2.1 – Writing Your First Midjourney Prompt Lesson

Lesson Overview

Getting started with Midjourney image prompts may feel overwhelming, but having a clear formula makes the creative process much smoother. This lesson introduces a simple, repeatable structure for writing prompts that guides both your imagination and the AI’s interpretation. You’ll learn how to divide a prompt into key sections—medium, style, composition, scene, and atmosphere—so you can communicate your ideas with precision.

This structure helps manage both simple and detailed prompts. Whether you want to describe an exact scene or just give a rough idea, you can add or skip sections as needed. For example, you might prompt “charcoal drawing, wide shot, jazz musician in a smoky club” or build something more minimal. By splitting your idea into organized chunks, you make your request easier for the AI to interpret and more likely to result in images you’re happy with.

This lesson is helpful for anyone who is new to Midjourney or those struggling to get consistent results from their prompts. The examples shown echo real creative requests, like portraits in different styles or vivid scenes with strong moods. Once you grasp this breakdown, you’ll have a repeatable tool to turn your imagination into visual results.

Who This Is For

If you’re new to image prompting, or looking for more control over your Midjourney results, this lesson is designed for you. It’s useful for:

• Artists and designers bringing their concepts to life with AI
• Marketers seeking visuals that match a campaign’s theme
• Educators and students using imagery for presentations or learning materials
• Business owners wanting original images for products or branding
• Content creators and bloggers improving posts with unique illustrations

Where This Fits in a Workflow

Learning the prompt structure is the foundation for all further work in Midjourney: you can’t get tailored results without clear instructions. This step comes before exploring advanced features like reference images or complex parameters. For example, when planning a project, you might start by drafting a few simple prompts using this method, review the initial outputs, and then refine your approach by adjusting individual prompt parts.

If you’re building a content strategy, you can rapidly test multiple prompt variations to find an image style that matches your brand identity. Similarly, for presentations or lesson planning, clear prompting enables quick creation of visuals that fit your specific needs without endless trial and error.

Technical & Workflow Benefits

Organizing your prompt into distinct sections—medium, style, composition, scene, and atmosphere—saves time and keeps your requests consistent. The manual way would be trial-and-error: typing long, unstructured sentences and hoping for good results. This method turns prompting into a repeatable process you can adapt each time, instead of rewriting from scratch.

For instance, wanting a retro jazz club scene can mean experimenting just by swapping “charcoal drawing” for “digital illustration,” or “smoky” for “bright.” Breaking prompts into chunks also makes it easier to communicate ideas with collaborators or adapt for different projects. Whether working solo or on a team, this workflow reduces guesswork and gives you more predictable, high-quality images.

Practice Exercise

Use a scenario relevant to your work or interests—a simple portrait, a landscape, or a product shot. Open Midjourney and follow these steps:

1. Choose a subject and build a prompt by specifying:
   1. Medium (e.g., watercolor painting, digital illustration)
   2. Style (e.g., retro, cyberpunk, black and white)
   3. Composition (e.g., portrait shot, wide shot)
   4. Scene (describe what’s happening, location, props)
   5. Atmosphere (lighting, mood, time of day, weather)
2. Enter your prompt in Midjourney and view the generated images.
3. Compare the result to your original vision. Which section of your prompt had the biggest impact on the final image?

Course Context Recap

This lesson forms the core of your prompt-writing skills in Midjourney Mastery. Previously, you were introduced to the general concept of prompt structure and its components. Now, you’ve practiced breaking down and organizing your first detailed text prompt. Up next, you’ll learn how to unlock even more creative potential with advanced tools and options inside Midjourney. Continue through the course to develop expert-level control over your AI-generated images.