Review of Midjourney 2024 – Pros, Cons, and Features

Review of Midjourney 2024 – Pros, Cons, and Features

Midjourney is an AI image generation tool based on Discord, utilizing text commands to create images. You can input prompts for the type of image you’re looking for, and the system will generate the image for you. Whether it’s a dragon, an alien spaceship, a dancing puppy, or anything else, the Midjourney bot will assist you.

Key Points

  • Discord-Based: Midjourney operates on Discord, so familiarity with Discord chat is necessary.
  • High-Quality Images: It generates high-quality images based on text prompts.
  • Artistic Styles: Capable of creating images in various artistic styles from sketches to paintings to surreal photos.
  • Community Interaction: Engage with the community and participate in channels.
  • Image Editing: Allows you to edit your images and create multiple variations.
  • Upscaling: You can upscale your images to enlarge them.
  • Customization: Fine-tune images by specifying aspect ratio, quality, and chaos levels.
  • NLP Features: Excellent natural language processing features ensure accurate results.
  • Version 5: The latest version, released in March 2023, is accessible to users.
  • No Free Plan: Offers various paid plans according to user needs.

How We Tested the Product

I tested both simple and complex prompts, and Midjourney consistently provided accurate results. While I don’t consider myself an artist, it felt like engaging in artistic creation. You’re only limited by your imagination. It generates four images per prompt. You can select one of the four images and edit it. I tried various styles, and the results were perfect every time. Testing Midjourney felt more like fun than work.

Pros and Cons of Midjourney

Pros 👍

  • Extremely easy to use; just type text prompts to generate images.
  • Highly accurate results with high-quality images.
  • Version 4 was great, and version 5 offers even better results.
  • Provides fine-tuning features for artists.

Cons 👎

  • No free trial.
  • Images are public to other users, so you can’t create business designs.
  • Only available on Discord.
  • Limited customer support.

What is Midjourney?

Midjourney is a text-to-image generation tool powered by artificial intelligence. It uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) to interpret prompts provided by users and generates relevant images based on those prompts. Currently in version 5.2, Midjourney does not have a standalone application and operates on Discord chat. It boasts a large community where you can join channels to interact with other artists. While it can create stunning images, it is not recommended for business design purposes as all images are public.

How Does Midjourney Work?

Midjourney uses two machine learning techniques: Diffusion Model and Large Language Model. With the Large Language Model, Midjourney understands the meaning of user-entered prompts. Through diffusion, the system adds noise to the training dataset and then reverses the noise to restore the original image, training the AI to generate accurate results based on prompts.

In simpler terms, if you want to create an image of a “ladybug on a blade of grass,” AI starts with noise (like TV static) and gradually diffuses it to create an image matching your prompt, producing a clear image step by step.

Using Midjourney

Midjourney runs on Discord, a text and voice chat application. Here’s how to get started:

  1. Create a Discord Account: Download the Discord app or open it in your browser.
  2. Join Midjourney: Accept the invite to join Midjourney, available on their website.
  3. Enter Midjourney: Join any channel; a newbie channel is a good start. Use the search bar at the top right to find channels.
  4. Subscribe: You cannot create images without a subscription. Enter /subscribe in the text box to subscribe to their paid plan.
  5. Select a Plan: It will take you to their pricing page. Subscribe to a plan and start creating images.
  6. Generate Images: Enter /imagine to open the image prompt. Describe your image, and AI will create it.
  7. Choose and Edit: You will receive four images per prompt. Select one to upscale or edit. Save the image when satisfied.

How to Upscale Images

When you generate an image, you’ll see buttons labeled U1, U2, U3, U4, V1, V2, V3, and V4. The U buttons upscale the selected image, and the V buttons create four new variations of the selected image. Right-click and save the image when you’re happy with the result.

Special Commands in Midjourney

Similar to /imagine, there are other special commands to interact with the Midjourney bot:

  • /ask to ask a question.
  • /fast for faster results.
  • /stealth for stealth mode (your images won’t be visible to others).
  • /subscribe to subscribe to a paid plan.

A full list of commands is available here.

Parameters

There are special parameters you can set with each command:

  • --aspect: Change the aspect ratio, e.g., --ar 3:2 for a 3:2 aspect ratio.
  • --no: Negative prompts to exclude certain elements, e.g., --no flowers.
  • --tile: Create seamless images that match each other.

All Midjourney parameters can be found here.

Cost

Midjourney offers four plans:

  • Basic Plan: $8/month
  • Standard Plan: $24/month
  • Pro Plan: $48/month
  • Mega Plan: $96/month

These are annual fees, and monthly plans are slightly more expensive. The Basic Plan costs $10/month for a monthly subscription. No free trial is available. The Basic Plan allows for around 200 generations, and all your public images are visible to everyone. Stealth options are available in the Pro and Mega Plans.

Writing Creative Midjourney Prompts

Writing a generic prompt is easy, but crafting a prompt that highlights the beauty of Midjourney’s AI takes experience. Here are some tips:

  • Detailed Descriptions: Provide detailed descriptions as AI might misinterpret vague terms.
  • Brevity: Keep prompts concise. Longer prompts risk being ignored.
  • Negative Prompts: Use negative prompts to exclude elements you don’t want, e.g., “a farm with no animals.”
  • Creative Tags: Use creative tags for unusual images, e.g., “a flying dinosaur – creative.”
  • Prompt Generator: Use a prompt generator to help create detailed prompts.

Is Midjourney Open Source?

Midjourney is not open source. It’s a self-funded project developed by a small team. Unlike Dall-E by OpenAI, which is open source, Midjourney’s software is not available for use, modification, or distribution. However, the images generated in public channels are “open source” in a sense, as they are publicly accessible.

Is Midjourney Safe?

Personal data provided to Midjourney is stored on their servers in the USA. The company ensures user data is safe and secure and does not sell any of your data. If you have used Midjourney, you can request data deletion by providing your email, Discord user ID, and Midjourney user ID. Publicly generated images on public channels are public and should not be used for business designs like logos.


1,693 Comments

  1. Probably the kind of site that should be more widely read than it appears to be, and a look at draftlogs reinforced that quiet wish, the gap between a sites quality and its apparent reach is sometimes large and that gap exists for this site in a way that makes me want to mention it more.

  2. Generally my comment to other readers about new sites is to wait and see but for this one I would jump to recommend now, and a look at cotcircle reinforced that early recommendation, the speed at which a site earns my recommendation is itself a quality signal and this one has earned mine quickly clearly.

  3. Reading this in the gap between work projects was a small but meaningful break, and a stop at coilbliss extended that gentle reset, content that provides genuine refreshment rather than just distraction during work breaks is content with a particular kind of utility and this site fits that role for me reliably during work days.

  4. Reading this gave me a quiet moment of intellectual pleasure that I had not been expecting, and a stop at cubeasana extended that pleasure across more pages, the unexpected reward of stumbling into careful writing is one of the small ongoing pleasures of reading the open web and this site is delivering it reliably.

  5. Strong recommendation from me, anyone curious about the topic should make time for this, and a look at 1091m2love only sharpens that recommendation further, the kind of resource that holds up against careful scrutiny rather than crumbling at the first critical question is rare and worth pointing other people toward when the topic comes up.

  6. Now adjusting my expectations upward for the topic based on this post, and a stop at premiumglobalessentials continued that bar raising effect, content that resets what I think is possible on a subject is doing real work in shaping my standards and this site is providing those bar raising experiences at a notable rate during sessions.

  7. One of the more honest takes on the topic I have seen lately, no spin and no oversell, and a stop at apexhelms kept that going, the kind of voice the open web could use a lot more of rather than the endless echo chamber of recycled opinions floating around every social platform these days.

  8. A modest masterpiece in its own quiet way, and a look at burlclip confirmed the same quiet quality across the rest of the site, calling something a masterpiece is usually overstating but for content this carefully crafted the word feels appropriate even if the writers themselves would probably resist the label honestly.

  9. Will be coming back to this for sure, too much good content to absorb in one sitting, and a stop at palmmills only added more pages I want to dig through, this site is going onto my regular rotation list because it consistently delivers something worth the visit lately rather than empty filler.

  10. Pass this along to anyone you know dealing with similar questions, the answers here are clear, and a stop at astrebulb adds even more useful material, this is the kind of resource that deserves to circulate widely rather than getting lost in the constant churn of new content online that buries good work daily.

  11. Probably this is one of the better quiet successes on the open web at the moment, and a look at harryandeddies reinforced that quiet success quality, sites that are doing well without making a noise about doing well are the sites I most respect and this one has clearly chosen the quiet success path consistently throughout.

  12. Honest reaction is that this is the kind of writing I would defend in a conversation about good blog content, and a look at airycargo reinforced that, the rare site whose work I would actively recommend rather than just tolerate is the kind I want to support through return visits regularly.

  13. Reading this gave me a small sense of progress on a topic I have been slowly working through, and a stop at frostcoasts added another step forward, learning happens in small increments across many sources and finding sources that consistently contribute is the actual practical value of careful curation in an information rich world.

  14. Vague feelings of recognition kept surfacing as I read because the writing names things I have been thinking, and a look at bookcliff produced more of those recognition moments, content that gives shape to private intuitions is content that makes me feel less alone in my own thinking and this site has that effect.

  15. Felt this in a way I cannot quite explain, the topic just hit different here, and a stop at bauxcircle continued in that vein, sometimes you find a site whose perspective lines up with how you have been thinking and reading their work feels like a small relief which I appreciated more than I expected.

  16. Now wishing I had found this site sooner, and a look at dewchase extended that mild regret, the calculation of how many years of good content I missed by not finding the right sources earlier is one I try not to make too often but it does come up sometimes when I find sites this good.

  17. Reading this with a notebook open turned out to be the right move, and a stop at goldenbranchmart added more material to the notes, content that justifies active note taking from a passive reader is content with real informational density and this site is producing notes worthy material at a high rate consistently.

  18. Bookmark earned and the bookmark feels like a permanent addition rather than a maybe, and a look at pactcliff confirmed that permanent status, the difference between durable bookmarks and ephemeral ones is something I have learned to feel quickly and this site triggered the durable feeling almost immediately during my first read here.

  19. Well crafted post, the structure flows naturally from one point to the next without forcing transitions, and a stop at portolive kept the same flow going, you can tell when a writer has thought about how their content reads rather than just what it contains and this is one of those examples.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *