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What is Midjourney and why it matters to youMidjourney is a creative, game-changing AI tool that turns your text prompts into beautifully crafted images in seconds. Using advanced algorithms, it interprets your textual descriptions—known as prompts—to produce high-quality, unique visuals that your target audience will love. Whether you're a graphic designer, UI designer, UX designer, or just someone who wants to create any type of design, integrating Midjourney into your workflow is like having a genie in a bottle for your design needs. It grants you the power to produce exceptional results that resonate with your target audience, all while drastically cutting down the time and effort traditionally spent on crafting visuals from scratch or sifting through stock libraries filled with overused, non-original content. Midjourney is now stronger than ever with the newest versions: Midjourney Version 5.2 and Midjourney Niji.
Midjourney shines as a versatile creative partner for anyone in the digital space. If you're a UX/UI designer, the platform unlocks a universe of opportunities, from generating product UI inspirations to creating unique illustrations in a snap. For digital marketers, it's about churning out campaign visuals that actually resonate with your audience—no more settling for "good enough." Content creators can use Midjourney to produce imagery that's perfectly in sync with their message, whether they’re crafting blog posts, YouTube videos, or social media content. Even architects and photographers find value here.
Midjourney runs through Discord, an environment you might associate more with gaming or community chats rather than cutting-edge design. Yet, it's this unique choice of platform that sets Midjourney apart. Discord allows real-time collaboration and provides the opportunity to observe what other creatives are generating, enriching your own design experience. While the initial sign-up and orientation on Discord can be a bit overwhelming for some, rest assured that we'll guide you through a detailed step-by-step process in this blog post. Stay tuned for our subsequent post offering advanced tips and techniques on how to get the best out of Midjourney.
Many designers ask us, "Is Midjourney free?" The straightforward answer is no. To unlock its powerful features, you'll need to opt for one of its subscription plans.
Midjourney offers three primary plans: Basic, Standard, and Pro. The Basic plan starts at $10 per month, the Standard plan at $30, and the Pro plan at $60. Each plan comes with its own set of features and allowances for generating images.In essence, the more you pay, the more you get in terms of fast GPU allowances for quicker image generation. Higher-end plans even offer unlimited image generation, albeit with some wait time.One standout feature in the Pro Plan is the availability of Stealth Mode. With this feature, your generated images remain private, visible only to you. This is a contrast to the other plans, where your prompts and generated images are publicly visible within the Midjourney Discord channel. For professionals who require a level of confidentiality or exclusivity, this can be a significant advantage.
Finally, you might be wondering, "Is Midjourney worth it?" While the monthly cost for Midjourney isn't exactly on the low end, the value you receive in terms of time-saving, creativity, and unique output is substantial.
Let's dive right into how you can sign up for Midjourney. We're going to go through this process step-by-step to make it as clear as possible for you. Each step is accompanied by an image to help guide you through the process.
If you don't already have one, head to Discord's website and click on "Open Discord in Your Browser. If you already have a Discord account, skip to the step 6.
Let's dive right into how you can sign up for Midjourney. We're going to go through this process step-by-step to make it as clear as possible for you. Each step is accompanied by an image to help guide you through the process.
Continue the registration by adding your date of birth and other details. During this process, you might get a pop-up suggesting you create your own server. Feel free to click the 'X' if you don't want to do that.
After confirming your email address, you'll be brought to the Discord interface.
On the left side, click on the navigation icon as highlighted in the accompanying image.
You should now see a list of featured communities. If Midjourney isn't near the top, use the search bar to find it and click on the Midjourney community.
A welcome pop-up should appear. Click on "Getting Started."
You're now in the Midjourney channel. Look for a button at the top that says "Join Midjourney" and click it.
Congratulations, you're now a member! Navigate to one of the newcomer rooms, such as "newbies-46" as illustrated in the image.
These rooms are where you can start generating AI art. You'll also see creations from other community members here. Anything you write and generate here will be public and seen by other members.
There is also another way to use Midjourney on Discord and that is through direct message. This is a much better way because you will only see your prompts, making it much clearer and easier to interact with. To do this, click on the purple Discord icon at the top left and then tap on "Find or Start a Conversation."
There is also another way to use Midjourney on Discord and that is through direct message. This is a much better way because you will only see your prompts, making it much clearer and easier to interact with. To do this, click on the purple Discord icon at the top left and then tap on "Find or Start a Conversation."
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You are now interacting with Midjourney through a direct message. This is similar to the newcomer rooms, but here you only see your own Midjourney prompts and ai generated images .
You are now interacting with Midjourney through a direct message. This is similar to the newcomer rooms, but here you only see your own Midjourney prompts and ai generated images .
Go to midjourney.com and click "Sign In" at the bottom of the screen.
You'll be prompted to authorize Discord access. Click "Authorize."
Once you're logged into your Midjourney account, you'll see a gallery of all the AI art you've created. You will be also able to see AI arts generated by other people. But most importantly, this is your go-to spot for managing your Midjourney subscription. Here, you can activate a activate, change, or cancel your midjourney subscription.
Once you're in the Midjourney account home, look for the "Subscription" tab usually located in the left-hand corner of your screen. Click on it to explore various Midjourney subscription plans. You'll find an array of options—Basic, Standard, and Pro. Each has different pricing and features, allowing you to choose what fits your needs best. If you're just dipping your toes in, the Basic plan might be sufficient. However, if you want to use it more and have greater flexibility, the Standard plan is a good pick.
Once you've got your subscription set up, return to your direct messages with Midjourney on Discord. Congratulations, you're now ready to generate your first piece of AI art.
To create an image with Midjourney, all you need to do is type the command /imagine followed by your text prompt. A text prompt is essentially your way of telling Midjourney's AI the kind of art you want it to make. For example, if you input "sunset over a calm lake," the AI will get to work and generate art based on that idea.
/imagine car
/imagine nature
/imagine sunflower, sun, warm colours, 4k
Keep in mind that the AI won't always generate exactly what you're hoping for. That's where the art of effective prompting comes in. We'll get into that in our next blog post.
With the command /imagine you can also use advanced prompts containing links to images called image prompts and parameters.
/imagine www.imageURL1 red car --ar 3:2
Click on the command field and type /imagine, then choose the relevant option
Write a simple prompt like /imagine cute animal, building, sky colors, Pixar style to see the magic happen.
Once Midjourney has done its magic, you'll be presented with four distinct images, each representing a different interpretation of your prompt. Below these images, you'll notice buttons labeled U1, U2, U3, U4, and V1, V2, V3, V4. Wondering what these are for? The 'U' buttons allow you to upscale an image, improving its resolution and detail. Each number corresponds to one of the four generated images. So, clicking on U1 will upscale the first image, U2 will upscale the second, and so on. Select the version you like and upscale it. For example, click on U2 to upscale version 2.
Once you upscale your favourite version your result will look like this.
Going back. What do V1, V2, V3 and V4 mean? The 'V' buttons offer a different function: variation. These buttons enable you to create a new but similar version of the corresponding image. Say you like the concept of version 2 but think it could be tweaked a bit more to perfection. Simply click on V2. This will bring up the "Remix Prompt" where you can add or modify elements in the existing image. Want to keep it close to the original? No worries, don't change the prompt, and Midjourney will generate a version that's similar but with subtle differences.
After using the "Remix Prompt" to create a variant, the AI will generate four new versions based on your updated instructions. You'll notice that these new images also have buttons labeled U1, U2, U3, U4, as well as V1, V2, V3, V4. This means you can choose to upscale these new versions or create even more variants.
Once you've upscaled an image that catches your eye, you'll notice four arrow buttons appear. These arrows are not just decorative; they're functional shortcuts for expanding the canvas of your image. The arrows stand for "Pan Left," "Pan Right," "Pan Top," and "Pan Bottom." Selecting one of these arrows will expand your image canvas in that specific direction. The cool part? The new canvas area isn't just blank space. Midjourney fills it in, taking cues from your original prompt and the existing content of the image. This means that the artwork naturally extends into the new space as if it was there from the start. For instance, if you choose "Pan Right," the software will extend the canvas to the right, filling in the area so it seamlessly blends with the original artwork
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Now let's look at other awesome features in Midjourney Vary(strong), Vary (subtle) and Vary(region). The "Vary (region)" option is especially exciting because it allows you to modify specific parts of your upscaled image.
To use "Vary (region)," simply click on the option and you'll have the choice between two selection tools: freehand or rectangular. Pick your tool and then draw around the area of the image you'd like to change. Remember, the size of your selected area matters. A larger area gives Midjourney more room to play and introduce new, creative details, while a smaller area will lead to more subtle, nuanced changes.
Once you've made your selection, Midjourney will regenerate that part of the image based on the parameters you've set. It's an excellent way to direct the AI's focus on areas where you think there's room for improvement or where you'd like to see a variation.
And there you have it! A comprehensive beginner's guide to navigating the versatile and powerful tool that is Midjourney. As you can see, the possibilities are nearly endless.
If you create something cool using Midjourney, we'd love to see it! Tag us on Instagram with @uxpeak_ when you share your visuals. Who knows, you might even get featured!
If you found this guide helpful and you're eager to dive deeper into Midjourney's capabilities, don't forget to subscribe to our newsletter. Be the first to receive updates, tips, and exclusive tutorials that will turn you into a Midjourney pro.
For the visual learners among you, we've also got an in-depth video guide to using Midjourney in app design. Watch it here.
Thank you for reading, and we're super excited to see the stunning visuals you'll create using Midjourney!
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