How to Use Leonardo AI to Create AI Art – MUO – MakeUseOf
Leonardo AI packs a punch. Let’s show you how to start using this Midjourney alternative to generate art.
AI Image generators have become one of the most sought-after design tools on the internet. They are easy to use; describe the image you want to create, sit back, and watch the AI conjure up a masterpiece.
While you can find dozens of AI image generators on the market, only a few can boast the quality and precision you'll need to produce realistic and visually appealing images. Although Midjourney has dominated the AI art space, Leonardo AI is a fast-rising Midjourney alternative you can't afford to pass up.
Here's how to get started with the Leonardo AI image generator.
Leonardo AI is a feature-packed generative AI tool for creating AI art. While it is especially renowned for creating image assets for computer games, Leonardo's AI image generator can create stunning image assets for just about any project you can think of. It is a freemium service, allowing users to make 150 credits' worth of images each day.
Depending on the combination of image generation and manipulation tasks you perform on the platform, your daily 150 credit balance should be enough to generate several dozen images (around 75). If you are not a very heavy user, this should typically be enough.
Nonetheless, if you're looking to engage in extensive image generation and possibly take advantage of exclusive premium features, the Leonardo AI premium plan starts at $10 per month.
How does it compare with Midjourney? Leonardo AI performs quite impressively and even outdoes Midjourney in a lot of image generation metrics, particularly with the additional suite of AI-powered features it offers.
If you're just starting out with AI art and haven't tried Midjourney before, see our guide on how to use Midjourney to create AI art. There is also a plethora of free AI art generators if you'd rather not pay.
The Leonardo AI image generator is in its beta testing phase at the time of writing and access is restricted to users who have previously signed up on the Leonardo AI waitlist only.
To join the waitlist:
Once your email has been added to the waitlist, you can either wait for a few days to gain access or you can expedite the process of being whitelisted by joining Leonardo AI's social media spaces.
To gain access to Leonardo AI almost instantly:
Being added to the waitlist means your email will be whitelisted. However, being whitelisted does not equal being registered on the Leonardo AI platform. Once you've received an email that your email address has been whitelisted, you'd have to use the whitelisted email to sign up for an account.
To create your account:
Once you've successfully signed in, you'll be credited with 150 credits to create images.
Once you've signed in to your Leonardo AI account, you'll be greeted with the Leonardo design home screen which can be a bit intimidating at first. There are lots of features to play with, and you can try out all of them as you get used to the platform.
To create your first image:
While Leonardo AI is primarily an AI image generator, it is packed with a variety of AI-powered image manipulation tools that you'll find useful. With Leonardo AI, you can perform AI image editing tasks like in-painting and out-painting. It also has a magic eraser tool you can use to remove objects from images with precision without damaging the principal objects in a picture.
There's almost no limit to the kind of images you can create with the tool, it all depends on how imaginative you can get.
Here are some prompts to try out or use as inspirations for creating images with Leonardo AI:
Remember, the quality of images you get depends mostly on your prompting skills and the image generation model you use. So, play around with prompts, try out different image generation models, and see what works best for you. If you're a bit low on ideas, you can use a tool like the Claude AI chatbot to come up with prompts that get you the results you want.
For both beginners dipping their toes into AI art and professionals wanting to leverage it for projects, Leonardo AI checks all the boxes as a user-friendly and full-featured AI image generator.
With a generous free plan and premium features that provide good value, it presents a viable alternative for those frustrated by tools with waitlists or high costs. Leonardo AI makes AI image generation accessible and rewarding for all users.
Maxwell is a technology enthusiast who spends most of his time testing productivity software and exploring the new generation of AI chatbots. His coverage of AI has garnered over 1 million reads and counting. With a quirky sense of humor and a passionate love for all things tech, Maxwell leverages his 8+ years of experience in tech writing to simplify complex concepts for both novices and experts alike. He has a soft spot for cutting-edge AI tools, remains a dedicated Android user, and tinkers with PHP and Python code in his free time.
