If you can imagine it, this AI generator will draw it

Not that long ago we explained how you can make AI selfies with the Lensa app on your phone. The results can be stunning, but AI can go beyond using an existing photo as a reference point and create artwork from scratch.

There are now a lot of AI image generators which will produce images based on text descriptions. This means you can dream up anything at all, type it in and mere seconds later see a selection of images matching that description.

For example, the image at the top was generated using the description “steam train going across a curved viaduct on rolling green hills with a river running below, cloudy blue skies.”

But you can go into as much detail as you like. For example, the following produced these variations “A beach on a cloudy day. In the distance, people are walking towards cliffs in the background”.

Or even “1970s Porsche racing car on track leading a pack of period cars with crowds of spectators in stands in the background”.

AI is good at generating images of people. For example “a 35 year old IT officer working at his desk, wearing glasses and a blue blazer” led to this:

These generators vary in quality and usually allow you to generate only a few images before you have to pay to use their services.

But it’s fun to do, and well worth trying out as there’s every chance you’ll be blown away by the results.

Regardless of which generator you decide to use, the process is the same: type a detailed description of what you want. The longer that description, the better.

Shorter descriptions can still generate incredible images, as demonstrated by the birds above, but they may not be quite what you wanted. Plus, AI isn’t human – duh! –  so although some of the images appear flawless, others have clear errors, and AI struggles with text in particular.

Really, you also need to specify the style of image you want. That’s because the AI needs to understand whether you want a photorealistic images, a cartoon, a sketch or something else. If you don’t specify, it may choose at random.

Since the images are created by powerful servers, you can use these generators on whatever device you have: a phone, laptop, tablet or PC.

Some generators are available only as mobile apps, but others work in a web browser. Here are some to try out now.

• Midjourney – Runs on Discord
• Fotor – works in a browser
• Photoleap – Android and iPhone
• DALL-E – works in a browser

DALL-E is one of the best known, and is from the same people – OpenAI – that made ChatGPT. Unfortunately, its popularity means it’s all but impossible to use: we could barely create an account without the website falling over, presumably due to being overloaded.

However, Midjourney stands out from the crowd, partly because of the sheer quality of the images it creates, but also because you’re given 25 minutes of GPU time for free: you’re not restricted to a specific number of images.

The only snag is that it uses Discord, which can be a little bewildering to use if you’re not familiar with it. You’ll also need to create a Discord account if you don’t have one.

How to use Midjourney