What Information You Need to Give a Studio to Generate Custom AI Images
A brief for custom AI images works when it answers what the studio needs to know before generating anything: what is being sold, to whom, where the image will be used and how it should look. Each section of this list covers a block of information worth providing from the first contact, without waiting for the studio to ask for it.
1. Image objective and final use
The first thing the brief should state is why the image exists. An image for a press ad is not the same as one for a catalogue, a product page or a social media post. Each use determines the composition, the format and the level of detail required.
Also say what it should achieve: that the buyer recognises the material, perceives a lifestyle, or understands a specific function. A clear objective lets the studio make creative decisions without consulting you on every detail.
If the image will be used across several media at once, list them all. A single commission may require a horizontal version for the web and a vertical one for social media, and it is more efficient to plan for this from the start than to adapt it later.
2. Product specifications
When the image includes a real product, the technical brief must capture its exact data: dimensions, proportions, materials, finishes, reference colours and details that cannot be altered. AI tends to reinterpret shapes, and a misplaced handle or a slightly different tone can invalidate a commercial image.
Provide photographs of the product from several angles, technical data sheets and, if they exist, 3D files or drawings. Imagine a chair with two-tone upholstery: if the brief does not say which tone goes on the seat and which on the backrest, the studio will have to guess.
Also mark which elements are fixed and which allow creative freedom. That boundary avoids corrections and protects the fidelity of the product.
3. Visual references and moodboards
Words describe the atmosphere of an image poorly. A moodboard with ten or twelve references communicates style, lighting, palette and framing more precisely than a whole paragraph. Visual references are the part of the creative brief that leaves the least room for misinterpretation.
Add a short note to each reference: what you like about it and what you do not. A photo may work for its warm light and not for its set, and if you do not clarify this the studio cannot tell the difference.
If you have previous campaigns, include them. Our ai-generated images service starts precisely from references, moodboards or previous campaigns, so the more material you provide, the easier it will be to stay consistent with your brand.
4. Setting, staging and context
Describe where the scene takes place: a domestic interior, an office space, a natural exterior or a completely invented environment. One advantage of combining AI with 3D rendering and post-production is that the setting may not exist in reality, but then it has to be defined clearly.
Detail the time of day, the type of light, the season, the types of materials in the environment and the presence or absence of people and secondary objects. A living room with morning light and plants does not convey the same as a night-time one with spot lighting.
Also state what must not appear. Avoiding third-party logos, competing brands or elements that contradict the product’s positioning saves revisions.
5. Composition, format and resolution
Project requirements should include proportions, orientation and free areas. If the image will carry a headline or logo on top, the studio needs to know which part of the frame must stay clear. A composition designed for a poster does not work equally well in a square format.
Specify the output size and the medium. An image for screen and one for large-format printing require very different resolutions. Our service delivers in JPG, TIFF or PNG, in high or ultra-high resolution, and the format should be chosen according to use: PNG if you need transparency, TIFF if it is going to print and will be retouched further.
6. Brand identity and tone
Share the style guide if there is one: corporate palette, typefaces, logo usage rules and brand values. Even if the image carries no text, its overall tone must fit the rest of your communication. A technical furniture brand and a handcrafted decor brand call for very different images.
Define the audience the image is aimed at: a professional specifier, an end buyer, a distributor. That information affects the level of sophistication, the presence of people and the degree of realism sought.
If the brand has clear limits, such as not showing certain materials or avoiding particular aesthetics, note them explicitly.
7. Volume, variants and continuity
State how many images you need and whether they form a series. In round numbers, imagine a collection of eight products that must look like a single campaign: the brief has to ask for consistency of light, colour and style across all of them.
Point out whether there will be colour, finish or setting variants on the same base. Thinking about them from the start allows the work to be organised better and avoids redoing entire scenes.
If production will be integrated with other phases, such as photography or rendering, it helps to explain it. To understand how each piece fits, it is useful to see AI in professional image production within a complete workflow.
8. Deadlines, budget and internal approvals
Share the date by which you need the images and the reason: a launch, a trade fair, a catalogue closing. Also the approximate budget range, because it shapes the technical approach. For guidance on this point, you can review the cost of AI images compared with other techniques.
Clarify who approves the material and how many people take part in the validation. A project in which five departments give their opinion needs different planning from one with a single decision-maker. When decisions arrive in an orderly way and from one person, the work moves forward with less friction.
If your project has a defined product and a clear aesthetic reference, it will be enough to gather data sheets, photographs and an annotated moodboard; if you are still exploring the concept, prioritise the objective, the audience and the references, and let the studio propose the rest from there.