Thanks to text-to-image AI models, you currently don't even need a camera to create beautiful nature photography. Ever since the fifth iteration of Midjourney was released to the public and making photorealistic images became easier, AI artists started to dedicate a lot of time and effort to write the perfect prompts for nature.
Photography is included in the broader definition of the visual arts. It can be characterized either as commercial art or fine art. Midjourney has made it easier than ever before to create this type of art. Yet it takes a lot of practice to come up with good Midjourney prompts for nature photography.
Today, I'm excited to share some of the prompts I've written and used to generate what I deem beautiful images of nature. I've tried to include a variety of landscapes in these images. But before I show you the results, I want to take a minute or two to talk about how you can write good Midjourney prompts for nature.
How to Write Midjourney Prompts for Nature
The first thing you need to remember is that you're looking to generate photorealistic images. That fact alone will have a lot of impact on your prompts.
Let me explain.
It's always best to give clear instructions to the AI model on what you want to create. That means that you should mention at the beginning of each prompt that you want photorealistic images to be generated.
There's another neat trick you can use to ensure good results with these types of prompts. You can mention one of the popular cameras that photographers have used over the last few years. To save you some time, I've compiled a short list of cameras you can use in your prompts:
- Canon EOS R5
- Canon EOS R6
- Sony A9
- Sony A6400
- Sony A7R III
- Nikon D850
- Fujifilm X-T4
To get the most out of this technique, you should also mention a specific focal length in your prompts. If you're creating landscape images, you should use a 14mm, 18mm, 21mm, or 24mm focal length.
I won't use this technique in all of my prompts, but I do make use of it in most of them.
If this doesn't make too much sense right now, you'll find out what I mean in the next section of the article.
12 Midjourney Prompts for Nature Photography
You've learned a nice trick that you can use to write quality prompts, but there's also one more piece of advice I'd like to give. Take some time with each prompt and try to describe exactly what you imagine in your mind when you think of nature.
It's important to be both descriptive and concise with your prompts. Don't make it too long, but also try to describe exactly what you've imagined. Here's what my prompts for nature photography look like.
/imagine photorealistic image captured by a drone, aerial view of a winding river carving its way through rugged landscapes, rural America, breathtaking scene, award-winning image --ar 16:9 --v 5
This is what I meant when I wrote in the previous section that I won't be mentioning a specific camera model or focal length in every prompt. Some of the best nature photos I've seen were captured by a drone. I wanted to recreate that with this prompt, and I'd say that Midjourney did an excellent job of generating this image.
/imagine photorealistic image, macro photography, 105mm lens, delicate petals covered in morning dew, beautiful flower, nature, spring --ar 16:9 --v 5
It's very important to know what type of focal length you need to mention in the prompt. In the previous section of this article, I didn't talk about this specific focal length. The focal lengths I mentioned previously should be used for landscape photography.
If you want to generate a macro shot image, I suggest you mention the 105mm focal length in your prompt, as that's what photographers usually use when they're taking photos like this.
/imagine photorealistic image shot with Canon EOS R5, 21mm lens, vast field of vibrant wildflowers that stretches as far as eyes can see, vibrant colors, nature, hot summer day --ar 16:9 --v 5
This looks majestic, but I personally don't see myself walking through this field in real life. I bet there'd be a lot of insects there, and I'm not too fond of them, to be honest. If you want to play around with this prompt, I suggest you add small details like butterflies flying near the flowers or something similar to that.
/imagine photorealistic image captured with Sony A9, 24mm lens, cascading series of waterfalls forming a picturesque scene of water flowing gracefully through rugged terrain --ar 16:9 --v 5
I love the sound waterfalls make and gladly visit them whenever I'm near one. When I think about nature, waterfalls are usually the first thing that pop into my mind. I really like the image Midjourney generated for this prompt. It looks like it would be a spot with a low number of tourists.
/imagine photorealistic image, macro photography, 105mm lens, delicate spiderwebs adorned with dewdrops, misty morning, spring --ar 16:9 --v 5
My original plan was to include only one macro photography prompt in this article. But when I wrote the first prompt and saw the generated output, I knew that I had to do one more. I've seen photos like this many times, so it made sense to create an AI-generated version.
/imagine photorealistic image, vibrant coral reef teeming with life beneath the crystal-clear waters, showcasing the intricate patterns, vivid colors, and diverse marine ecosystem --ar 16:9 --v 5
I love the underwater world. It's so calming to observe the vibrant colors of coral reefs and see a variety of fish swimming right beside you. As a society, we need to do better and reduce the pollution of our oceans. People usually don't spend too much time thinking about how small changes in our behavior can help the underwater world.
/imagine photorealistic image captured with Sony A7R III, 18mm lens, breathtaking sunset on an empty sand beach, small tides, ocean, majestic --ar 16:9 --v 5
I'm a person who loves cold weather. I'm not particularly fond of the summer. The only exception I have is when there is a big body of water nearby. When I can go for a swim within a minute, I'm able to spend the whole day basking in the sun. Otherwise, you can find me wherever there is an air conditioner.
/imagine photorealistic image captured with Fujifilm X-T4, 21mm lens, dense fog rolling over a serene meadow, cold spring morning, tranquil, calm --ar 16:9 --v 5
This is an environment I like far more than the beach. Give me a misty morning in a calm and tranquil meadow, and I'll be happy for the rest of the day. I have to say that this image is by far the most photorealistic result in this article, in my opinion.
/imagine photorealistic image captured with Canon EOS R6, forest path lined with ancient trees with their gnarled roots weaving through the mossy ground, calming --ar 16:9 --v 5
The perfect place for a hike. The trees look really powerful in this image, which is exactly what I had in mind when I wrote "ancient trees" in my prompt. It would look even better if I upscaled it.
If you want to know how to effectively scale your Midjourney images, you can check out my article on Upscayl. This is completely free and open-source software that can take images generated in Midjourney to the next level.
/imagine photorealistic image captured by a drone, aerial view of a swamp with vast stretches of marshland intermingle with winding waterways, a balanced mix of swamp flora and fauna --ar 16:9 --v 5
Remember how I said earlier in this article that I don't like insects? I dislike them so much that I couldn't even muster up the courage to generate a close-up image of a swamp. I only want to see what it would look like from a drone. Just kidding, but there is some truth in that.
/imagine photorealistic image shot with Nikon D850, 21mm lens, forest pond mirrored by the reflection of towering trees --ar 16:9 --v 5
This is an incredibly simple prompt. If you skip the part where I mention a specific camera model and focal length, the prompt consists of only several words. I don't usually use prompts this short. I at least include a few keywords. But in some cases, prompts this simple can produce outstanding results.
/imagine photorealistic image shot with Sony A6400, 24mm lens, crystal-clear alpine lake nestled amidst snow-capped mountains, sunny winter day, fresh air, breathtaking --ar 16:9 --v 5
If I had one wish right now, it would be to instantly teleport to this place. This lake looks absolutely stunning. I could easily spend the whole day here.
Final Thoughts
One of my favorite activities in Midjourney is to create photorealistic images. Considering how quickly the capabilities of this AI model evolve, it's normal to expect Midjourney to get even better at creating realistic images.
I would say that at the time of writing this article, there is a good chance you can tell whether an image was created using artificial intelligence. There are usually details you'll notice in an image that will help you identify whether it's an AI-generated image.
I firmly believe that AI art will become insanely popular in the future. Regardless of what type of images you like to create as an AI artist, there will likely be demand for it.
One of the best things you can do right now is practice your prompting skills. Experiment with different techniques to find out which prompts yield the best results. Do this and your AI art will stand out.
