Image to image
Using an existing picture as the starting point for generation — how much of the original survives, and when this is the only mode that will work.
Image-to-image starts from a picture you supply rather than from noise. The output is anchored to that input, which is what makes it the controllable mode.
Why it matters more than text-to-image
Text-to-image is a slot machine with a very large prize pool. Image-to-image is a tool. If anything specific has to appear in the output — a real product, a particular face, a layout you already designed — supplying it beats describing it every time, because description cannot carry identity.
How much of the original survives
Most implementations expose a strength or denoise control, and understanding its shape saves a lot of trial and error:
| Strength | What happens | Use for |
|---|---|---|
| Low | Output closely resembles the input; small changes only | Colour grading, light retouching, subtle style shifts |
| Medium | Composition and subject survive; surface and detail change | Restyling, changing materials, era or mood shifts |
| High | Only rough composition survives; content is reinvented | Using an image as a loose layout sketch |
The most common mistake is running high strength and then complaining the subject changed. If identity must survive, you want low to medium, plus a model that handles identity well.
Practical uses
- Restyling a photo — same scene, different rendering.
- Fixing one region — where inpainting is available, regenerate a selection and leave the rest untouched.
- Producing a first frame for video. This is the highest-value use. Get a still exactly right, cheaply, then animate it — see image to video.
- Iterating a design — feed the output back in and nudge repeatedly, rather than re-rolling from scratch.
Input quality decides output quality
The model amplifies what you give it. A soft, low-resolution, already-retouched input yields a soft, plastic output no matter how good the prompt is. Start from the sharpest, most neutral version you have — an unedited original beats a filtered export.
For instruction-style editing where you name a change in words and everything else stays put, see Nano Banana, which is built for that.
Common questions
What is the difference from inpainting?
Image-to-image transforms the whole frame. Inpainting regenerates only a region you mask and leaves the rest of the pixels alone.
Why did my subject change?
Strength was too high. Lower it so more of the original survives, or use a model built for identity preservation.
Can I use it to change only the background?
That is better done with instruction editing or inpainting, which target a region. Plain image-to-image tends to move everything a little.