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Key Takeaways
- You can use AI art generators like Midjourney to create imaginative self-portraits by uploading a reference image and generating prompts.
- Play with key parameters like Image Weight, Style, and the Weird parameter to customize the output of your AI self-portraits.
- Enhance image quality by changing the aspect ratio and upscaling the image to the highest resolution before downloading your AI self-portraits.
AI art generators such as Midjourney can re-imagine your image in many different styles, backgrounds, colors, and moods. Follow along with this guide to create some imaginative self-portraits, as seen through the lens of artificial intelligence.
Step 1: Upload a Reference Image
To create an AI self-portrait, you will have to upload a personal image of yourself. This is what will be used to guide the image generation.
With this in mind, we recommend protecting your privacy by creating a private chat with the Midjourney Bot, and generating prompts inside the direct message thread, instead of public channels.
If you need some extra guidance on navigating these platforms, check out our guide on how to use Midjourney, and also how to get started with Discord.
Images that you generate using prompts will still appear on the Midjourney website gallery. You can get around this by subscribing to a Pro or Mega plan and changing your settings to Stealth Mode.
Navigate to any #newbie or #general channel and click on the Midjourney Bot name wherever you see it. Then type Hi in the message box and hit enter to open the direct message window.
You can either drag an image from your computer and drop it into the message box, or click the + symbol in the message box to find and upload an image from your computer.
When you have selected an image, hit enter on the keyboard to upload it to the chat. Next, right-click on the image and select Copy Link.
For this tutorial, we're using a random AI-generated image of a (non-)person from a website called This Person Does Not Exist.
Step 2: Create a Prompt Using a URL
Now we can start prompting. Here's what the basic template looks like:
/imagine prompt [image URL] [prompt]
First, replace the image URL with the image link that you copied in the previous step. Then you can start typing an image description.
The first time you paste the link in the message box it will be really long. But once you hit enter, the link will shorten, and you can use this version for future prompts.
The most basic requirement is to mention a person in your prompt. In this case, we included "An elven woman", for example. But beyond that, you can get creative with the setting, art style, mood, objects, etc.,
If you need inspiration, you can browse these AI art prompt ideas before getting started.
Step 3: Play With the Key Parameters
There are three parameters worth checking out if you want to get better results for your AI self-portrait. To use them, simply add the parameter to the end of your prompt.
Image Weight
The --iw parameter stands for image weight. You can use it to emphasize more of the reference image or more of the text description in the final image.
A low image weight, such as --iw 0.5, means the text prompt will have a greater influence on the final image.
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU A woman in a sharp grey suit sitting in an office full of robots, brightly lit, futuristic --iw 0.5
A higher image weight, such as --iw 1.5, means the reference image will have a greater effect on the final image.
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU A woman in a sharp grey suit sitting in an office full of robots, brightly lit, futuristic --iw 1.5
You can set this number anywhere between 0 and 2. By default, it's set to 1 for an equal weight between the image and prompt.
Style Raw
A lot of "beautification" is applied to Midjourney images, which makes for pretty images (think cinematic Hollywood shots). But the problem is you end up with images that look unrealistic and even fake when, instead, you want an AI self-portrait that looks like a real human.
Adding the parameter --style raw can help with this by focusing on the style you specify and removing some of the automatic beautification that goes on. The difference in the two sets of images below is subtle but still noticeable.
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU Oil painting portrait of a woman in a field of green rolling hills
https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU Oil painting portrait of a woman in a field of green rolling hills --style raw
Weird
Creating AI self-portraits can leave you feeling a little weirded out as you watch yourself being transformed through the lens of an AI system. So why not lean into the weirdness by adding the --weird parameter?
According to the Midjourney manual, this "introduces quirky and offbeat qualities" to the image. Once more, this will help to produce an AI self-portrait that is less generically beautiful, and potentially more unique.
The default weird setting is 0 with a maximum value of 3000, adding a touch of this to your prompt will give you more unexpected results.
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU 3D render model of a woman
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDU 3D render model of a woman --weird 2000
Step 4: Enhance the Image Quality
Two areas where you can enhance the quality of your image are the aspect ratio and image resolution.
Let's start by changing the aspect ratio. The default ratio for Midjourney images is 1:1, which works well for a range of social platforms where you might want to use your AI self-portrait.
But if you want to frame the image in a way that stands out, try changing the dimensions to what is used in classic portrait photography by adding --ar 2:3 or --ar 4:5.
Changing the aspect ratio in Midjourney also gives you more options to use your AI art for things like desktop backgrounds, printing, and social platforms that require different image dimensions.
/imagine prompt https://s.mj.run/4r_P9m_jvDUportrait of a woman, photorealistic, neutral background --ar 4:5
Another worthwhile adjustment is upscaling your image to produce the highest resolution possible.
First, select the image you want to work with from the set of four by using the buttons labeled with a U. The top left and right images are labeled U1 and U2, while the bottom left and right images are labeled U3 and U4.
The image will reappear on its own in the chat, this time with the option to click Upscale (4x). Click this button and wait for the final image to finish processing.
Step 5: Download Your AI Self-Portrait
Once you've finished upscaling your image, click on the image to preview it, then click Open in Browser. Right-click on the image and select Save Image As to download it to your computer.
Now that you've got an AI self-portrait, you can change your social media profile picture to something a little more fun. You can also use AI self-portraits to protect your privacy. By creating an image in your likeness for public accounts, you can reserve real photographs for close friends and family.
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