Midjourney has earned its reputation as the premier AI image generator for artistic quality. Version 7, released in late 2025, represents a massive leap forward in human anatomy, photorealism, and user experience. This guide covers everything from getting started to advanced techniques that will help you create stunning AI art.
Midjourney is a generative AI program that creates images from text descriptions, known as prompts. Founded by David Holz (co-founder of Leap Motion), the platform launched in 2022 and has rapidly become the standard-bearer for aesthetic quality in AI image generation. Unlike open-source alternatives, Midjourney is a closed, commercial product accessible through their Discord server and web application.
The model excels at creating images with artistic sensibility. Whether you want photorealistic portraits, fantasy illustrations, abstract art, or architectural visualizations, Midjourney consistently produces results that feel intentional and beautiful rather than randomly generated. This aesthetic consistency is what sets it apart from competitors.
Midjourney V7 brought several game-changing improvements:
The infamous "AI hands" problem is largely solved. V7 generates hands, fingers, and complex poses with remarkable accuracy. Full-body shots maintain proper proportions, and faces have become incredibly detailed and realistic. This was the biggest complaint about earlier versions, and Midjourney addressed it comprehensively.
V7 introduced a personalization system that learns your aesthetic preferences over time. After rating enough images, the model adapts to favor your style. Use the --personalize parameter (or --p) to activate this feature. The more you use it, the more it understands what you consider beautiful.
For rapid iteration, Draft Mode generates images in about 10 seconds at lower quality. This is perfect for testing prompt ideas before committing to full renders. Use --draft to enable it.
The web interface now supports voice prompting. Speak your ideas naturally, and Midjourney translates them into prompts. This feature is still evolving but represents a significant step toward more intuitive creative tools.
The web interface has matured from a basic viewer to a full creation environment. You can now edit images, create variations, upscale, and manage your generations without ever touching Discord. The interface includes a prompt builder, style reference tools, and organization features.
Visit midjourney.com and sign up with your Discord account or email. New users no longer need to join the Discord server first. The web interface provides everything needed for image generation.
The main creation interface consists of:
Start simple. Type a description of what you want to see:
a serene Japanese garden at sunset, koi pond, cherry blossomsMidjourney will generate four image options. Click on any to upscale, create variations, or edit further.
Effective Midjourney prompts follow a general structure:
[Subject] [Details] [Environment] [Lighting/Mood] [Style] [Parameters]Be specific about what you want. Instead of "a woman," try "a young woman with auburn hair and green eyes." The more detail you provide, the more control you have over the output.
Describe where your subject exists. Indoor, outdoor, specific locations, time of day, weather conditions. These contextual details dramatically affect the final result.
Lighting is perhaps the most important element for creating compelling images. Terms like "golden hour," "dramatic shadows," "soft diffused light," "neon glow," or "candlelit" will transform your results.
Midjourney responds well to artistic references:
Parameters are added to the end of your prompt to control various aspects of generation:
| Parameter | Function | Example |
|---|---|---|
--ar X:Y |
Set aspect ratio | --ar 16:9, --ar 9:16, --ar 1:1 |
--v 7 |
Specify model version | --v 7 (or use settings) |
--q X |
Quality level (0.25, 0.5, 1) | --q 1 for highest quality |
--s X |
Stylize (0-1000) | --s 250 (default), higher = more artistic |
--c X |
Chaos (0-100) | --c 50 for more variety |
--no [item] |
Negative prompt | --no text, watermark |
--p |
Enable personalization | --p after training |
--draft |
Fast draft mode | --draft for quick previews |
--seed X |
Set random seed | --seed 12345 for reproducibility |
Midjourney offers four subscription tiers:
| Plan | Price | Fast Hours | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $10/month | 3.3 hrs/month | ~200 images, limited concurrent jobs |
| Standard | $30/month | 15 hrs/month | ~900 images, unlimited relax mode |
| Pro | $60/month | 30 hrs/month | Stealth mode, faster relax queue |
| Mega | $120/month | 60 hrs/month | Maximum concurrent jobs, priority queue |
Upload an image and use it as a reference. Add the image URL at the start of your prompt, and Midjourney will incorporate its elements. This is powerful for style transfer, character consistency, and creating variations.
[image URL] a portrait in the same style, but with different lightingUse double colons (::) to separate concepts and control their relative weight:
cyberpunk city::2 neon lights::1 rain::0.5Higher numbers give more weight to that concept.
Upload multiple images and blend them together. Use the /blend command in Discord or the blend feature in the web editor.
The web editor allows you to select regions of an image and regenerate just that portion. This is invaluable for fixing small issues without regenerating the entire image.
Use --sref [image URL] to tell Midjourney to match the style of a reference image. This creates consistency across multiple generations.
--s 100), add terms like "natural," "authentic," "candid," and specify realistic lighting conditions.
--no distorted face negative prompt.
--c 50 gives you more variety to find unexpected directions.Midjourney is powerful but not unlimited:
Midjourney V7 represents the current pinnacle of accessible AI art generation. Its combination of ease of use and output quality makes it the recommendation for anyone who wants beautiful results without a steep learning curve. While power users may eventually want the flexibility of Stable Diffusion or the photorealism of Flux, Midjourney remains the best starting point for most creators.
The platform continues to evolve rapidly, with new features added regularly. Stay engaged with the community, experiment constantly, and don't be afraid to push the boundaries of what you think is possible.
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