Good morning from here, it’s been a wet and busy week in Amsterdam.

👹 October is finally here so it’s time to pack all our fake productivity wishes and (try to) make things happen 👹

I promised to start talking about AI tools that I usually use for work and fun so I want first of all to keep the conversation as informal as possible, we would have to go deeper into it if you are interested.

“We’ve always been fascinated by human intelligence – it shaped the modern world we live in today. Intelligence allows us to learn, imagine, cooperate, create, communicate, and so much more. By better understanding different aspects of intelligence, we can use this knowledge as inspiration to build novel computer systems that learn to find solutions to complex problems on their own” 

I got this statement from an article by the Google Deepmind team when I first approached Midjourney and I was digging into AI tools as potential creative tools for my daily AD job. 

That’s a jungle, right? 🦎 Every day something new is emerging and it’s hard for us as designers to stay on top of the line on that. 

I’d like first of all to say that my approach to AI is to make the creative project successful, I don’t expect AI to do all the hard work that I don’t have time for or don’t want to do 

I think that by harnessing the potential of AI and working hand in hand as a cooperative process, we can develop solutions rooted in compassion and empathy.

So here 5 things I learned working hands-on with AI tools 

1. Don’t take it seriously 🥸

Have fun, and enjoy the process, it’s important to remember that the tool should be used as a playground for creativity and freedom.

Let it work, don’t be shy, and enjoy the process without expecting to achieve exactly the result you had in your mind.

R&D around future playground scenarios by Superbien Studio

2. AI is a tool, not the answer 🫠

Start with a clear idea in your mind, otherwise, you’ll never succeed.

Use it as a tool of exploration, keeping in mind that some references can mislead the client or a potential user, so support your image with a short description of relevant points to keep in mind from this image, always. 

The tool is unpredictable, even if you are the greatest director of all time, AI doesn’t speak your language and doesn’t share your cultural heritage.

BMW X Sky Arts by Francis Wallis AI Artwork & Development by Studio Private

3. Learn how to organize your thoughts 🤌

We should not become prompt engineers, that’s such an ugly and dystopian term, but we need to understand that each prompt has its own structure. We should invest time in thinking about how to write them properly in the most effective way so AI can understand. Have practical use cases or reference images before starting and feed AI with those images. This might help the machine to get closer to your result without driving you crazy.

Near-future architecture exploration by Ulises studio

4. Study before starting 🤓

Having photography fundamentals is the key to achieving a more realistic result.

Parameters such as lightning, ISO, composition, aperture, and shutter speed should be your daily slang to approach AI image tools seriously.

I will follow up with more cheats and sheets about Midjourney photography parameters in the next weeks

5. Let it talk with other tools, don’t be jealous 😇

Start with a reference image, then feed Midjourney with it, then improve it in Photoshop, and then feed Runway to create a short movie.

The process should be horizontal and involve as many steps as possible to come to a potential usable result.

BONUS (👀) How to best integrate different AI tools for paid subs below