We all know AI still makes a lot of mistakes.
Especially when it comes to making things look realistic - Logos turn to mush, details get warped, and sometimes the more you ask it to generate, the more obviously AI-generated the image gets.
But there are a few effective workarounds you can use to get much more realistic results. Here are 3 methods that I’ve found especially useful:
Method 1: Don’t Generate Entire Images All at Once
AI tends to make more mistakes when you give it more things to figure out at the same time.
For this thumbnail, I needed an entire wall of coolers filled with realistic drinks:
When I tried generating the whole thing at once, even with reference images and a detailed prompt instructing specific placements, you could immediately see where AI struggled:
The drinks were quite blurry, and the logos were way too smudged.
So instead, I isolated the image into smaller sections and numbered the rows so that it had even clearer prompt instructions to work with:
The prompt was something like:
“In row 1, please include different kinds of 7Up bottles, Fresca bottles, and different flavors and colors of Crush bottles. Please make them as photorealistic and natural as possible. Do not smudge or blur the labels and logos on the bottles, they need to be very detailed and legible. Do not change anything else” (That same instruction was used for rows 2-5 as well)
This was the result of generating the isolation:
A close up view so we can really see the difference:
The logos are much clearer, the image is sharper, and the products look significantly more realistic.
This method gives you a lot more control over the images that you're generating.
Once you’re happy with each individual section, you can simply piece the strongest results back together in Photoshop to build your final thumbnail.
Method 2: Let AI Take One Final Pass
Recently, after I’ve finished a thumbnail, I’m curious how I could still level up the realism.
So the other day, I grabbed an old thumbnail from almost 4 years ago from my husband Jake’s channel, and asked AI to make it more realistic with this prompt:
“Please make this scene look more photorealistic. I want all of the elements to stay where they are, but I want the execution to be slightly more photorealistic and natural.”
That’s it! And it gave me an incredible result:
The lighting feels much more natural, the ground has more realistic texture and detail, and even Jake’s DIY motorcycle feels better integrated into the scene.
One small caveat: AI still made a couple of mistakes.
The generated version came back a little too desaturated, and it even added a random object to the motorcycle that wasn’t there before.
Both were easy fixes - I layered the AI-generated version over my original thumbnail in Photoshop and lowered the opacity to around 70%, which allowed me to keep the improvements without losing the color from my original. Then, I simply masked out the random object it added to the motorcycle.
So, this method still requires you to keep an eye out for AI mistakes, but the fixes are usually minor.
For just a few extra minutes of work, it can be an incredibly effective way to push the realism of an already-finished thumbnail even further.
Method 3: Fix Lighting That Doesn’t Match
One of the biggest things that can make a thumbnail look unrealistic is inconsistent lighting.
You might find the perfect photo of someone or something, but they were photographed indoors while your thumbnail takes place outside.
Typically, I’d recommend re-shooting the thumbnail outdoors for the ultimate level of realism, but AI can now help re-light an asset for the environment you actually need pretty effectively.
Let’s look at this example of a photo I took of my husband Jake with soft, indoor lighting:
I brought it into AI, and asked it to make it look like he was outside more realistically, using this exact prompt that was circulating on X:
“Change only the lighting to realistic bright daytime light with stronger, more defined shadows. Make the light feel like real daytime illumination, clean and natural, with firmer shadow edges and clearer directional light. Increase the sense of direct light so faces, clothing, objects, and surfaces receive brighter highlights and more readable shadows. The shadows should look sharper and less diffused, but still physically believable and natural. Keep the scene photorealistic and grounded. Do not change the environment, sky, background design, or overall scene layout. Do not add sunset tones, golden-hour warmth, cinematic grading, studio-light feel, fog, or soft overcast diffusion. Preserve natural colors and realistic textures while making the lighting look more like strong daytime illumination with crisp shadow separation.”
The result:
Now, the lighting actually makes sense for the scene he’s being placed into, and everything looks way more natural and cohesive - which of course increases believability!
To wrap up:
AI still has plenty of quirks, and I definitely don’t trust it to perfectly generate an entire thumbnail from scratch.
But I’ve found that the more specific the task I give it, the better the results tend to be.
And even when it does make mistakes, they’re usually much easier to spot and fix when you’re using it for one specific purpose.
It’s all about knowing what AI is good at, what it’s not, and working around those limitations.
NOTE:
It's entirely possible that there are better methods to accomplish these results than the ones I listed above, so feel free to let me know by replying to this email if you use more efficient methods for generating images with realistic logos, making thumbnails more realistic, re-lighting certain assets, or any other tips & tricks you might use when it comes to AI!
Course Updates:
I have officially finished the editing phase of the entire Thumbnail Blueprint!
I have read through and edited all of my slides, all of my notes, and all of the workbooks that will be set between chapters. ツ
This means I can actually start recording and bringing this to life by the end of this week & early next week - so we are still on track to hit that Summer deadline!!!
As always, stay tuned for additional updates and insights! ツ
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