Irrespective of your selection of AI picture generator, there’s one downside plaguing the group with seemingly no repair in sight: consistency.

AI fashions do not have an idea of visible reminiscence. What this implies is you could’t generate the identical type or character twice. There’ll all the time be a distinction, regardless of how exhausting you attempt.

Properly, seems like Midjourney found out a approach.

With type reference, you possibly can copy one other picture’s artwork type with out ever understanding the immediate behind it. On this article, we’ll speak about what precisely is type reference, learn how to use it, and a few examples to point out you the way it works.

What’s a Fashion Reference?

Have you ever ever favored a picture however couldn’t replicate the type and vibe of it on Midjourney? That’s what the type reference characteristic tries to repair. It extracts the type of the reference picture (therefore, type reference) so you should use it on your immediate with out really understanding learn how to phrase it. The very best factor is that you should use any picture, not simply different Midjourney pictures.

How To Use Midjourney’s Fashion Reference Function

To make use of this new characteristic, it’s essential to use Midjourney on Discord, even in case you have entry to their alpha web site. From there, kind your immediate as you often do however, on the finish, add an –sref parameter. Following that, merely copy and paste a hyperlink to your type reference picture (you possibly can add as many as you need) and generate. Oh and don’t neglect so as to add –v6 too. Right here’s an instance:

You too can management the power of stylization utilizing the –-sw parameter adopted by a quantity. 0 is the bottom, 100 is default, and 1000 is the utmost worth.

Reference Picture

Immediate: a cat staring out a window –v 6.0 –ar 16:9 –sref [Reference Image Link] –sw 25

Immediate: a cat staring out a window –v 6.0 –ar 16:9 –sref [Reference Image Link] –sw 800

Discover how the primary cat picture did not even apply an anime artwork type to the picture, as an alternative simply centered on a few of the most inconsequential components of the reference picture, just like the crops, picket windowsill, and topic place.

Then again, setting the type weight to 800 not solely adopted the reference picture’s artwork type, but in addition overcompensated in some methods. That is most evident within the cat’s “hair,” which seems too much like the lady’s hair within the reference.

Fashion Reference vs. Picture Prompts

If you happen to’ve been utilizing Midjourney for some time, you’d know that it has all the time been in a position to make use of pictures as prompts.

So, what’s the distinction? Let’s break it down.

A Midjourney immediate has three main components: the topic, the supporting particulars, and the parameters. Let’s disregard the final one for now. What picture prompts do is that it integrates the picture into your immediate. That means that it’ll embrace the topic and all. Take this reference picture for an instance:

Now, let’s attempt utilizing it as a picture immediate.

Immediate: abraham lincoln [Image Link] –v 6.0 –ar 16:9

It does not look misplaced, proper? Like somebody took Sincere Abe’s image and pasted it immediately into the picture.

Then again, type reference solely takes the supporting particulars (kinds) and never the topic. This makes it much more versatile. Right here’s what the final immediate seems like with type reference as an alternative of picture prompts:

Immediate: abraham lincoln –v 6.0 –ar 16:9 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Discover how nicely it blends? It is far more pure with type reference. That is particularly superb for mixing two pictures collectively if you happen to want the topic from one picture and the artwork type of the opposite.

Midjourney Fashion Reference Examples

So, sufficient dialogue, let’s see Midjourney’s new characteristic in motion.

With Different Midjourney Photos

Utilizing type reference with different Midjourney pictures is a game-changer in sustaining consistency. This might show helpful once you discover a picture whose type you actually like within the 4 picture variations you get with every immediate, however you need to change the topic. 

This additionally solves the problem of immediate gatekeeping in Midjourney communities. You don’t need to ask for his or her immediate anymore, you simply want a duplicate of their picture and use it as a mode reference. 

Immediate: an ocean –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: brand design of a sneaker –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: a person ny skyline –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: seamless sample of autumn leaves –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: a whale –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: a tall lighthouse –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: poseidon –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: zendaya –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Utilizing Non-AI Paintings

To me, that is probably the most sensible use of fashion reference. If you happen to discover a area of interest {photograph} or paintings that you just actually like, you couldn’t possible generate the type with base Midjourney completely. Now, you possibly can simply use it because the type of your immediate. 

Immediate: a canine –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: a lady tidying her mattress –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Immediate: a well-dressed man in an empty street –v 6.0 –sref [Reference Image Link]

Wrapping Up

Midjourney has been on a roll since releasing V6 late final 12 months. Within the span of 1 month, they launched a brand new model, rolled out an alpha internet model, unveiled a brand new Niji mannequin, cleaned up their internet interface, and launched V5 options to V6. Fashion reference is a good addition to their already sturdy performance.

The best way issues are shaping out now, it is exhausting to see Midjourney getting toppled and not using a important enchancment to different picture turbines reminiscent of DALL-E 3. It is also attention-grabbing they’re enhancing their mannequin by listening to what their consumer base wants. Textual content era, higher nuance, an internet interface, and now consistency.

Really, is there something that Midjourney cannot do?

Earlier than you allow, try our full evaluate of Midjourney right here, in addition to our comparability articles with different picture era fashions. You probably have entry to Midjourney, give type referencing a attempt to tell us the way it goes within the feedback.