A formula that works

A reliable prompt describes four layers: subject, style, composition and light/mood.

A female astronaut, 1960s retro poster style,
waist-up portrait, looking at the camera,
warm light, an atmosphere of optimism

Word order and weight

Usually the closer a word is to the start, the more the model weights it. Put the essentials first: subject, then refinements.

A mini-dictionary of descriptors

• Subject: who/what, age, clothing, action.
• Style: "watercolor", "3D render", "film photo", "anime style".
• Composition: "close-up", "top-down", "centered", "rule of thirds".
• Light: "soft diffused", "backlight", "golden hour", "neon".

Build a prompt together

Take "a cover for a travel podcast" and go layer by layer:

Subject: a backpack and a map on a table
Style: flat illustration, warm palette
Composition: top-down, centered, room for a title
Light/mood: sunny, light, inviting to travel

Even without the image, the description is unambiguous — the model won't guess.

Exercise

Describe one of your ideas across all four layers in a column. Then drop the "style" layer and generate both — you'll feel what it controls.

Start with these four layers — and 80% of the result is already under control.