Cheat sheet
AI image prompt vocabulary cheat sheet.
Use this when you can picture the image but your words keep producing generic, shiny, or synthetic-looking output.
Visual direction terms
Art direction
Defines the taste, visual rules, mood, styling, and what the image should avoid.
Editorial photography
Moves the output toward magazine, campaign, or documentary realism instead of stock-photo poses.
Cinematic lighting
Controls key light, fill, shadow, contrast, and motivated light sources.
Lens choice
Names perspective, intimacy, compression, or documentary realism through camera language.
Composition
Controls subject hierarchy, negative space, foreground, background, and visual weight.
Color grading
Controls palette, contrast, skin tones, and the final finish.
Material texture
Makes surfaces feel physical rather than flat or synthetic.
Negative prompt
Names the artifacts to avoid: distorted hands, fake text, plastic skin, clutter, or over-sharpening.
Copyable image prompt
Prompt
Create the image with clear art direction, editorial photography, cinematic lighting, intentional lens choice, balanced composition, restrained color grading, realistic material texture, and a negative prompt for stock-photo and synthetic AI artifacts.
Related guides
AI image style keywords when you can picture it but cannot name it.
AI image style vocabulary for better generations: editorial photography, cinematic lighting, art direction, composition, lens choice, color grading, material texture, and negative prompts.
Art direction vs. editorial photography vs. cinematic lighting: which AI image term should you use?
A practical guide to art direction, style keywords, editorial photography, cinematic lighting, lens choice, production design, and negative prompts for AI images.
Negative prompt examples for realistic AI images.
Copyable negative prompt examples for realistic AI images, founder portraits, product scenes, editorial photography, photorealism constraints, and common AI artifacts.
How to make AI images look less stock and less fake.
AI image vocabulary for making generations look less stock: editorial photography, art direction, production design, cinematic lighting, photorealism constraints, and negative prompts.
Common questions
Why do AI images look generic?
The prompt often names the subject but not the image system: art direction, camera language, lighting, composition, texture, and exclusions.
What is the minimum useful vocabulary?
Use one art-direction phrase, one lighting phrase, one camera or composition phrase, and one negative prompt.