5 types of words to avoid in the Midjourney prompt
Check your prompts now and see if you have any of these words.
Midjourney’s evolution is so rapid that some fans need help to keep up. Understandably, there has no choice for Midjourney but to move quickly, given that competing text-to-image applications constantly try to outcompete one another in the ever-changing AI landscape. If one misses a few steps or features, there is a risk of falling behind and becoming obsolete.
Midjourney changes are more than just the addition of new features. Its bot’s understanding of the prompt to generate an image is becoming increasingly sophisticated.
Some prompts that worked well in the past may no longer work in Midjourney V5.2. Even if they do work now, it’s difficult to predict whether they will continue to work in the future, as Midjourney V6 will include significant advancements in concept understanding and management.
Let’s look at the five types of words to avoid:
(1) Words to make the photograph appear “more real”
If you want the photograph, avoid using the following words:
hyperrealistic, hyperrealism, realism, photorealistic, photorealism
Those words produce a painting style (i.e., realism art) similar to a photograph.
The words may work, but they are frequently problematic when troubleshooting your prompt.
Instead, replace it with “a photo of,” “a color photo of,” “a polaroid photo of,” “a fashion photography of,” or “a photo in the style of
(2) Software names for 3D rendering
Unless you’re looking for CGI-rendered art, avoid using these words or similar terms: (this is not an exhaustive list)
octane, unreal, v-ray, lumion, renderman, blender, unity, maya
(3) Resolution-boosting words
These words will not increase the resolution or change the appearance of the image: (this is not an exhaustive list)
4k, 6k, 8k, 16k, ultra 4k, hd, hdr, hdmi, high-resolution, high resolution, dp, dpi, ppi, 1080p, and modifiers like “insanely” and “ultra”
(4) The numerical focal length and aperture values of the camera
Examples: 16mm, 50mm, 85mm, f/1.4, f/2.8, and f/5.6.
(5) Phrases such as “trending on Artstation” or “trending on Deviantart”
So, should the words listed above never be used in the Midjourney prompt? But what if the prompts work perfectly well for me?
There is no need to change the following list of words if it works for you.
Continue to use the prompts as necessary. Keep in mind that their compatibility with future Midjourney versions is uncertain.
Avoid those words in your new prompt to see if you can achieve the same results.
If you’re having trouble with your prompt, try removing those words and seeing if that helps.
Removing words from numbers 2–5 above may resolve blurring, focus, clarity, and coherence issues.
Where did the words come from?
According to Midjourney Discord FAQs, these words came from the correlated items in the data set the bot was trained on, which includes help files, spreadsheets, screenshots of the tool’s user interface, advertisements, web banners, renders of things, and many other things unrelated to your subject. Meaning it won’t help to make your image looks nicer.
Another possibility is that these words come from the “starter prompts” generated by the /describe command. Starter prompts may be poorly formed and not specific to any version of Midjourney.
They are simply rough guesses. The vocabulary generated by /describe is not the best way to prompt.
It does not come from the enigmatic and sacred book of “Midjourney Dictionary of Excellent Tokens” — sadly, such a book does not exist!
What if I notice someone using these words in their prompt?
Say nothing.
You’re not a Midjourney police officer!
Share this story with them if you’re so generous and want to save the world.
Also, please ask them to follow me, and I’ll thank you for that.
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Conclusion
When creating Midjourney prompts, there are five types of words to avoid.
- Words to make the photograph appear “more real”
- Software names for 3D rendering
- Resolution-boosting words
- The numerical focal length and aperture values of the camera
- Phrases such as “trending on Artstation” or “trending on Deviantart”
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