Nano Banana (image prompt craft)

Write prompts that get studio-quality images out of Nano Banana — Google's Gemini image model (Nano Banana Pro = Gemini 3 Pro Image; the Flash variant is faster/cheaper). This is the prompt-craft layer of a three-layer setup:

• Connection/API (model IDs, auth, the generate → upload to WoopSocial Media → attach flow) → tools/integrations/nano-banana.md.
• Prompt craft (this skill) → how to ask for the right image well.
• In-skill application → e.g. carousel-writer's image-prompt-pack.

Fast-moving area — re-verify model names/capabilities quarterly.

Reach for Nano Banana when… (match the job)

Its real strengths: legible in-image text (best in class), multi-image/character consistency, conversational editing, and Search-grounded infographics. Reach elsewhere for typography/layout-led design (→ ideogram) or surreal/fine-art aesthetics (Midjourney). (Imagen, the former photoreal sibling, is deprecated — Gemini API shutdown Aug 17, 2026 — so Google-side photoreal work now lands here.) Don't default it to every job. (Details: references/when-and-how-to-prompt.md.)

Step 0 — Read the brand + the job

Load brand-profile.md (colours, visual style, do/don't). Identify the job (quote graphic / carousel / thumbnail / infographic / product shot / background / ad / edit) and the platform aspect ratio.

Step 1 — Write the prompt (natural language, not keyword spam)

Describe, don't pad. Include subject · composition/camera · action/context · lighting/atmosphere · style/medium · constraints + exact text. Drop "4k, masterpiece, trending on artstation" tokens — modern Gemini models reason over natural language. Bake in the brand palette/style. Set the aspect ratio. Iterate cheap at 1K, finalize at 2K/4K. See references/when-and-how-to-prompt.md.

Step 2 — Use the superpowers deliberately

• Text: put the exact words in quotes + font + placement; settle the copy first (the text-first approach), keep it short, and verify the spelling in the output.
• Consistency: use reference images and a locked style description; generate a set one at a time ("everything the same except X"); hold the aspect ratio; review for drift.
• Editing: natural-language changes to a hero image for locale/seasonal/A-B variants.

See references/text-and-consistency.md.

Step 3 — Pick the recipe

Adapt a pattern for the job (quote graphic, carousel set, thumbnail, infographic, product/lifestyle, background, ad), with the right aspect ratio and brand grounding. See references/social-recipes.md.

Step 4 — Verify, disclose, ship

• Verify rendered text and any infographic data before publishing (the model can misspell / misplace facts).
• Disclose AI generation per platform/region (Meta "Made with AI", EU AI Act); every image carries a SynthID watermark (+ C2PA) — don't strip it or pass the image off as a non-AI photo.
• Ship: generate per the integration guide → upload bytes to WoopSocial Media → attach to the post via scheduling-and-queue. WoopSocial doesn't generate images.

Quality bar — self-check

• Did I match the tool to the job (and say when to use another model)?
• Is the prompt natural-language and specific (subject/composition/lighting/style/text), brand- grounded, with the right aspect ratio?
• For text: exact words in quotes + font + placement, copy-first, spelling verified?
• For sets: references + locked style, one-at-a-time, reviewed for drift?
• Did I handle SynthID + disclosure, verify text/data, and refuse real people / IP?
• Did I point to tools/integrations/nano-banana.md for the API + WoopSocial flow (no claim that WoopSocial generates images)?

Edge cases & pushback

• Photoreal headshot / surreal art → suggest the better-fit model; don't force Nano Banana.
• "logo, 4k, masterpiece, trending…" → rewrite into a specific scene description; drop token spam.
• Real person / copyrighted character / brand style → refuse; offer an original alternative.
• "Post it as a normal photo" → SynthID + disclosure; don't disguise AI imagery.
• Long paragraph of in-image text → expect errors; shorten + verify (or finish in a design tool).
• "Generate it in WoopSocial" → WoopSocial doesn't generate; this skill prompts the model, then the image is uploaded to Media and attached.

Related

• tools/integrations/nano-banana.md — API/model IDs, auth, pricing, the upload-to-WoopSocial flow.
• carousel-writer (image-prompt-pack), reels-script — consuming skills; ideogram — typography sibling.
• brand-profile — the visual brand; caption-writer/hook-writer — the in-image copy.
• scheduling-and-queue — attach the image to a post and publish.

References

• references/when-and-how-to-prompt.md — when to reach for it vs other models, and the prompt anatomy.
• references/text-and-consistency.md — the two superpowers: legible in-image text and multi-image consistency/editing.
• references/social-recipes.md — adaptable prompt patterns per social job + aspect ratios.
• references/examples.md — weak→strong prompts, a consistent carousel, an edit, and honest scope.