Start with the basics

What AI image generation actually is

An AI image model has studied millions of captioned pictures and learned the patterns that link words to visuals. When you type a prompt it does not search for a matching photo - it paints a new one, starting from random noise and refining it step by step until it matches your description. That is also why the same prompt can return several different, equally valid images.

The two ways to create

Text-to-image starts from a blank canvas and a sentence - best when you want something brand new. Image-to-image starts from a picture you upload plus a prompt, with a Change slider deciding how much to keep versus reinvent. Both run on the same model, so your results stay consistent. For the full mental model, read how AI image generators work.

Two settings that shape every result

• Aspect ratio - the shape of the image (1:1 square, 16:9 wide, 9:16 tall). Choose it for where the image will live so you are not cropping off the best part later. See best aspect ratios.
• Resolution - how many pixels it has. Need it larger for print? Upscaling rebuilds detail instead of stretching pixels.

Your realistic first session

Open the generator, write one clear sentence, generate a few options, then refine the wording and try again. Expect the occasional miss on small text, hands or exact counts - that is normal for every model, and a clearer prompt or a quick edit fixes most of it.