# When to start from a reference photo instead of a text prompt

A text prompt is the right starting point when you are inventing a scene. A reference photo is the right starting point when the scene already exists in the world and you need control over a shape, a layout, or a product that must remain itself. People often mix these jobs in one request and then blame the model for changing the thing they needed to keep.

Use a reference when the silhouette of the object matters. A bottle with an unusual shoulder, a chair with a distinctive leg, or a device with a specific port layout will drift if you describe it only in words. The reference does not have to be beautiful. It has to be clear. A well-lit, square-on product photo is often more useful than a stylish lifestyle shot with busy shadows.

Use a reference when you must preserve a layout. If a poster, a slide, or a pack front already has a type hierarchy and a safe margin, starting from text alone will invent a new layout every draft. You can still write a text prompt for light and mood, but the layout should come from the reference, and the brief should say that layout is locked.

Skip the reference when you only have a weak snapshot that fights the job. A dim phone photo with mixed light, a watermark, or a cluttered table will drag those problems into the drafts. In that case, write a clean text brief and, if you need the object shape, retake a simple reference rather than forcing a bad photo through the model.

Also skip the reference when you actually want a new composition. Teams sometimes attach a competitor image and then complain that the result looks like the competitor. If you only wanted the lighting, crop or describe that trait and do not hand the model the whole frame. One trait per reference is easier to control than a full-page inspiration dump.

Write what the reference is for. A sentence such as “use this photo for the bottle shape and label placement; invent a new kitchen background; keep daylight from the left” is a brief. “Make it better” is not. If the model has a field for strength or weight, start in the middle and change only that value after you see whether the shape holds.

Check identity before you check style. If the object in the first drafts is already a different product, do not waste time on color grading. Reject the batch, lower the creative range or raise the reference influence, and try a cleaner source photo. Style can be adjusted after the object is itself. The reverse order is how a session burns credits.

A browser workspace is enough for this test if it lets you attach one still, write a short brief, and compare a few outputs against the source. this AI image tool fits that loop when you want to stay on one page and decide, draft by draft, whether the reference is helping or getting in the way.

Watch for legal and practical limits. A reference you do not have rights to use should not become the base of a commercial still. A photo that includes a person may require the same care you would give any other likeness. If your team does not have a simple rights note next to the file, stop and add one before you generate a set you might want to publish.

When the drafts are close, do not keep stacking extra references. Add a text constraint instead: same camera height, same label size, no extra props. Multiple references often argue with each other. A single source plus a written lock on the traits you care about is usually calmer and easier to review.

If text-only drafts are already good enough for the job, you do not have to use a reference out of habit. Reference workflows add setup time. They earn that time when a specific object or layout must survive. They waste that time when you are exploring. Say which kind of session you are in before you attach a file.

Close by saving the source photo, the brief, and the chosen still together. The next person should be able to see what was locked and what was allowed to change. Without that package, a later revision will start from the output alone and slowly drift away from the product you were supposed to keep.