In the past, building a library of textures and backgrounds was a challenging task. For photographers, it meant locating suitable subjects, capturing numerous pictures, and gradually assembling a collection image by image. Alternatively, you could purchase collections from artists and other photographers.

Fortunately, with the advent of artificial intelligence, the process has become significantly more streamlined. In this article, we’ll show you how to use the AI image generator Midjourney to convert a single photograph into a myriad of versions—eliminating much of the time and effort involved.

Let’s get started!

How to Create Multiple Textures in Midjourney

There’s a simple workflow that you can use to create multiple textures in Midjourney.

1. Use the Describe feature to create prompts from your own images.
2. Use Upscale to increase file resolution.
3. Create Variations from the upscaled images.
4. Modify existing prompts to produce different textures.

Let’s explore each of these steps to see how it fits together.

Using the Describe Feature in Midjourney

The Describe feature in Midjourney is a powerful command that can analyze your image and then create a text prompt based on the image properties.

To use it, all you have to do is type /describe in Midjourney, and then locate the image on your computer or phone that you want to use. If you’ve never used Midjourney before, or need a quick refresher, have a look at our getting started guide to creating Midjourney art.

Let’s use the above image of a brown paper texture as an example.

1. Type /describe in Midjourney.
2. You’ll then see the prompt Drag and drop or click to upload file. Click on the image upload icon, choose the file that you want to describe, and then click Open.

3. The selected image will populate in the command field. Now, press Enter twice.

4. A list of four detailed prompts will appear. You can copy any of the prompts or click on the numbers that correspond with each prompt if you’d like to generate images. Or you can simply click on Imagine all if you want to see all the options generated.

With the four prompts each creating four variations, you’ll then have 16 basic images to start creating your library of textures from. You can also choose to keep generating more variations based on any of the prompt results.

Take a closer look at the results below to see the subtle differences you can get using a single starting image.

Here are the four prompts and each variation.

First prompt

Second prompt

Third prompt

Fourth prompt

This is a great way to get started filling out your texture library. You’ll notice that each variation follows the same style as our source image that Midjourney described.

Upscale Your Variations of Choice

The next step is to choose what variations you’ll want to use and possibly modify later, in order to create completely new textures. First, you’ll want to click on one of the sets to magnify the variations and see them more clearly.

You can then opt to click on U1-U4 to upscale these images to maximum size. You can also click on the corresponding V1-V4 buttons to create four new variations of the image. For this example, we’ll choose to upscale using U1.

You can now choose to save the variation if you’re happy with the results. You can also choose any of the additional options that are available with an upscaled image. We’ll cover these next.

Creating More Variations of the Texture

You’ll see several options once you’ve upscaled a variation. They include the following:

• Vary (Strong)
• Vary (Subtle)
• Zoom Out 2x
• Zoom Out 1.5x
• Custom Zoom
• Make Square
• Four arrow icons (used to pan the image in different directions)

We’ll click on each button to show you the effects.

Variations (Strong)

Variations (Subtle)

Zoom Out 2x

Zoom Out 1.5x

Make Square

Pan Left

Pan Right

Pan Up

Pan Down

Custom Zoom

Not all of these options will be useful for every image, but it definitely gives you additional variations to choose from to help build your texture library.

You can also use Photoshop to fix your Midjourney art. Much like you would edit a photo, you can take your images from Midjourney as a starting point, and improve them using another photo editing software.

Modify Prompts to Get Even More Options

So far, we’ve only covered the variations that Midjourney has offered straight out of the box, so to speak. But we can also choose any of the prompts and modify them ourselves to change things like color, texture, lighting, or just about any other quality we can think of.

To start, just copy one of the text prompts that you would like to modify by highlighting the text and pressing Ctrl + C.

Next, type /imagine into the text field and press enter. Following this, you can then paste the prompt by pressing Ctrl + V.

Now, simply go into the text and edit it to make the desired changes. For this example, we’ll delete the part “in the style of warm tonal range”, and replace it with “light red faded color”.

After pressing Enter, these are the results.

And just like that, we have a new color introduced that can help add variety to our texture library. We could have changed any of the other descriptions or added new ones to create even more alternatives. Your imagination is the limit!

If you’re looking for more real-world uses for Midjourney, check out how to create stunning portrait backgrounds in Midjourney. You won’t even need to leave the comfort of your chair.

Create a Library of Textures in Midjourney With a Single Photo

Midjourney makes it possible to create an entire texture library based on just one of your photos. Just imagine what you could do with multiple images! Get started today and never be without textures and backgrounds for all your composite needs.