and keeping all other elements unchanged

Before

After

Modification Instruction - What change to make? - Add: “add a bird”, “insert clouds”, “place flowers” - Remove: “remove the person”, “eliminate power lines” - Modify: “change color to blue”, “convert to oil painting” - Transform: “transform to Viking”, “change outfit to modern”
Change Target - What to modify? - Be specific: “the woman with red hair”, “the car in the foreground”, “the text on the sign” - Avoid pronouns: Use “the purple prune character” not “it”
Preservation Requirements - What must stay the same? - Identity: “preserve facial features”, “keep same person” - Composition: “maintain exact position”, “keep same pose” - Lighting: “keep same lighting”, “preserve shadows” - Style: “maintain visual consistency”, “keep art style”

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Character identity changes too much	Use specific identifiers: “the woman with short black hair” not “her”
Subject shifts position	Add: “keep exact camera angle, position, and pose”
Style loses details	Name specific techniques: “pencil sketch with visible graphite lines” not “sketch style”
Unwanted elements change	Add: “while maintaining all other aspects exactly as they are”
Complex changes fail	Break into sequential edits, make one change at a time
Text doesn’t match formatting	Use quotes: Replace ‘[original text]’ with ‘[new text]’
Lighting doesn’t match	Add: “maintaining the same lighting and shadows”

Keywords

Editing categories

“Add a knitted purple teddy bear, next to the character reading a book, matching textures and fabric while preserving the overall style and keeping all other elements unchanged”

Before

After

Keywords: “add [object]”, “insert [object]”, “place [object]”
Include: “matching lighting”, “matching textures”, “maintaining atmosphere”

“Transform the man into an African woman wearing silver glasses, a thin dark green raincoat, a backpack, and braids while preserving the man’s stance and size.”

Before

After

Type	Keywords
Identity	“preserve facial features”, “maintain exact face”, “keep identity”
Expression	“change expression to smiling”, “transform mood”
Hair	“change hair to long”, “add beard”, “short to flowing”
Clothing	“change clothes to [style]”, “update outfit”, “transform wardrobe”
Character	“transform to Viking”, “change to pirate style”, “transform to [character]”

“Make a top down view of the street vendor while keeping all scene elements and positions the same.”

Before

After

Type	Keywords
Angles	“low-angle shot”, “bird’s eye view”, “top down view”, “three-quarter angle”
Distance	“wide shot”, “close-up”, “establishing shot”, “full body shot”
Preservation	“keep exact position”, “maintain placement”, “same position and pose”

“First, change the background to a beach, then update the purple prune character’s setting to include ocean waves and seagulls, finally, add a pirate ship and change the character into pirate style, maintaining natural lighting and cartoon proportions and position throughout”

Before

After

Type	Keywords
Sequence	“first… then… finally”, “start by… then… next”
Multiple	“change both X and Y”, “update A, B, and C”, “and also”
Preservation	“maintaining consistency throughout”, “preserve lighting throughout”

Preservation

Category	Keywords
Identity	“preserve facial features”, “maintain identity”, “keep same person”
Composition	“exact position”, “same pose”, “maintain placement”, “preserve camera angle”
Lighting	“same lighting”, “preserve shadows”, “maintain atmosphere”, “natural lighting”
Style	“keep art style”, “maintain visual consistency”, “preserve proportions”
Other Elements	“keep all other elements unchanged”, “maintain background details”

Video Generation

Quick reference guide for crafting effective video generation prompts.

Tip

For comprehensive guidance with detailed examples and explanations, see the Video Generation guide.

Prompt formula

[Subject] [Action] [Scene] [Camera] [Lighting] [Style]

Knitted purple prune character, dancing joyfully, in a pink room, camera circling around, warm golden hour lighting, cinematic animation style

[Subject] [Action] [Scene] [Camera] [Lighting] [Style]

Cinematic shot of a knitted purple prune character, dancing joyfully through, a large pink and purple room, camera starting in front, then circling and ending behind the character showing a race car, warm golden hour lighting creating soft illumination, cinematic animation style

Basic

Advanced

Subject(s) - What/who is the focus? - Be descriptive: “young woman with silver hair”, “knitted purple prune character” - Include: appearance, clothing, features, posture
Action(s) - What are they doing? - Use dynamic verbs: “running”, “flowing”, “dancing”, “transforming” - Specify timing: “slow motion”, “fast-paced”, “building intensity”
Scene(s) - Where is it happening? - Location: “urban street”, “mountain peak”, “living room” - Environment: “at sunset”, “during rain”, “in mist”
[Optional] Camera Movement - How is it filmed? - Tracking: “following”, “tracking”, “pursuing” - Orbital: “circling around”, “orbiting” - Zoom: “zooming in/out”, “approaching” - Panning: “panning left/right”, “tilting up/down”
[Optional] Lighting - What lighting conditions? - Natural: “golden hour”, “sunset”, “daylight”, “blue hour” - Artificial: “neon glow”, “streetlights”, “candlelight” - Quality: “soft”, “dramatic”, “harsh”, “warm”, “cool”
[Optional] Style - Visual tone/aesthetic? - Medium: “photorealistic”, “3D animation”, “anime style” - Aesthetic: “cinematic”, “documentary”, “cyberpunk” - Mood: “whimsical”, “dramatic”, “peaceful”

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Video lacks motion	Add dynamic verbs: “running”, “flowing”, “transforming”
Poor pacing control	Specify timing: “slow motion”, “fast-paced”, “building intensity”
Limited camera variety	Add camera movement: “tracking”, “circling”, “panning”
Confusing transitions	Clarify progression: “smooth transitions”, “connecting scenes”
Inconsistent quality	Add quality terms: “cinematic”, “professional”, “high-quality”
Unclear focus	Simplify to essential components: Subject + Action + Scene

Some thoughts on video generation:

Video chaining: Use last frame of video as starting image for next video segment

Iteration workflow: Generate/edit images first (faster, cheaper), then generate video

Complex scenes: Break into sequential edits, build gradually

Key phrasing

Camera movement

Category	Keywords
Motion Verbs	“running”, “flowing”, “dancing”, “soaring”, “colliding”, “transforming”, “morphing”
Tempo/Pacing	“slow motion”, “fast-paced”, “gradually”, “building to crescendo”, “rhythmic timing”, “steady pace”
Direction	“from left to right”, “circling around”, “approaching”, “moving upward”
Intensity	“energetic”, “peaceful”, “dramatic”, “intense”, “building intensity”

Type	Keywords
Tracking	“following”, “tracking”, “pursuing”, “tracking shot”
Orbital	“circling around”, “orbiting”, “rotating view”
Zoom	“zooming in/out”, “approaching”, “backing away”
Panning	“panning left/right”, “tilting up/down”
Aerial	“bird’s eye view”, “overhead shot”, “flying camera”, “drone footage”
Handheld	“shaky”, “handheld”, “documentary style”

Type	Keywords
Natural	“golden hour”, “sunset”, “dawn”, “daylight”, “blue hour”, “natural window lighting”
Artificial	“streetlights”, “neon glow”, “spotlight”, “studio lighting”, “candlelight”, “LED strips”
Quality	“soft”, “harsh”, “diffused”, “dramatic”, “warm”, “cool”, “flickering”
Direction	“front-lit”, “backlit”, “side-lit”, “rim lighting”

Video format keywords

Format	Keywords
Short	“brief”, “simple”, “focused”, “single action”
Long	“epic sequence”, “detailed narrative”, “multiple scenes”, “progressive action”
Multi-scene	“montage”, “multiple scenes”, “smooth transitions”, “time progression”, “then… then…”
Moving camera	“dynamic camera motion”, “sweeping camera”, “flying camera”, “fluid movement”

Visual style

“anime”, “3D rendered”, “cel-shaded”, “motion graphics”, “stop motion”

Subject matter

“martial arts”, “fighting”, “acrobatic stunts”, “parkour”, “fast-paced action”