3 useful AI graphic design tools. Generative AI for graphic design

From UI sketches to finished digital images, AI-created images are becoming more and more popular. Some of them can be used directly in the corporate visual identity. Others are great inspiration or conceptual materials to work on when discussing the look of the created product. In this blog post, we will explore some of the most useful AI graphic design tools that can help you create stunning visuals without any prior design experience. Read on.

3 useful AI graphic design tools – table of contents:

Visuals on demand
Midjourney
Stable Diffusion
DALL·E 2

Summary

Visuals on demand

Using generative AI for graphic design is becoming increasingly popular. Simply put, AI is revolutionizing the way companies create visual content. The technology is applicable in various fields, including:

marketing,
advertising,
product and interior design,
digital-physical product development.

AI-generated graphic materials allow companies to produce more attractive and coherent visuals, as well as improve their brand identity. Also, there are available tools to automate processes such as:

designing app icons – which is possible thanks to Iconify AI
photo editing – both of single shots, for example, using Photofix, and in bulk , for example, using Imagen’s Personalized Photo Editing Assistant,
web design – using Durable,
logo design – for example, using Looka.

Today, however, we would like to take a closer look at the top three AI graphic design tools: Midjourney, Stable Diffusion, and DALL·E 2. They are highly versatile AI systems. Although using them for business purposes requires a bit more effort than typing in a company name and clicking the ,,Generate” button, the results can exceed your wildest expectations.

Midjourney

Midjourney is an independent research lab created to explore new ways of thinking and expand human imagination. Despite its enormous popularity, it has only 11 full-time employees, assisted by a group of advisors.

The new AI-powered tool from Midjourney, created by David Holz, turns text-based prompts into images. For starters, you can generate about 25 images for free, the quality of which is considerably higher than that offered by other tools.

In order to use its capabilities, you need to have a Discord account, and after entering the site, click the “Join the Beta” button.This is where the fun begins. Once you join any newbies-# channel visible in the left sidebar, you need to follow a few steps:

Type in /imagine something that you think of (e.g. /imagine lakes and mountains).
Hold on for about 60 seconds without losing sight of your prompt. It’s worth bearing this in mind because if you’re using a free trial, it can be a bit difficult… to find the results generated by AI. However, if you do lose sight of them, you can search for a recent query in the upper right corner by selecting the “mentions” tab and typing in your username.
There are numbered buttons under the generated images. You can use them to upscale the selected image (U) or create more variations (V).

With the help of Midjourney you will instantly get a perfect:

company logo,
illustration – ready to be used in a blog post,
fake photo – for example, of an ideal office,
character – for instance, a buyer persona.

If you have a complex idea that requires composition or a particular style, it is worthwhile to take a look at the prompts used by more experienced users.

Stable Diffusion

The currently used version of Stable Diffusion, 2.1, was made public in December 2022. It is also behind more specialized AI art generators, such as Lensa AI – an app that creates avatars based on photos, which has been the subject of much controversy over reinforcing social, racial and gender stereotypes.

Nevertheless, apps using the model created by the Stability AI team have been downloaded by more than 40 million people so far, and the number is still growing. Unlike Midjourney, Stable Diffusion can be used directly on its website. The main downside of this solution is the waiting time. If you hit rush hour, you have to enter the prompt multiple times before you can use the image generator.

DreamStudio, available in beta, was created for more demanding users. To compare, using the same prompt as in Midjourney, Stable Diffusion Online generated the following images:

And Dream Studio:

In the case of Stable Diffusion Online, it is important not only to be able to write prompts, but also to add , “negative prompts”. In the above prompt, we specified that the image shouldn’t show hornets, leaves and flowers.

It’s worth taking a moment to decide what should not be in your image. Especially, if you want a simple vector logo showing an illustration of a bee on a white background surrounded by a few abstract lines.

DALL·E 2

DALL·E 2 is an AI-powered image generation model developed by OpenAI, and it is capable of creating images from textual descriptions or from partial images. It runs in the browser and is available at this link.

It also has the Outpainting feature that lets users generate images that are larger and more complex than the original input. For example, if you input an image of a tree, DALL·E 2’s Outpainting feature can generate an image that includes a larger forest scene around the tree, even if this additional content was not initially present.

Therefore, Outpainting can be used for:

creating highly detailed and imaginative images that go beyond the boundaries of the original input,
making smooth transitions between various images, such as photos and illustrations,
placing fragments of generated images on the imported photos.

In this way, for example, you can combine images produced by all three AI graphic design tools, or place a banner with a company’s corporate identity on an AI-generated building:

Summary

Each of the presented AI graphic design tools is endowed with a different kind of imagination and has its limitations. But that’s not surprising – just remember one of the creative games in which one person reads a description of a character or a place, and the others try to draw it. Creating two very similar images is almost impossible!

Being familiar with the capabilities of these three tools, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion and DALL·E 2, it will be easier for you to choose the right way of imaging. However, it is worth paying attention not only to the first results, but to practice writing effective prompts. By using the proper wording, you can generate coherent and high-quality images.

You’ve just got to know more about AI graphic design tools. Read also: Using ChatGPT in business.

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Author: Robert Whitney
JavaScript expert and instructor who coaches IT departments. His main goal is to up-level team productivity by teaching others how to effectively cooperate while coding.
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