Midjourney Prompts — Learn how to produce stunningly realistic portraits

Looking to create photorealistic potrtait by Midjourney prompts? Here are some helpful tips: Consider using CineStill 800T film, specially designed for low-light conditions. This film is balanced for tungsten light, commonly used in indoor settings and candlelit environments. With its natural magenta, red, orange, and yellow overtones, tungsten light creates a warm and pleasing effect on skin tones, making it ideal for portraits.

Additionally, the built-in halation effect adds a lovely warmth to light sources in your images. Give it a try and see the difference it can make in your portrait photography.

Midjourney Tips to create a Portrait photo

This is merely scratching the surface! Instead of relying on keywords like “photorealistic,” consider exploring the use of various camera models and lens types to achieve better results.

Use these Midjourney tips to create realistic portrait prompts:

• Tip 1: Use “6:9” aspect ratio.
• Tip 2: Add lighting type: "soft, dramatic, dreamlike, film light".
• Tip 3: Add “80mm” (or even “100mm“) to your prompt – it’s a portrait lens.
• Tip 4: Use “--testp” to kick Midjourney AI into photorealistic mode.
• Tip 5: Use “facing the camera“, “3/4 portrait" or "messy hair“, or “tilted head".
• Tip 6: You can use shoulder level, to zoom out from the portrait.
• Tip 7: Portraits are all about the eyes: add eye-related detail, makeup, smeared lipstick, etc.
• Tip 8: Use names of famous photographers to lean more toward their style: Annie Leibovitz, Steve McCurry, Richard Avedon, Diane Arbus, Dorothea Lange. Look up “famous portrait photographers”, pick your favorite style and add them to your prompt.
• Tip 9: Use feminine names for female portraits – Emma, Katerina, etc.
• Tip 10: Use masculine names for male portraits – John, David, etc.

Photography Keywords For Improving Photorealism

Mastering the basics of photography settings can greatly improve your skills. To get started, here are some key settings and general concepts to research:

• ISO
• Cinestill 800T
• White balance
• Shutter speed
• Aperture
• f-stop
• HDR
• Bokeh
• Bit depth
• Exposure Value
• Focal Length
• Telephoto
• Raytracing
• The golden hour
• Double exposure
• Image stabilization
• Prime/Fixed lens vs varifocal
• Rule of thirds/the golden ratio
• Color space (AdobeRGB, ProPhoto, etc)
• Different film formats (32mm vs medium format, for example)
• Types of lighting (natural, studio, hard light, diffused, polarized filter, etc etc etc)

Midjourney Prompts Portrait Tips with Examples

If you’re looking to create Midjourney portraits it’s important to first consider traditional art forms. This involves researching camera equipment, such as lenses designed for portrait photography, and experimenting with various camera settings. For example, using an 80mm camera with f/1.2 aperture settings is a popular choice for portrait photography.

Additionally, incorporating dramatic lighting and props, such as smoke, can also enhance the overall quality of your portraits. In this tutorial, we’ll explore several techniques and prompt improvements that can help you achieve photorealistic results with Midjourney.

Woman with dramatic lighting and smoke

Midjourney Prompt was used:

soul, soulful portrait, spirit, personality, person, real, young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, running mascara, smeared lipstick, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, smoke, smoky room, chest level, dramatic light, dreamlike light, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

Silver chain added as a prompt prop

An intriguing aspect of Midjourney V4 is its ability to imbue style into different aspects of a prompt. In the case of this portrait, smoke was incorporated as a prop, but it also had an impact on the subject’s eyes, resulting in a unique aesthetic effect.

Prompt was used (added silver chain):

soul, soulful portrait, spirit, personality, person, real, young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, running mascara, smeared lipstick, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, smoke, smoky room, chest level, silver chains, dramatic light, dreamlike light, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

To create a photorealistic, lifelike portrait, add props, like silver chain for example.

“dramatic”, “atmospheric”, or “dreamlike” lighting

Introducing blurriness into your portraits can enhance their intimacy, and this effect can be achieved through the use of an 85mm lens and a narrow focus aperture setting at close range. However, to truly elevate the atmosphere of your portraits, consider incorporating dramatic lighting as well. This can create a more captivating and unique result.

Prompt:

soul, soulful portrait, spirit, personality, person, real, young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, running mascara, smeared lipstick, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, smoke, smoky room, chest level, silver chains, dramatic light, dreamlike light, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

Midjourney prompt with Keywords like personal, soul, soulful

The term “portrait” is often associated with a personal image because it focuses on isolating and highlighting the subject of the photograph.

Prompt:

soul, soulful portrait, spirit, personality, person, real, young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, running mascara, smeared lipstick, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, smoke, smoky room, chest level, dramatic light, dreamlike light, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

On occasion, Midjourney may produce a black and white portrait as the result of a prompt.

Portrait with Messy hair

Add messy hair to create a more natural look.

Prompt:

young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

The phrase “shoulder-level” to zoom out of the portrait

To achieve a wider shot and zoom out slightly from the portrait, try incorporating the phrase “shoulder level” into your Midjourney prompt. This can help to capture more of the subject’s environment and create a more expansive image.

Prompt:

female portrait, messy hair, shoulder level, blue diamond eyes, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

Phrases like “photorealism”, “ultra detail”, and 100mm

Prompt that was used to create this portrait:

soul, soulful portrait, young female portrait, messy hair, blue diamond eyes, personal portrait, candid, intimate portrait, dramatic light, dreamlike light, photorealism, ultra detail, 100mm, f 1.2 --ar 6:9 --testp

Cinestill 800T, cinematic lighting, full body, 4K

According to the prompt author, starting with a close-up portrait may not necessarily ensure realistic results, but it can be helpful. Additionally, keeping background details minimal can also aid in achieving a more realistic look. This is because the AI may try to incorporate all of the described details into the image, which can sometimes result in less realistic outcomes.

Prompt that was used to create this portrait:

closeup portrait of an elegant pretty young woman wearing a wedding dress designed by atelier versace in front of magnolia trees, long wavy hair, ornate diamond necklace, photorealism, cinematic lighting, full body, hyper realistic, 4k, fashion photography, moody rimlight, ultra-detailed, intimate portrait composition, ray-traced reflections, Cinestill 800T --testp --ar 9:16 --upbeta

Also you can see Top 3 Midjourney Prompts to Try – Mastering Realism in Portrait Photography

Conclusion

In order to create the best Midjourney prompts , it’s recommended to generate multiple images using the same prompt text. Midjourney uses a random seed each time, which means that one prompt may produce great results one time, but poor quality images the next. It’s important to test the prompt several times to determine its quality. The best Midjourney prompt is one that consistently generates high-quality and creative images, but achieving this can be challenging without a good reference image.

Creating photorealistic Midjourney portraits can be easy if you are familiar with the techniques used by professional photographers. It’s the lens type and aperture settings that add a blurry background and isolate the subject in the portrait.