media-prompt-craft

name

media-prompt-craft

description

Craft effective prompts for AI image/video generation and search queries for stock photo services. Translates design direction and styleguide choices into specific, style-consistent prompts. Use when the user asks to "find images for my site", "generate a hero image", "what kind of images should I use", "create image prompts for my project", "write prompts for image generation", "Unsplash query for...", or when building a media asset list for a design project. Works with any styleguide and delegates actual generation to media-plugin.

Media Prompt Craft

The bridge between design intent and media execution. Translates styleguide choices into specific, style-consistent prompts for image/video generation and stock photo search queries.

Operates inside the brief. This skill is the prompt/query craft used at steps 5–6 of the visual-planning gate (for image, video, and stock-photo assets). Run visual-planning first to clarify the ask, lock the style, and decide what's IN/OUT — then use the techniques here to turn that into a precise prompt.

When to Use

• User needs images for a website, app, or presentation
• User has a styleguide and needs matching media assets
• User asks "what images should I use for my landing page?"
• User wants to generate hero images, illustrations, or backgrounds
• User needs Unsplash/stock photo search queries
• User wants consistent visual style across multiple images

When NOT to Use

• User wants to generate the actual image → use media-plugin/image-generation
• User wants to search stock photos directly → use media-plugin/image-sourcing
• User hasn't defined a design direction yet → use styleguide skill first
• User wants to fetch SVG icons → use media-plugin/icon-library

Prompt-from-Styleguide Workflow

Before writing prompts, extract the visual DNA from the project's styleguide:

1. Color keywords — "warm earth tones", "cool blues and slate", "neon on dark"
2. Mood — "serene and calm", "energetic and bold", "professional and trustworthy"
3. Photography style — "editorial", "candid", "moody", "bright and airy"
4. Composition preferences — "minimal negative space", "dynamic angles", "centered subjects"
5. Subject matter — "people", "abstract", "landscapes", "technology"

These become your style prefix — a reusable string that ensures visual consistency.

Prompt Anatomy

Every effective image prompt follows this structure:

[Subject] + [Composition] + [Lighting] + [Color palette] + [Style] + [Mood] + [Technical] + [Negative]

Component	What it controls	Example
Subject	What's in the image	"a woman working at a standing desk"
Composition	How it's framed	"shot from slightly above, rule of thirds"
Lighting	Light quality and direction	"soft natural window light, golden hour warmth"
Color palette	Color characteristics	"warm earth tones, muted terracotta and sage"
Style	Visual treatment	"editorial photography, shallow depth of field"
Mood	Emotional quality	"calm, focused, intentional"
Technical	Resolution and format	"16:9 aspect ratio, high resolution"
Negative	What to avoid	"no stock photo feel, no forced smiles"

Style Consistency System

Define a style prefix that encodes the project's visual DNA, then append subject-specific details for each image:

STYLE PREFIX (reuse for every image):
"Editorial photography, warm earth tones, natural golden hour lighting,
shallow depth of field, grain texture, muted color grading"

IMAGE 1 — Hero:
[style prefix] + "wide shot of a modern coworking space, plants and
natural materials, people collaborating casually, 16:9"

IMAGE 2 — Feature card:
[style prefix] + "close-up of hands typing on a laptop, coffee nearby,
wooden desk surface, 3:4"

IMAGE 3 — Team section:
[style prefix] + "candid portrait of a smiling professional, neutral
background, waist-up framing, 1:1"

The style prefix ensures all images feel like they belong together.

Stock Photo Query Strategy

Stock photo searches require different techniques than AI generation prompts.

Query Construction Formula

[Subject] + [Mood/Setting] + [Style modifier]

Bad queries (too generic):

• "office" → returns generic stock
• "team meeting" → forced smiles, staged poses
• "technology" → blue glowing screens

Good queries (specific and styled):

• "candid coworking warm natural light" → authentic workspace
• "team collaboration casual modern office plants" → natural team shots
• "developer laptop minimal desk setup" → genuine tech imagery

Keyword Layering

Layer keywords to narrow results:

Layer	Purpose	Examples
Subject	What to find	workspace, portrait, cityscape
Mood	Emotional quality	warm, dramatic, serene, energetic
Setting	Environment	outdoor, studio, minimal, urban
Style	Visual treatment	aerial, close-up, silhouette, flat-lay
Color	Palette hint	dark, pastel, monochrome, earth-tones

Example: "aerial cityscape dusk warm tones" > "city at night"

Unsplash-Specific Tips

• Use adjectives more than nouns — "serene mountain lake" not just "lake"
• Combine mood + subject — "cozy reading corner" not "bookshelf"
• Add material/texture keywords — "concrete texture", "marble surface"
• Specify "no people" or "with people" for better results
• Use size parameters: ?w=1440&q=80 for hero images, ?w=640&q=80 for cards

See references/search-strategy.md for advanced query patterns.

Media Type Patterns

Hero Backgrounds

For AI generation:

"Abstract [mood] background, [color palette keywords], flowing organic shapes,
subtle gradient transitions, no text, wide format 16:9, high resolution"

For stock photos:

Query: "[mood] abstract background [color] minimal"
Size: ?w=1920&q=85

Feature Illustrations

For AI generation:

"[Style] illustration of [concept], [color palette], clean composition,
[flat/3D/isometric] style, white or transparent background, centered, 1:1"

For stock photos:

Query: "[concept] icon illustration [style] minimal"
Size: ?w=800&q=80

Team/People Photos

For stock photos (preferred over AI for people):

Query: "candid professional portrait [setting] [mood] natural light"
       "diverse team collaboration [setting] authentic"
Size: ?w=400&q=80 (avatars), ?w=800&q=80 (team section)

Product Mockups

For AI generation:

"Clean product mockup, [device type] displaying [UI description],
[angle — isometric/front/perspective], [background — gradient/desk/minimal],
soft shadow, photorealistic, high resolution"

Abstract Textures & Patterns

For AI generation:

"Seamless [texture type] pattern, [color palette], subtle,
tileable, [material — paper/fabric/marble/concrete], no text"

For stock photos:

Query: "[material] texture [color] background minimal"
Size: ?w=1920&q=85

Video Backgrounds

For AI generation (via media-plugin/video-generation):

"Slow-motion [subject], [mood], [color grading], cinematic,
subtle movement, seamless loop, no text, 16:9, 10 seconds"

Style Vocabulary Quick Reference

See references/style-vocabulary.md for the comprehensive vocabulary. Key terms:

Lighting: golden hour, rim light, soft diffused, dramatic high-contrast, backlit, overcast flat Composition: rule of thirds, centered, negative space, leading lines, frame within frame, aerial/bird's eye Mood: serene, dramatic, whimsical, austere, intimate, epic, cozy, energetic Color: muted, saturated, pastel, monochromatic, complementary, analogous, earth-tones Style: photorealistic, flat illustration, isometric, watercolor, 3D render, editorial, cinematic

Cross-Plugin References

• media-plugin/image-generation — use mcp__media-mcp__generate_image with the crafted prompts
• media-plugin/image-sourcing — use with the crafted search queries for Unsplash/Pexels/Pixabay
• media-plugin/video-generation — use mcp__media-mcp__generate_video for video backgrounds
• media-plugin/icon-library — for SVG icons (don't generate these, fetch pre-made ones)
• styleguide skill — create the design language FIRST, then use this skill to translate it into prompts

Tips

• Always craft a style prefix first — consistency matters more than individual quality
• Stock photos for people, AI generation for abstract/conceptual — AI struggles with natural-looking humans
• Include negative prompts to avoid common AI artifacts: "no watermark, no text, no distortion"
• Test your Unsplash queries before committing — search results vary significantly with keyword order
• For presentations, reference office-plugin/pptx for recommended image dimensions per slide type