Image Prompt Cheatsheet

How to use this sheet

Choose a pattern, replace the subject and visual constraints, then compare the draft with the brief. Prompting 101 and Prompting 102 provide the introductory method. See Prompt Engineering for Images for the full image method.

Photography style prompts

Pattern	Example prompt	Check for
Portrait	A portrait of a young woman, natural light, shallow depth of field, 85mm lens, photorealistic.	Check facial detail, focus, framing, and background separation.
Landscape	A mountain valley at sunrise, wide-angle view, glowing sky, photorealistic.	Check horizon, light direction, scale, and edge artifacts.
Aerial	Aerial drone shot of a coastal city at night, glowing neon lights.	Check viewpoint, street geometry, light sources, and repeated structures.
Macro	Close-up photo of a honeybee on a flower, detailed macro lens, natural lighting.	Check anatomy, focus plane, texture, and natural-light consistency.

Illustration style prompts

Pattern	Example prompt	Check for
Flat vector	Flat vector illustration of a laptop on a desk, pastel palette, minimal style.	Check flat fills, line consistency, object count, and palette.
Watercolor	Fantasy forest scene, watercolor painting, soft warm tones, detailed brushstrokes.	Check color bleed, paper texture, depth, and unwanted detail.
Cartoon	A playful cartoon of a robot cooking breakfast, bold outlines, bright colors.	Check outline weight, limbs, utensils, and palette consistency.
Ink drawing	A samurai standing under cherry blossoms, black and white ink sketch.	Check monochrome treatment, line direction, anatomy, and period details.

Concept art prompts

Pattern	Example prompt	Check for
Cyberpunk	Futuristic cyberpunk street, neon signs, rainy reflections, cinematic wide shot.	Check sign text, reflections, perspective, and visual clutter.
Alien world	Alien desert landscape, surreal colors, twin suns on horizon, highly detailed.	Check light directions, horizon, atmosphere, and scale.
Fantasy	A medieval castle floating in the sky, epic fantasy concept art, dramatic lighting.	Check structure, perspective, light source, and silhouette.
Steampunk	Steampunk-inspired airship flying above a Victorian city, concept art, detailed textures.	Check machinery, period details, scale, and repeated parts.

UI and design prompts

Pattern	Example prompt	Check for
App mockup	Mobile app dashboard mockup, clean and modern design, light theme, vector style.	Check hierarchy, spacing, contrast, and generated text.
Web layout	Minimalist landing page design, responsive grid, hero section with headline and CTA.	Check grid, breakpoint assumptions, hierarchy, and generated text.
Icon design	A set of flat vector icons for weather: sun, cloud, rain, storm.	Check stroke weight, dimensions, palette, and symbol consistency.
Infographic	Infographic showing the water cycle, flat design, labeled arrows, clean layout.	Verify the process, arrow direction, labels, and reading order.

Negative prompting

Pattern	Example prompt	Check for
Remove text	A medieval castle, oil painting style, no text, no watermark.	Inspect the complete frame for letters, signatures, and watermark shapes.
Remove distortion	A realistic photo of a sports car, cinematic lighting, no distortion, no extra wheels.	Count wheels and inspect geometry, reflections, and body seams.
Remove people	A city street at dusk, cinematic, no people, empty roads.	Inspect windows, reflections, sidewalks, and vehicles for figures.

Iteration examples

Step	Prompt	Check for
1	A forest at sunrise	Very generic forest scene
2	A misty forest at sunrise, golden light, birds in the distance	Adds mood and detail
3	Misty forest at sunrise, golden light, cinematic photography style, 35mm lens	Highly stylized, photorealistic shot

Best practices

• Specify visible requirements without overloading the prompt.
• Name the medium: painting, vector, photograph, or diagram.
• Control composition with framing and viewpoint.
• Add exclusions for likely failure modes.
• Change one group of variables per revision.

Further reading

• Prompt Engineering for Images
• Stable Diffusion Prompt Guide
• Midjourney Documentation
• OpenAI image generation documentation