Today I will share a little tip that may come in handy when generating realistic photos using Dall-E 2.
One of the main reasons why I love Dall-E 2 as an idea, is that it allows you to generate an unlimited number of high-quality photographs and can save so much time.
As you already know, a prompt is a text description that can be up to 400 words. The more specific you are in your prompts, the better the results are. When it comes to generating photos, there are tons of adjectives you can use to tell the system your framing preferences, style, decade, era and etc. But some adjectives tend to be strong and some tend to be weaker, for example, “still life photography”(a form of professional photography that depicts inanimate objects or subject matter)” already embodies a couple of factors: It has to be taken professionally, high-quality photo, lens type, specific environment and etc.
prompt: A still life photography of a bag of oranges on the table, some of the oranges are scattered on the table
Photography types you can use in your prompts:
But there are some adjectives and phrases that happen to be more descriptive in terms of used words but less helpful when it comes to generating specific content, hence it even may ruin your generation. I always avoid using phrases like “high-quality photo/good photo/realistic” as a medium because it implies at only one factor, forcing me to add different mediums to generate professional photographs.
left: high quality photo of a sand dunes / right: landscape photography of sand dunes
Taking your prompts to another level
Adding styles that embody different factors at the same time is one thing, but you can take them to a whole new level if you specify lenses and camera settings in your prompt. The benefit of this little “trick” is that if you define the lens, you define not only the specific vibe and mood it has, but also define the year, specific proximity, and even lightning, this will turn your moderate and general photos into professional photographs.
Some of my personal favorite lens and their usage
OM system 12–40mm PRO II 40mm, 1/100 sec, f/2 8, ISO 800 —
gives you exceptional image quality, smooth, and silent focusing performance, and with a minimum focusing distance of just 7.9" you can get close-up shots whenever you desire. Adding this lens to your prompt helps you generate detailed images.
prompt: safari lions are sleeping on the ground, evening, sun setting in the background, OM system 12–40mm PRO II 40mm, 1/100 sec, f/2 8, ISO 800”
Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG DN —
Delivers exceptional optical performance. Using this in Dall-E 2 highlights details, makes your close-ups even more realistic and overall, brings your prompts to a whole new level. Particularly appealing to night sky photographers.
Sigma 35mm F1.4 DG DN
Samyang/Rokinon Xeen 50mm T1.5 —
aka the cinema lens, and is not a modified still lens. Comes with an internal focus that makes the lens’ size unchangeable while focusing.
samyang/rokinon xeen 50mm t1.5
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8 —
This was named as one of the best lenses of 2022 for food photography, using this in Dall-E 2 you will achieve natural perspective.
Canon EF-S 60mm f/2.8
OM-D E-M5 Mark III | M.Zuiko Digital ED 12–40mm F2.8 PRO | 1/50sec | F9 | ISO64
besides the impressive features it offers, from wide angle to mid-range telephoto shots, it’s good for macro photography, I generally use it for outdoor macros. The results are always 10/10.
OM-D E-M5 Mark III | M.Zuiko Digital ED 12–40mm F2.8 PRO | 1/50sec | F9 | ISO64”
To sum it up, based on my personal experience and observation, using lens and camera settings increase the quality of the generations. These lenses and settings are the ones I use the most, I hope this little tip helps you generate quality photos and save your time and extra credits.