Reference — the official docs
Midjourney’s documentation, digested.
Field notes from Midjourney’s official documentation — condensed topic by topic, with the source linked under each one. 한국어 요약은 EN/한국어 토글로 볼 수 있습니다.
For how these parameters behave across the images in this collection, read the guides.
What a Midjourney prompt is, the four core principles, and the seven details worth specifying.
What is a Prompt?
A prompt is the text you give Midjourney to describe the image or video you want. It can be a single word or a full phrase — the more deliberate your wording, the more distinctive the result.
Core Principles
1. Short & simple
Short prompts usually work best. Long lists of instructions confuse the model. Think of it as a quick snapshot of your idea rather than a brief.
❌ Show me a picture of lots of blooming California poppies, make them bright vibrant orange, and draw them in an illustrated style with colored pencils
✅ Colored pencil illustration of bright orange California poppies
2. Word choice matters
Use precise synonyms. "Gigantic" or "enormous" carries more information than a vague "big".
3. Be specific with numbers
Plurals are vague. Say "three cats" instead of "cats", or use a collective noun like "flock of birds".
4. Focus on what you want
Negative phrasing backfires — asking for a party with "no cake" can still produce a cake. Use the --no parameter to exclude things instead.
Prompt Length
Short prompts let Midjourney's default style fill the gaps — more variety, less control. Longer prompts give you control but reduce surprise. Include only the details that actually matter to you.
Seven Details Worth Specifying
| # | EN | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Subject — who or what | person, animal, character, object, location |
| 2 | Medium — in what form | photo, painting, illustration, sculpture, doodle, tapestry |
| 3 | Environment — where | indoors, outdoors, underwater, on the moon, in the city |
| 4 | Lighting — what kind | soft, ambient, overcast, neon, studio lights |
| 5 | Color — in what shades | vibrant, muted, monochromatic, pastel, black and white |
| 6 | Mood — feelings evoked | playful, calm, gloomy, energetic |
| 7 | Composition — how framed | portrait, headshot, closeup, bird's-eye view |
Advanced Prompt Structure
[Image URL] [Text Prompt] [--parameters]
Text Prompt — the written description of what you want.
Image Prompts — reference images that influence style and content. Includes Image Prompts, Style References (--sref), and Omni References (--oref).
Parameters — settings appended to the end of the prompt that customize generation, such as aspect ratio (--ar).
Source: https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32023408776205-Prompt-Basics · Updated 2026-08-08