Golden-hour backlight portrait prompts

Build the look

1. Place the sun behind and to one side of the subject so the hair and shoulders catch a rim of light.
2. Keep soft reflected light on the face. The brightest parts should be controlled highlights rather than a fully white sky.
3. Inspect eyes and skin before increasing the warmth. Ask for a natural skin tone if the whole frame becomes orange.

An editable starting prompt

Replace the subject and setting with your own. Use images you have permission to use.

A 22-year-old woman with dark shoulder-length hair, wearing an ivory long-sleeved linen shirt, sits thoughtfully beside a window, looking outside with a natural expression and relaxed posture.
Golden-hour window backlight, rim-lit hair, soft reflected light on the face, honey-colored highlights, natural shadows and a subtle glow.
Composition and lens: Approximately an 85mm field of view, medium shot; place the sun at or outside the frame edge to reduce flare obscuring the subject.
Lighting: Low warm sun from behind, plus natural wall bounce. Do not light the shadow side as though a spotlight were aimed at it.
Color and tone: Warm golden highlights and relatively neutral shadows. Restrain highlights enough to preserve detail along the hair edges.
Realistic photography with subtle pores, natural flyaway hair and fabric folds, coherent light direction and window reflections. Avoid plastic skin, excessive smoothing, oversharpening and unnatural background blur.

If the result misses the mark

If the face is a silhouette, add soft reflected fill to the face. If flare covers the eyes, reduce flare and move the light source off axis.

Try it in your workflow

Open the studio to explore the style library and the generation options currently available. Review the displayed price before submitting a generation.

Related guides

• Cinematic window-light portrait prompts
• Black-and-white window portrait prompts
• Summer film-look portrait prompts