How to Make Summer Portraits with AI That Look Like Real Photos (Beach, Pool and Sports Recipes)

Beach and pool images made with AI often come out shiny, with blown-out skies and a slightly fake look. Most of the time the cause is not describing the light. Write “bright summer sun” and you get hard shadows and shine.

The recipes below fix that by specifying three things — soft evening light, the lens, and skin texture. Copy them as they are. → Try it free now

Let the clothes and props carry the season — a linen shirt, a straw hat. Keep the ocean out of focus so the eye goes to the person.

Prompt:
photoreal fashion portrait of a 28-year-old woman on a beach at golden hour, white linen shirt, straw sun hat, wind in her hair, laughing, ocean softly out of focus, shot on 85mm f/1.8, film grain, natural matte skin texture, summer editorial photography

Negative:
plastic skin, oily shine, overexposed sky, airbrushed, cgi, doll-like, extra fingers, deformed hands

Texture tips: natural matte skin and film grain remove the shine; slightly darker exposure keeps the sky from blowing out.

Pool scenes look far more real when you shoot them as sports photography. Add the gear of the sport — swim cap, goggles, a team jacket, splashing water.

Prompt:
documentary sports photo of an adult competitive swimmer at the edge of an indoor pool after a race, swim cap and goggles pushed up, team track jacket over the shoulders, catching breath, water splashes, arena lights, shot on 70-200mm, fast shutter, natural skin texture, sports magazine photography

Negative:
plastic skin, oversaturated, blurry, cgi, extra limbs, watermark, text

Tip: 70-200mm and fast shutter give the distance of a press photo taken from the stands.

Build an original person from lighting, wardrobe and expression — never by imitating a real person. Once you have a still you like, add light motion with i2v (image-to-video): a blink and a hair sway are enough to make it feel real.

▲ Portrait example made with EGAKU (fictional person).

Prompt:
photoreal portrait of an original 30-year-old woman, warm side light from a window at sunset, black lace dress, small earrings, calm expression, dark background, 85mm lens, natural skin pores, magazine quality

Negative:
resemblance to real celebrity, watermark, plastic skin, blurry, extra limbs

1. Make a still you like with one of the recipes
2. Run it through Movie Board (i2v) — keep the motion subtle

i2v motion prompt:
subtle natural motion, gentle blink, soft hair sway, faint smile, cinematic, 5 seconds, keep skin texture natural

• Light: soft light at golden hour. Midday sun causes shine and hard shadows.
• Lens: 85mm/50mm for portraits, 70-200mm for sports.
• Skin: matte skin / pores / film grain to control shine.
• Negatives: always include plastic, airbrushed, cgi.

Copy a recipe and make it. → Make one free

Please make people as fictional adults or original characters, and don't make images that resemble real people.