MidJourney: A Personal Guide to My Favorite AI Image Generator

When it comes to AI image generators, I’ve tried quite a few. But Midjourney stands out as one of my favourites. It consistently produces the most interesting results, and it can even handle creating realistic hands, something many AI image generators struggle with. However, using Midjourney can feel odd compared to others like Stable Diffusion or DALL·E 2, mainly because you can’t install it on your computer or use a fancy web app. Instead, you have to access it through Discord, a chat app. Despite this unconventional access method, the quality of the images it produces makes it worth the effort. Let’s dive into how to get started and make the most of Midjourney.

How to Use Midjourney: A Simple Guide

Here’s a quick overview of how to use midjourney:

1. Sign up for Discord.
2. Sign up for Midjourney and join their Discord channel.
3. Go to a #newbies channel and type /subscribe.
4. Pick your Midjourney plan.
5. Head back to Discord and use /imagine to start generating images.
6. Edit and upscale your creation.
7. Save your image.

Now, let’s break this down into detailed steps.

Step 1: Sign Up for Discord

Discord is a popular chat app, especially among gamers and hobby communities. Before you can use Midjourney, you’ll need a Discord account. It’s free and easy to sign up on the Discord website.

Step 2: Sign Up for Midjourney

Once you have a Discord account, go to the Midjourney website and click “Join the Beta.” This will invite you to join the Midjourney Discord channel. Accept the invite, and you’re in. To subscribe to a Midjourney plan, go to one of the newcomer rooms like #newbies-14 or #newbies-44 and type /subscribe. This will guide you through subscribing to a paid plan, starting at $10/month for around 200 images and going up to $120/month for unlimited images with some waiting time.

Step 3: Generate Your First Image

Midjourney is designed for a community of artists, so it uses Discord. The #newbies channels can be quite busy with people posting prompts and requests. If you’ve signed up for a paid plan, you can send commands directly to the Midjourney bot via direct messages, which can be less chaotic. To start, type /imagine in the message box, followed by your text prompt, and press Enter. After a short wait, you’ll get four variations of your prompt. At least one of them is likely to be excellent.

Step 4: Edit Your Images

Underneath each set of images, you’ll see buttons labelled U1, U2, U3, U4, V1, V2, V3, and V4. The U buttons upscale the selected image, making it larger and adding more details. The V buttons create four new variations of the selected image. There’s also a Re-roll button to generate four new images from the same prompt.

You can also use additional controls like Vary (Strong) and Vary (Subtle) to create variations of your image, Zoom Out to add more content, and Pan to expand your image in a specific direction. Experiment with these options to enhance your images.

Step 5: Save Your Image

Once you’re happy with your creation, click the image to expand it to full size. Right-click the image and select “Save image” to download it.

Writing Effective Prompts for Midjourney

Getting good results from Midjourney depends on writing effective prompts. Here are some tips:

• Be Specific: Detailed prompts yield better results. Instead of “a painting of mice eating a cheese house,” try “a childish painting of three enormous mice eating a house made of cheese.”
• Avoid Over-Describing: Don’t overload your prompt with unnecessary words. Use clear, concise descriptions.
• Consider the Details: Think about the subject, medium, environment, lighting, colour, mood, and composition.
• Use Images: You can add images to your prompts by pasting a URL or uploading images to Discord and dragging them into the prompt. You can even blend multiple images with the /blend command.
• Play with Parameters: Use parameters like –no trees to exclude specific elements or try the experimental Weird parameter for stranger results. Use /shorten to let Midjourney suggest shorter, more effective prompts.

Exploring Midjourney’s Features

Midjourney has a lot of features accessible through the /settings command, such as:

• Algorithm Versions: Choose between different versions of the Midjourney algorithm, including Niji models for anime-style images.
• Stylize Settings: Adjust how much Midjourney’s artistic style influences your images.
• Turbo Mode: Generate images faster at a higher cost, or use Relax mode for unlimited image generation on the Pro plan.
• Variation Modes: Control how much variation there is in your image outputs.
• Remix Mode: Change aspects of your prompt when creating new variations for more control.

Final Tips: Have Fun with Midjourney

Using Midjourney is a lot of fun because it’s easy to get beautiful results. Don’t be afraid to experiment and tweak your prompts. Check out what other users are creating for inspiration, and enjoy the process of generating unique and artistic images. Despite the quirky interface, the powerful features of Midjourney make it a fantastic tool for anyone interested in AI image generation.