Skip to main content

How to use Midjourney to generate AI images

The era of AI-generated artwork is upon us, and the internet is filled with users trying to create the perfect prompts to lead AIs to create just the right images – or sometimes, just the wrong ones. Sound like fun? One of the more common AI tools is Midjourney, which people use to create dreamlike landscapes and subjects with just a few words.

Difficulty

Easy

Duration

15 minutes

What You Need

  • Discord account

If you’d like to experiment with Midjourney, we’ve got good news: It’s free to sign up, and you can start trying out the AI generator in just a few minutes. Here’s everything you need to know about using it for the first time.

How to start using Midjourney

Step 1: Make sure you have a Discord login. Midjourney works entirely on Discord, so you’ll need an account there to use it. Signing up for Discord is also free if you haven’t done it yet.

Step 2: Visit the Midjourney website. Here, choose Join the beta. This will automatically take you to a Discord invite.

Midjourney Join the Beta.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 3: Accept the Discord invite to Midjourney. Choose to Continue to Discord.

Midjourney Accept Invite.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 4: Your Discord app will not automatically open. When it does, select the ship-like Midjourney icon on the left menu.

Step 5: In the Midjourney channels, locate the Newcomer rooms. There will typically be a number of newcomer rooms open, with names like “newbies-108.” You can select any of these to begin.

Newcomer Rooms in Midjourney.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 6: Now you’re ready to begin creating AI art. Before you get started, note that you only have a certain number of prompt options available as part of your free trial. You can create around 25 free images. After that, you’ll have to purchase a full membership to continue. If you would rather not spend any money, it’s a good idea to take some time and think about just what you want to create on Midjourney. If you want, you can type “/help” to get a list of tips to peruse.

Step 7: When ready, type “/imagine” in the Discord chat for your newbies room. This will create a prompt field where you can type the image description. The more precise that you can be with your description, the better the AI will be able to produce good results. Be descriptive, and if there’s a particular style that you are looking for, include it in your description. There are terms of conduct to follow here, but if you keep things clean, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about.

When finished, select Enter to send your prompt.

Midjourney Image Options.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 8: Give Midjourney a minute to generate your images. Typically, the AI will create several different versions based on your description. You now have a number of options to continue.

Look below the images, and you’ll see a section of U and V buttons labeled 1 through 4. The numbers correspond to the four images that Midjourney produced. Choosing U will upscale that particular image into a larger, more defined version. Choosing V will create an all-new image based on the present image that you choose. You will also see a refresh button to the side to request a new set of images. Keep in mind that each of these choices will use up some of your available free prompts, so only do it if you are sure you want to proceed.

Step 9: If you find an image that you like and choose U to upscale it, you will be given a new set of options. You can choose to Make variations on that image, Upscale to max before you download, or choose a Light upscale redo if it’s not quite what you wanted, among other options.

When finished, you can DM the image directly to yourself by selecting the Envelope emoji and adding it to your chat. That allows you to save and download the image whenever you want.

Midjourney Single Image Options.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Step 10: If you plan on using a lot of Midjourney, you can use any bot channel in Midjourney’s Discord and type “/subscribe.” This will create a link that you can follow to pay for a subscription. Those who are really serious about using Midjourney in the long term will also want to take a look at the manual, which will provide you with a greater list of commands and some advice about how to create images.

For more AI image-generating options, check out what Microsoft is doing in the field, too.

Editors' Recommendations

Tyler Lacoma
If it can be streamed, voice-activated, made better with an app, or beaten by mashing buttons, Tyler's into it. When he's not…
Amazon expands use of generative AI to summarize product reviews
An AI-generated review highlight on Amazon's website.

Amazon is rolling out the use of generative-AI technology to summarize customer product reviews on its shopping site.

It follows several months of testing the feature, which is designed to help speed up the shopping experience for those who don’t want to spend a long time trawling through endless reviews.

Read more
PhotoShop Generative Fill is making me good at PhotoShop again
Composite image of generative fill and background in photoshop.

Adobe PhotoShop has hopped onto the artificial intelligence hype train with some new and exciting features that are making me feel like a PhotoShop wiz again. After decades of using this tool, I have fallen into habits and routines, and I rarely explore new features. Generative Fill is making me feel like I'm on the cutting edge again, and it's saving me a lot of time in the process.

It's like an AI image generator in PhotoShop. Here's how to use Generative Fill to do all sorts of fun things in PhotoShop more quickly and easily than ever before.

Read more
Zoom backpedals, says it will no longer use user content to train AI
A woman on a Zoom call.

Like everyone else, Zoom has added AI features to improve its app and videoconferencing service. We all love the ease and speed AI provides, but there are often concerns about the data used to train models, and Zoom has been at the center of the controversy. It's backpedaling now, saying it won't use user content to train its AI models.

News leaked in May 2022 that Zoom was working on emotion-sensing AI that could analyze faces in meetings. Beyond the potential for inaccurate analysis, the results could be discriminatory.

Read more