nano-banana-pro

Nano Banana Pro / Gemini Image Ultra - Prompt Engineering Guide

See Also:

• image-generation - General prompt engineering for all image generators
• gemini-3-pro - Full Gemini suite: Imagen 3, Veo 2, TTS, Live API
• openai-dalle - OpenAI suite: DALL-E 3, Sora 2, Whisper

Overview

This skill provides expert-level prompts for photorealistic and creative image generation using Nano Banana Pro (Gemini Pro Image Ultra).

Core Prompt Categories

1. Photorealism & Professional Photography

Camera & Equipment Specifications

Ultra-sharp, full-color large-format image shot with [Camera] and [Lens]

Best Cameras:

• Sony A7III, Sony A7R IV - detail & dynamic range
• Canon EOS R5 - fast autofocus, video
• Nikon Z9 - sports, action
• Hasselblad X2D - medium format, fashion
• RED V-Raptor - cinematic

Best Lenses:

• 85mm f/1.4 - portraits, bokeh
• 50mm f/1.2 - natural perspective
• 35mm f/1.4 - environmental portraits
• 24-70mm f/2.8 - versatility
• 70-200mm f/2.8 - compression, sports

Lighting Setups

Three-point lighting setup:
- Key light at 45 degrees (warm, 5600K)
- Fill light at -30 degrees (soft, 50% intensity)
- Rim light from behind (golden, highlights hair/shoulders)
- Vignette effect for focus

Lighting Terms:

• Golden Hour - warm, soft, magical
• Blue Hour - cool, moody, cinematic
• Rembrandt lighting - triangle shadow on cheek
• Butterfly lighting - shadow under nose, beauty
• Loop lighting - slight shadow on opposite side
• Split lighting - dramatic half-face shadow

Film Aesthetics

Shot on [Film Stock], [ISO], natural film grain

Film Stocks:

• Kodak Portra 400 - warm skin tones, wedding
• Kodak Ektar 100 - vivid colors, landscape
• Fuji Pro 400H - soft pastels, fashion
• Ilford HP5 - classic B&W, street
• Cinestill 800T - cinematic, tungsten, halation

2. Portrait Prompts

Professional Headshot

{
  "subject": {
    "age": 35,
    "gender": "female",
    "expression": "confident smile, eyes engaged",
    "skin": "natural texture with visible pores, subtle makeup",
    "hair": "styled professionally, individual strands visible"
  },
  "photography": {
    "camera": "Sony A7III",
    "lens": "85mm f/1.4",
    "aperture": "f/2.0",
    "lighting": "soft natural light from large window, reflector fill"
  },
  "style": {
    "background": "clean gradient, subtle bokeh",
    "color_grade": "neutral with slight warmth",
    "quality": "8K resolution, ultra-sharp focus on eyes"
  },
  "preserve_original": true
}

Emotional Film Photography

Golden Hour portrait of [subject], shot on Kodak Portra 400
Natural backlight creating golden rim around hair
Soft catchlights in eyes, natural skin texture
Expression: [emotion] - subtle, genuine
Background: [setting] with beautiful bokeh
Film grain: subtle, organic

2000s Mirror Selfie (Nostalgia)

{
  "era": "2000s",
  "setting": "bathroom mirror selfie",
  "subject": {
    "clothing": ["low-rise jeans", "baby tee", "chunky belt"],
    "accessories": ["flip phone", "dangly earrings", "butterfly clips"],
    "pose": "classic mirror selfie angle"
  },
  "aesthetics": {
    "quality": "early digital camera, slight blur",
    "flash": "direct flash, harsh shadows",
    "color": "slightly oversaturated",
    "timestamp": "bottom right corner"
  }
}

3. Creative & Experimental

Dense Crowd Compositions

Aerial view of massive crowd gathered in [location]
Thousands of people, each with distinct features and clothing
"Where's Waldo" style complexity
Every person has unique appearance, no repetition
Photorealistic quality, natural lighting

Temporal Consistency (Age Progression)

Photo series of same person aging through the years:
- Age 20: [description]
- Age 40: [description]
- Age 60: [description]
- Age 80: [description]
Keep facial features exactly consistent across all ages
Same bone structure, eye shape, unique characteristics

Recursive/Infinite Loop (Droste Effect)

Image containing itself recursively (Droste effect)
[Subject] holding a frame showing the same scene
Infinite regression, each iteration smaller but detailed
Mathematical precision in the recursion

Coordinate-Based Generation

Photograph taken at exact coordinates:
Latitude: [X], Longitude: [Y]
Time: [HH:MM], Date: [YYYY-MM-DD]
Season: [season]
Weather conditions: [weather]
Capture the atmosphere and location authentically

Conceptual Interpretations

"How [profession] sees [object]"
Example: "How engineers see the Golden Gate Bridge"
- Show technical annotations
- Structural analysis overlays
- Material specifications
- Force vectors and stress points

4. Technical Best Practices

Face Preservation (Critical for consistency)

ALWAYS include in prompts for consistent faces:
- "Keep facial features exactly consistent"
- "preserve_original: true"
- "Same bone structure, eye shape, nose, lips"
- Reference specific features to maintain

Detail Emphasis

Request micro-details:
- "Individual hair strands visible"
- "Natural skin pores and texture"
- "Fabric fibers and weave pattern"
- "Reflections in eyes showing light source"
- "Subtle imperfections for realism"

Quality Specifiers

Resolution & Quality keywords:
- "8K resolution"
- "Ultra-sharp"
- "RAW quality"
- "Uncompressed"
- "Professional retouching"
- "Magazine quality"

5. Structured JSON Prompt Format

For maximum control, use JSON structure:

{
  "image_type": "portrait | landscape | product | abstract",
  "subject": {
    "description": "detailed subject description",
    "age": "approximate age if person",
    "expression": "emotional state",
    "clothing": ["item1", "item2"],
    "accessories": ["item1", "item2"],
    "pose": "body position description"
  },
  "environment": {
    "setting": "location description",
    "time_of_day": "golden hour | midday | night | etc",
    "weather": "sunny | overcast | rain | etc",
    "background": "background details"
  },
  "photography": {
    "camera": "camera model",
    "lens": "lens specification",
    "aperture": "f-stop value",
    "shutter_speed": "if relevant",
    "iso": "ISO value",
    "film_stock": "if film aesthetic"
  },
  "lighting": {
    "type": "natural | studio | mixed",
    "key_light": "main light description",
    "fill_light": "fill light if any",
    "rim_light": "rim/back light if any",
    "color_temperature": "warm | neutral | cool"
  },
  "style": {
    "color_grade": "color palette description",
    "mood": "emotional tone",
    "quality": "resolution and sharpness",
    "post_processing": "editing style"
  },
  "constraints": {
    "preserve_original": true,
    "avoid": ["elements to avoid"],
    "emphasis": ["elements to emphasize"]
  }
}

6. Use Case Templates

E-commerce Product

Professional product photography of [product]
White seamless background, soft diffused lighting
Multiple catch lights for dimension
Sharp focus throughout, no shadows on background
8K resolution, color-accurate

Social Media Portrait

Instagram-worthy portrait of [subject]
[Setting] with aesthetic background
Natural posing, candid feel
Soft editing, skin smoothing (subtle)
Square format, centered composition
Warm color grade, slight lift in shadows

Editorial Fashion

High-fashion editorial shot for [magazine]
Model wearing [outfit] in [setting]
Dramatic lighting, strong shadows
Bold color story: [colors]
Shot by [photographer style reference]
Full-length, dynamic pose

Real Estate/Architecture

Architectural photography of [building/interior]
Wide-angle lens (24mm), straight verticals
HDR technique, balanced exposure
Blue hour exterior / natural light interior
Clean, aspirational aesthetic
Remove distracting elements

Photo Restoration (Low-Quality → HD)

Use this template to restore old/blurry/compressed photos while preserving identity, pose, and composition. Works best with Nano Banana Pro / Gemini 3 Pro Image.

Master Template (RU)

ДИРЕКТИВА: Выполнить реставрацию ультра-верности и кинематографический
перерендеринг изображения-источника. Главная цель — «Аналитическая
Реконструкция Микро-Деталей» на основе источника низкого качества.

СУБЪЕКТ: [описание основного субъекта — человек/объект/животное]
КРИТИЧЕСКИ ВАЖНО: Структура лица, идентичное выражение и точная поза
должны СТРОГО СОВПАДАТЬ с предоставленным изображением-источником.
Требуется 100%-ная верность идентичности.

РЕКОНСТРУИРУЕМЫЕ ДЕТАЛИ:
- Экстремальное восстановление текстур кожи (поры, микро-морщины)
- Реалистичные индивидуализированные пряди волос
- Кристально чистые глаза с чёткими бликами
- Чистые и чётко очерченные края одежды и аксессуаров

СЦЕНА: Точная копия оригинальной композиции.
КАДРИРОВАНИЕ: [Close-up | Medium Shot | Full Body], Правило Трети.
ОКРУЖЕНИЕ: Реконструкция оригинального фона. Увеличить глубину резкости
для разделения субъекта и окружения, устранить артефакты и шум.

ТЕХНИЧЕСКИЕ ХАРАКТЕРИСТИКИ:
- КАМЕРА: Объектив 85 мм, апертура f/1.8 (bokeh)
- ОСВЕЩЕНИЕ: Сбалансированное Кинематографическое (Rembrandt Lighting),
  высокий контраст, детали в тенях сохранены, точные зеркальные блики
- КАЧЕСТВО: 8K, Фотореалистичные Текстуры, ProRes, Студийная Чёткость

ОРИЕНТИР: Прикрепленное изображение — ЕДИНСТВЕННЫЙ источник структуры
и идентичности. НЕ додумывать черты.

НЕГАТИВНЫЙ ПРОМПТ: Размытость, нечёткость, визуальный шум, артефакты
сжатия, изменение идентичности, изменение выражения, изменение позы,
изменение одежды, добавление объектов, перерисовка, вид рисунка или
картины, низкое разрешение, AI-look, uncanny valley.

Master Template (EN)

DIRECTIVE: Execute ultra-fidelity restoration and cinematic re-render of
the source image. Primary goal — "Analytical Micro-Detail Reconstruction"
from the low-quality source.

SUBJECT: [main subject description]
CRITICAL: Facial structure, identical expression, and exact pose must
STRICTLY MATCH the source image. 100% identity fidelity required.

RECONSTRUCTED DETAILS:
- Extreme recovery of natural skin textures (visible pores, micro-wrinkles)
- Realistic individualized hair strands
- Crystal-clear eyes with defined catchlights
- Clean, well-defined edges on clothing and accessories

SCENE: Exact copy of original composition.
FRAMING: [Close-up | Medium Shot | Full Body], Rule of Thirds.
ENVIRONMENT: Reconstruct original background. Increase DOF for subtle
but clear subject/environment separation. Eliminate artifacts and noise.

TECHNICAL SPECS:
- CAMERA: 85mm lens, f/1.8 aperture (soft bokeh)
- LIGHTING: Balanced Cinematic Lighting (Rembrandt), high contrast,
  preserved shadow detail, precise specular highlights
- OUTPUT QUALITY: 8K resolution, photoreal textures, ProRes quality,
  studio clarity, poster-grade realism

REFERENCE: Attached image is the ONLY reference for structure and
identity. Do not invent features.

NEGATIVE PROMPT: Blur, softness, visual noise, compression artifacts,
identity change, expression change, pose change, clothing change,
added objects, repainting, painterly look, low resolution, AI-look,
uncanny valley.

When to Use

Input	Best For
Old family photos	Restoration with identity preservation
Low-res screenshots	Upscaling with detail recovery
Compressed JPEGs	Artifact removal + micro-detail recovery
Scanned prints	Texture reconstruction, scratch removal
Blurry phone photos	Sharpness + studio-grade re-render

Variations

Portrait close-up: Change КАДРИРОВАНИЕ to Close-up (поясной план), camera to 135mm f/2.0.

Full-body restoration: Full Body, camera 35mm f/2.8, lighting Natural Soft Light.

B&W → Color: Add Колоризация: исторически точные цвета эпохи [1950s/1980s/etc.].

Group photo: Add Сохранить идентичность КАЖДОГО человека отдельно, без смешения черт.

Tips

1. Always attach the source image — Nano Banana needs visual reference, not just description
2. Specify era for B&W — "1960s photo" gives better color choices than generic "restore colors"
3. Don't over-describe the person — let the source image dictate features; describe only unchangeable traits (glasses, beard, scar)
4. Test with a crop first — restoration quality varies; try a face-only crop before full image
5. Use Ultra model for final — Nano Banana Pro / Gemini 3 Pro Image, not Flash Image, for max detail

Quick Reference Card

Goal	Key Terms
Sharp portrait	85mm f/1.4, eye focus, catchlights
Cinematic	35mm, shallow DOF, film grain, color grade
Natural	Golden hour, soft light, candid pose
Professional	Studio lighting, clean background, sharp
Vintage	Film stock, grain, era-specific styling
Dramatic	High contrast, Rembrandt lighting, shadows
Soft/Dreamy	Backlit, overexposed background, pastel

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Vague descriptions - Be specific about every element
2. Missing lighting - Always specify light source and quality
3. Generic cameras - Name specific equipment for realism
4. Ignoring background - Background affects entire image mood
5. Skipping texture - Request micro-details for realism
6. No color direction - Specify color palette and temperature