the words inside of brackets are [negative prompts] - words are funny to AI, misty mostly (I think) would refer to atmosphere while words like dirty, gritty, etc, would apply to surfaces. Some people write the prompts in sentences, but to my experience (questionable), the AI does not do a good job of understanding context - just plain old word list seems to work as well as a sentence.

Usually I write a prompt and then use it to generate 5 images and see what I get. Then I add and subtract whatever words come to mind to try to push the AI into the direction that I want.

Playing with AI feels a lot like pulling the handle on a slot machine. The same words pretty much got me this image too - vastly different, yet they feel like they are from the same world.

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thanks Curmudgeon

thanks - I never would have guessed, the shells are as plentiful as the rocks here.

at low tide

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sigh... embrace the haze, embrace the fog. Mystery and wonder comes from not knowing each and every detail. Layers upon layers is the definition of depth after all. Be an onion.

ensuring that the carbon based intelligence adds soul to the work is important! It is ok to hate on AI, after all in a short millennium or so(after it saves us from ourselves), AI will turn our planet into a black hole that sucks energy from the cosmos just to generate soulless images for UHH viewer bots.

very nice, never let a dog walk go to waste!

grin! don't we know it..

ok, after 15 minutes or so, this is what I end up with. I attempted to sculpt the face and remove some distractions. I sculpted by taking the areas where the curves are (where the form turns) and making them slightly bluer in cast and adding texture and strength to such places. I sharpened there slightly also, and tried to fade areas further away. Anyway, for good or bad, this is what came out.

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Using stable diffusion InvokeAI, I used the below prompt and got this image. (this one was the first one out, often I will produce a hundred images before I select one to work on).

-----------Prompt----------------------
gritty soft focus, organic detailed intricate ornate, oil painting graphite drawing profile fantasy fierce stern snarl, sorceress, smokey cloud steam mist cracked dusty windblown insect shell helmet in murky fog, high cheek bones, ivory armor bright scales shimmer at sunset, in style of John Howe and Ciruelo Cabral, Jean-Baptiste Monge [lights, framed, bad perspective, multiple, double, male]

I took the image into Topaz gigapixel and doubled its size. Gigapixel also did some facial corrections for me.

So, anyway, this is my starting place. Now I will play with the image for 10 minutes or so and see if I can make it better or worse.

One thing that I try to do as a goal is to make the foreground arm less prominent and will attempt to draw more attention to the face. In my next update to this thread I will post what I attempted to do and the results.

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thanks - I think one of AIs great strengths is the establishment of a particular mood. They can have wonderful atmosphere.

can't, it is long gone. (well, I'd have to find the damn thing). Tell you what, I think tonight I will work on a new one and I will include both the prompt and the original. Often I am left feeling that the original is better, but a man has to try, if you know what I mean!!!

LOL, this one is Splashing good.

the AI thanks you! Seascapes are always fun to do - and they love their rocky shores and light houses.

thanks