Prompt Library

ChatGPT Photo Editing Prompts

23 copy-paste prompts

Upload any photo and let ChatGPT do the heavy lifting. Copy these prompts to remove backgrounds, retouch portraits, restore faded memories, color grade like a pro, and polish product shots in seconds.

In short: This page contains 23 copy-paste ready prompts, organized into 5 categories with a description and pro tip for each. The first 15 prompts are free instantly — no signup needed. Hand-curated and tested by the AI Academy team.

By Louis Corneloup · Founder, Techpresso
Last updated ·Hand-curated & tested by the AI Academy team

Background & Object Edits

5 prompts

Clean White Studio Background

1/23

Using the uploaded photo, cleanly cut out the main subject and place them on a seamless pure white studio background. Keep the subject's edges sharp, preserve natural hair detail, and add a soft, even shadow beneath them. Output in a 4:5 vertical aspect ratio.

Turns any casual photo into a clean catalog-style shot on white.

💡

Pro tip: Ask for a 'soft contact shadow' rather than a hard drop shadow so the subject doesn't look pasted on.

Replace Background With a Scene

2/23

Take the uploaded photo and replace the background with a cozy modern coffee shop interior with warm window light. Match the lighting and color temperature on the subject to the new scene so it looks naturally photographed there, not composited.

Swaps a distracting background for a believable new environment.

💡

Pro tip: Naming the light direction ('warm window light from the left') forces ChatGPT to relight the subject for a seamless blend.

Remove a Person or Object

3/23

From the uploaded photo, remove the person standing on the right side and the trash can in the background. Realistically fill in the gaps using the surrounding scene so there is no trace they were ever there. Keep everything else identical.

Cleans out photobombers, clutter, or unwanted objects.

💡

Pro tip: Describe exactly what should fill the gap ('extend the brick wall and pavement') to avoid smudgy AI fill artifacts.

Blur Background (Portrait Mode)

4/23

Apply a realistic shallow depth-of-field effect to the uploaded photo: keep the subject in crisp focus and blur the background with a smooth, creamy bokeh as if shot on an 85mm f/1.8 lens. Keep the subject's edges clean.

Adds DSLR-style background blur to a flat phone photo.

💡

Pro tip: Referencing a real lens like '85mm f/1.8' gives a more natural falloff than just saying 'blur the background.'

Erase Text, Logos & Watermarks

5/23

From the uploaded photo, remove the watermark text across the bottom and the logo on the wall. Reconstruct the underlying texture cleanly so the area looks untouched. Do not alter the rest of the image.

Cleans up distracting overlay text on your own photos.

💡

Pro tip: Only do this on images you own the rights to; ChatGPT will refuse to strip copyright marks from others' work.

Prompts get you started. Tutorials level you up.

A growing library of 300+ hands-on AI tutorials. New tutorials added every week.

Start 7-Day Free Trial

Portrait Retouching & Headshots

5 prompts

Natural Skin Retouch

6/23

Retouch the face in the uploaded photo with a natural, high-end magazine finish: even out skin tone, reduce blemishes and under-eye shadows, and soften harsh shininess while keeping realistic skin texture, pores, and freckles. Do not change the person's face shape or features.

Polished, believable retouching that avoids the plastic look.

💡

Pro tip: Always add 'keep realistic skin texture and pores' or ChatGPT over-smooths skin into a wax figure.

Selfie to Professional Headshot

7/23

Transform the uploaded selfie into a professional LinkedIn headshot. Keep the face identical, dress the person in a smart navy blazer, place them against a soft neutral gray studio background, and add flattering soft key lighting. Output in a square 1:1 crop framed from mid-chest up.

Converts a phone selfie into a corporate-ready headshot.

💡

Pro tip: Add 'keep the face identical' so the result still looks like you and not a generic AI person.

Brighten & Open the Eyes

8/23

In the uploaded portrait, gently brighten and add a natural catchlight to the eyes, whiten the teeth slightly, and lift the overall exposure so the face looks fresh and awake. Keep the edit subtle and photorealistic.

A quick freshen-up that makes a tired portrait look lively.

💡

Pro tip: Use words like 'subtle' and 'natural' on every retouch request; the default tendency is to overdo it.

Fix Lighting on a Backlit Face

9/23

The face in the uploaded photo is underexposed because of bright backlight. Relight the subject so the face is evenly lit with soft, flattering front light, recover detail in the shadows, and balance the exposure without blowing out the bright background.

Rescues a silhouette shot where the face is too dark.

💡

Pro tip: Mention you want to 'recover shadow detail' so it relights rather than just globally brightening the whole frame.

Group Photo Touch-Up

10/23

In the uploaded group photo, open the eyes of anyone blinking, even out the exposure across all faces, and brighten the overall image. Keep every person clearly recognizable and the edit photorealistic.

Salvages a group shot where someone blinked or is in shadow.

💡

Pro tip: Call out 'keep every person recognizable' so faces don't drift into generic AI versions.

Restore & Colorize Old Photos

4 prompts

Restore a Damaged Old Photo

11/23

Restore the uploaded old photograph: repair the scratches, tears, creases, and missing corners, remove dust spots, and sharpen the faded details. Keep it black and white and stay faithful to the original faces and composition.

Repairs physical damage on a scanned vintage photo.

💡

Pro tip: Tell it to 'stay faithful to the original faces' so restoration doesn't reinvent how people looked.

Colorize a Black & White Photo

12/23

Colorize the uploaded black and white photo with realistic, period-accurate colors. Use natural skin tones, believable clothing colors, and soft realistic lighting. Keep the original grain and composition intact.

Brings a vintage monochrome photo to life in color.

💡

Pro tip: Add 'period-accurate colors' so a 1950s photo gets era-appropriate clothing tones instead of modern neon.

Repair & Colorize Together

13/23

Take the uploaded faded vintage photo, repair all scratches and damage, sharpen the faces, then colorize it with natural, realistic tones. Preserve the original people, poses, and background exactly.

Full restoration plus colorization in a single pass.

💡

Pro tip: Restore in one prompt and colorize in a follow-up if the combined result looks muddy; staged edits often beat one giant request.

Upscale a Low-Resolution Scan

14/23

The uploaded photo is low resolution and slightly blurry. Enhance and upscale it: sharpen the details, recover facial features cleanly, and reduce the blur so it looks like a higher-quality scan. Do not change the composition or invent new details.

Sharpens and cleans up a soft, low-res old scan.

💡

Pro tip: Add 'do not invent new details' to keep faces accurate rather than hallucinated when upscaling.

Like these prompts? There are full tutorials behind them.

Learn the workflows, not just the prompts. 300+ easy-to-follow tutorials inside AI Academy — and growing every week.

Try AI Academy Free

Color Grading & Style

5 prompts

Warm Golden-Hour Grade

15/23

Apply a warm cinematic golden-hour color grade to the uploaded photo: add soft warm highlights, gentle orange-and-teal tones, lifted blacks, and a slight film-like glow. Keep skin tones natural and the look photorealistic.

Gives a flat photo a warm, cinematic film mood.

💡

Pro tip: Ask it to 'keep skin tones natural' so the warm grade doesn't turn faces orange.

Moody Editorial Look

16/23

Color grade the uploaded photo with a moody, high-contrast editorial look: deep shadows, desaturated muted tones, and a cool blue cast. Keep detail in the highlights and make it look like a professional fashion magazine edit.

Transforms a plain photo into a dramatic editorial frame.

💡

Pro tip: Pair 'high contrast' with 'keep detail in the highlights' so the dark grade doesn't crush everything to black.

Vintage Film Stock Emulation

17/23

Restyle the uploaded photo to look like it was shot on classic 35mm film: add subtle grain, slightly faded colors, warm tones, and gentle halation around highlights. Keep the composition unchanged.

Adds an analog film aesthetic to a digital photo.

💡

Pro tip: Naming a film characteristic like 'halation around highlights' gives a far more convincing analog look than just 'vintage filter.'

Black & White Conversion

18/23

Convert the uploaded photo to a rich black and white image with deep contrast, bright clean highlights, and detailed midtones, in the style of classic fine-art portrait photography. Keep facial detail crisp.

A high-impact monochrome conversion with real depth.

💡

Pro tip: Asking for 'detailed midtones' prevents a flat, gray result and gives a proper tonal range.

Match Two Photos' Color

19/23

Color grade the uploaded photo so it matches the warm, slightly faded look of the reference photo I am attaching. Keep the subject and composition unchanged and only adjust the color, contrast, and tone to match.

Makes two photos look like they came from the same shoot.

💡

Pro tip: Upload both images in the same message and explicitly label which is the reference and which to edit.

Product Photo Cleanup

4 prompts

E-commerce White Background

20/23

Take the uploaded product photo, cut out the product cleanly, and place it centered on a pure white background with a soft natural shadow underneath. Remove any dust, fingerprints, or reflections on the product. Output a square 1:1 image suitable for an online store listing.

Marketplace-ready product shot on clean white.

💡

Pro tip: Add 'remove dust and fingerprints' since close-up product crops expose flaws a normal photo hides.

Lifestyle Product Scene

21/23

Place the product from the uploaded photo into a stylish lifestyle scene: set it on a marble kitchen counter with soft morning light, a blurred plant in the background, and natural reflections. Keep the product's shape, label, and colors exactly accurate.

Stages a plain product in an aspirational setting.

💡

Pro tip: Stress 'keep the label exactly accurate' so ChatGPT doesn't garble your branding or text.

Fix Product Lighting & Reflections

22/23

The uploaded product photo has harsh glare and uneven lighting. Even out the lighting with soft diffused studio light, remove the glare and hotspots, and make the colors look true to life. Keep the product unchanged otherwise.

Tames harsh phone-flash glare on a product shot.

💡

Pro tip: Say 'true to life colors' so cleanup doesn't accidentally shift the product's actual color.

Straighten & Center the Product

23/23

In the uploaded product photo, straighten the tilted product, recenter it in the frame, crop out the messy edges, and clean up the background to a neutral light gray. Keep the product fully intact.

Fixes crooked, off-center, or cluttered product framing.

💡

Pro tip: Ask it to 'keep the product fully intact' so cropping never clips part of the item.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. With GPT-4o image generation, you can upload a photo and ask ChatGPT to edit it — remove backgrounds, retouch faces, restore old photos, change lighting, and more. It regenerates a new image based on your instructions rather than editing pixels like Photoshop, so results work best when your prompt is specific.
ChatGPT regenerates the image rather than masking and editing the original, so faces can drift. Add phrases like 'keep the face identical' or 'keep the person clearly recognizable' to your prompt, and edit in small steps rather than one giant request to preserve likeness.
Be specific about the transformation, the lighting, and the output. Name light direction, lens look, color tones, and aspect ratio. Make one change at a time, then refine in follow-up messages. Vague prompts like 'make it better' produce unpredictable results.
It will help you clean up your own images, but it refuses to strip copyright marks or watermarks from photos you don't own. Only use these prompts on images you have the rights to edit.
You can ask for common ratios like 1:1 (square), 4:5 (vertical portrait), 16:9 (landscape), or 9:16 (story/reel). State the ratio in your prompt — for example 'output in a 4:5 vertical aspect ratio' — for predictable framing.

Prompts are the starting line. Tutorials are the finish.

A growing library of 300+ hands-on tutorials on ChatGPT, Claude, Midjourney, and 50+ AI tools. New tutorials added every week.

Start 7-Day Free TrialExplore AI prompts for business

7-day free trial. Cancel anytime.

Browse All Prompt Collections