Prompting My Way to Better Visuals
For a project we're currently developing, I wanted to create a project management "planning style" personality quiz as an engagement activity at the beginning of a module. One of the things I've enjoyed most about using AI for visuals is how quickly I can iterate on an idea by refining the prompts rather than starting from scratch each time. The Final Result Rather than using any one generated image exactly as produced, I treated each version as a design exploration. I combined elements from several iterations to create the final introductory slide for the activity. To get to the final result. I used a series of prompts: Step 1. Starting with a General Concept I usually begin with a broad prompt and then refine it based on the results. For this project, I started with: "Create a 16:9 illustration with a construction theme to introduce a project planner personality quiz." This prompt relied on an earlier prompt that generated the quiz concept itself: "Create a project planner personality quiz with different personas. The quiz should involve 5 to 10 questions and make scoring simple, such as based on score ranges or whichever answer letter appears most often." The first image captured the overall concept well, but it wasn't quite right. Step 2. Revising and Refining The initial illustration felt a little too youthful for my audience. It reminded me more of an animated children's style than something designed for adult learners entering the telecom workforce. So my next prompt was: "Make this more photorealistic. Ensure all people are wearing appropriate eye protection." While I liked the direction, I realized the rest of the module used illustrated graphics rather than realistic artwork. Instead of starting over, I continued refining the same image with another prompt: "Modify the characters so they are styled like a graphic novel for an adult audience." The style now fit the audience much better, but the colors were darker than the rest of the course branding. My final refinement was: "Modify to a brighter pop art style. Ensure all workers are wearing proper PPE, with no jewelry and hair properly restrained."Watercolor style / vintage illustrations
Hi, ELH community! I'd like to share a preview of my newest Storyline project, currently still a work in progress. The Secret Life of Food is an interactive learning experience that explores how everyday foods such as chocolate, potatoes, tea, coffee, and spices have influenced trade, exploration, culture, and world history. For this project, I wanted to move away from a traditional corporate look and experiment with a more immersive visual approach. I chose an old explorer's atlas aesthetic, combining watercolor botanical illustrations, vintage maps, and historically inspired characters to create the feeling of traveling through a living journal of discoveries. Learners are guided by Catarina de Silva, a fictional naturalist and explorer, as they uncover the surprising journeys behind some of the world's most familiar foods. The project is still under development, but I'd love to hear your thoughts on the visual style and overall direction. Thanks for taking a look! PROMPTS: (used for creating images in Chat GPT, Storyline AI) General style: "Vintage explorer journal aesthetic, watercolor and gouache illustration, warm parchment textures, hand-painted botanical details, historical cartography elements, museum exhibit quality, Age of Exploration atmosphere, elegant educational artwork, rich earthy palette, antique paper, subtle ink sketches, highly detailed, soft painterly rendering, casual realistic character design, storybook realism, professional educational illustration, Articulate Storyline course artwork, clean composition, high quality digital painting, National Geographic educational style, transparent background when applicable" Characters: "Full-body character illustration, casual realistic style, hand-painted digital artwork, realistic proportions, expressive face, educational museum-quality illustration, inspired by historical exploration journals, detailed clothing and accessories, subtle watercolor textures, soft brushwork, warm natural lighting, elegant pose, believable anatomy, high level of detail, not cartoon, not anime, not photorealistic, transparent background PNG." Backgrounds: "Vintage illustrated background, explorer journal aesthetic, watercolor map textures, antique parchment, botanical details, warm earthy colors, educational exhibit design, historical atmosphere, hand-painted digital artwork, highly detailed environment, immersive storytelling scene, suitable for eLearning course background, subtle depth, readable composition."
