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    Nano Banana 2 Prompting Guide

    Prompt Nano Banana 2 for stills: composition, product lock, edit mode. Run the 4-credit hero on Versely.

    Versely Team••11 min read

    Nano Banana 2 prompting works best when you write like a creative director, not like a keyword pile. Name the subject, the shot, the light, and the job of the frame. On Versely the hero stills row is Nano Banana 2 at 4 credits per generate. Draft cheaper on nano-banana-2-lite (3), tweak on nano-banana-2-edit (4), and reserve nano-banana-pro (12) for brand-critical finals. There is no free generation tier on these rows; credits apply.

    This guide is the technique layer for stills: composition, product photography, and edit mode. For OpenAI's stills dialect see the sibling GPT Image 2 prompting guide. For type-heavy routing see GPT Image 2 versus Nano Banana 2 for legible type. Deeper vocabulary lives in shot composition prompts and style keywords. Video hubs (Seedance 2.5, Wan 3.0) cover motion; this post stays on still frames.

    The creative-director stills stack

    Banana 2 reads long prose or labeled lines equally well. Only subject and deliverable are mandatory. Add the other slots in the order your last still failed.

    1. Subject - who or what owns the frame
    2. Scene - place, surface, materials, props that earn their keep
    3. Composition - shot size, angle, placement, aspect ratio, negative space
    4. Light and camera - key direction, softbox or window, lens feel, depth of field
    5. Style and finish - photoreal editorial, film stock, grade, texture words
    6. Constraints - exclusions and preserve lists (edits and references need these)

    Prefer positive framing. Say empty wet asphalt street at dawn instead of stacking only no cars, no people, no clutter. Exclusions still help for watermarks and fake UI; lead with what should exist.

    Composition before adjectives

    Name the shot size, viewpoint, and aspect before you stack mood words. Call out placement when layout matters (subject left of center, empty upper third for headline). State the ratio when the canvas is load-bearing (1:1, 4:5, 9:16, 16:9).

    Weak:

    A luxurious premium watch looking expensive and viral.

    Stronger:

    SUBJECT: Matte black chronograph watch with a brushed steel bezel.
SCENE: Polished obsidian slab, soft reflection under the case, no other props.
COMPOSITION: 1:1 hero. Three-quarter view, watch left of center. Empty right third for later copy.
LIGHT: Soft key from upper left, gentle fill from the right, controlled specular on the crystal.
STYLE: Photorealistic product photography, 85mm macro feel, shallow depth of field on the dial.
CONSTRAINTS: No text, no logo overlay, no watermark, no extra watches.

    Pair shot size with lens language (close-up, 85mm; wide, 24mm; macro for label texture). Two concrete composition words beat ten vague intensifiers. See also shot composition prompts.

    Worked prompt 1 (hero product still)

    DELIVERABLE: 4:5 ecommerce hero for a skincare drop.
SUBJECT: Frosted glass serum bottle with a matte white pump, three-quarter view.
SCENE: Warm travertine counter, single eucalyptus sprig behind the bottle, soft steam suggestion in the far background.
COMPOSITION: Bottle in the lower-left third. Empty upper-right for a short headline later. Eye level, shallow depth of field.
LIGHT: Soft window light from frame left, cool fill from the right.
STYLE: Photorealistic editorial product still, clean commercial grade.
CONSTRAINTS: No text on the bottle rewrite, no watermark, no extra bottles, no people.

    Product stills: materials, surface, lock

    Banana 2 improves when you describe physical makeup instead of saying premium. Name materials (matte ceramic, brushed aluminum, worn oak), the surface the product sits on, and how light should behave on that surface (soft reflection, hard specular, no reflection). For catalog work, reserve negative space on purpose and say so.

    When you attach a product photo, uploading is not the instruction. Label the asset (Image 1) and give it one job. State a preserve list for SKU geometry: shape, cap, label art, proportions, color. State what not to copy from the reference (studio backdrop, lighting, props).

    REFERENCE: Image 1 is the sneaker to place. Preserve the silhouette, sole profile, lace color, and side logo exactly. Do not alter the shoe. Do not copy Image 1's white seamless background or hard flash lighting.
SCENE: Rain-wet city curb at blue hour, shallow puddle reflection, distant neon soft bokeh.
COMPOSITION: 16:9. Sneaker three-quarter view, low angle, left of center. Empty right third.
STYLE: Photorealistic lifestyle product still, 35mm feel.
CONSTRAINTS: No second shoe, no rewritten logos, no watermark.

    Iterate one variable at a time: first lock geometry, then lighting, then crop. Do not ask the model to redesign the SKU while also inventing a new world.

    Edit mode: one change, restated preserve

    Use nano-banana-2-edit (4 credits) when you already have a keeper and need a surgical pass. Editing is not regenerating with hope. Your prompt should name what changes and what must stay identical.

    Habits that stick:

    1. Lead with Change only X.
    2. Restate the preserve list every follow-up (shape, label, pose, crop, grade).
    3. Prefer one change per turn. Compound edits drift.
    4. For local surgery, name the region in plain language (the bottle on the left, the upper-right corner) so the model can treat it like a semantic mask.

    Weak: Make it better and more premium.

    Stronger:

    EDIT: Change only the backdrop to a seamless deep cherry red studio sweep.
PRESERVE: Exact product geometry, label art, camera angle, crop, and lighting direction on the subject. Do not rewrite any text on the product. Do not add props.
CONSTRAINTS: No watermark, no extra products, no people.

    Conversational follow-ups work when you keep the preserve list alive. If the model starts "improving" the SKU, stop and restate geometry before you ask for another mood change.

    Worked prompt 2 (edit pass)

    BASE: Approved 1:1 mug hero on white seamless.
EDIT: Change only the surface under the mug to wet dark slate with a soft contact reflection. Keep the mug identical.
PRESERVE: Mug shape, glaze color, handle join, three-quarter angle, softbox direction, empty lower-right corner.
CONSTRAINTS: No text, no logo, no watermark, no extra mugs.

    Style that sticks (and when to pick Pro)

    Say photorealistic when you want realism. Add camera language for composition (lens, depth of field, light direction), not fake EXIF. Keep style to three to six concrete terms after the subject. Prefer material words over empty intensifiers (style keywords).

    Credit routing on Versely (no invented promos):

    • nano-banana-2-lite (3): drafts while you lock subject and composition
    • nano-banana-2 (4): default hero for most product and lifestyle frames
    • nano-banana-2-edit (4): surgical changes on a winning still
    • nano-banana-pro (12): brand-final, dense in-image type, or layout-sensitive comps

    For posters and packaging, quote every load-bearing string, describe font feel and placement, and fence with verbatim / no other text. If type is the whole job, read the legible type comparison and the GPT Image 2 prompting guide.

    Nano Banana 2 versus GPT Image 2 (stills)

    Both rows live on text-to-image. Prefer Nano Banana 2 as the everyday stills hero when you want fast product and lifestyle frames at 4 credits. Reach for GPT Image 2 for quoted multi-line type, dense layout comps, or when your team already ships that dialect. Use the sibling guides for each stack and the type comparison when legibility decides the row. Exclusions live in the prompt (no text, no people, no watermark); see negative prompts.

    When to upscale or remove background after

    Do not burn another generate to fix a soft edge or busy backdrop if a post step will do.

    Regenerate when the brief is wrong. Free tools clean pixels; they do not rewrite a contradictory brief.

    Failure modes

    Failure Likely cause Fix in the brief
    Centered generic catalog look No composition or aspect Name framing, placement, ratio, negative space
    Flat "AI premium" plastic look No materials or light direction Name materials, surface, key direction, reflection behavior
    Product redesigned mid-edit Vague "use my image" or compound edits One change; preserve shape, cap, label, proportions; say what not to copy
    Style washes out Six conflicting mood words Three to six concrete style terms after subject
    Soft still or busy backdrop after approval Asking the model to "fix" cleanup On-device /free-tools/image-upscaler or /free-tools/background-remover
    Watermark or fake UI Web-trained chrome leak Constraints: no text, no watermark, no logos
    Empty zone filled anyway Placement not protected Reserve the zone: no subject in upper third

    Skip the dialect: brief the Versely agent

    You can learn this stack. On Versely you can also skip memorizing every Banana dialect and brief the agent instead of writing prompts: content type, photos or references, edits you will accept, target platforms, and a budget ceiling. Name the row when it matters ("use Nano Banana 2", or "draft on lite then hero on Banana 2"). The agent plans the job; you approve the plan.

    A prompt wins for one hero still. A brief wins for variants, edit passes, cleanup, and a capped post path.

    After the take: edit, post, collections

    When the Nano Banana 2 pass is close enough:

    1. Finish cutouts and sharpening on-device with /free-tools/background-remover and /free-tools/image-upscaler when those are the remaining gaps. Use nano-banana-2-edit only when the brief itself still needs a change.
    2. Optional motion: send a winning still into /tools/ai-video-generator as image-to-video. Prompt the motion brief on the video row; do not ask the still model to invent a timeline.
    3. Upload or schedule to the social accounts Versely already connects for your workspace. If a network is not connected, export the PNG or JPEG and post from the native app.
    4. Save keepers into a Versely collection so the next brief reuses the same product refs, winning prompt lines, and approved stills.

    Honest limit: Nano Banana 2 is a stills generator, not a timeline tool and not a free unlimited sandbox. Credits apply on every generate.

    FAQ

    What is the best Nano Banana 2 prompt formula?

    Subject and deliverable first, then scene, composition, light and camera, style and materials, and constraints (plus a preserve list when a reference or edit is in play). Drop any slot you do not need. Add slots in the order your last failure showed up.

    How should I prompt product stills?

    Name materials, surface, light direction, shot size, and negative space. If you attach a product photo, give Image 1 one job and list what to preserve and what not to copy. Do not ask the model to redesign the SKU.

    How does edit mode differ from a new generate?

    On nano-banana-2-edit, say Change only X and restate the preserve list every turn. One change per pass. New generates rewrite the world; edits should not.

    Is Nano Banana 2 free on Versely?

    No. Nano Banana 2 meters at 4 credits on the common stills path. Lite is 3, edit is 4, Pro is 12. There is no free generation tier. On-device /free-tools handle remove-bg and upscale after you already have a still.

    When should I use GPT Image 2 instead?

    When multi-line quoted type or dense layout is the job, or when your team already ships that dialect. Start with this Banana 2 guide for everyday product stills, then jump to the GPT Image 2 prompting guide or the legible type comparison when type decides the row.

    Where do I run this on Versely?

    Open the text-to-image tool with Nano Banana 2 selected, or start from the model page. Animate approved winners later in the AI video generator via image-to-video.

    How is this different from Seedance or Wan prompting?

    Those are motion briefs. This guide is stills: composition, product lock, edit preserve lists, post-cleanup. Generate the still here; animate on a video row only after you approve the frame.

    Takeaway

    Prompt Nano Banana 2 like a short creative-director stills brief, not like a vibe caption. Lock composition and aspect, name materials and light, preserve product geometry on references and edits, and keep style concrete. Run the 4-credit hero on Versely (Lite to draft, edit to tweak, Pro when the final must ship), or hand the agent a job brief when you would rather not memorize the dialect. Clean winners on-device when upscale or remove-bg is enough, animate keepers via image-to-video when motion is next, and file keepers in a collection so the next still starts warmer.