One photo. Every scene. Take one shot and multiply it.

A product shot has a short shelf life, and not because anything is wrong with it. The season changes. The campaign changes. The SKU gets a new label and suddenly a hundred lifestyle photos are out of date.

Reshooting every time isn't practical. Rebuilding the scene is.

If you have one good product photo, you can put that product almost anywhere—a new background, a new season, a new surface—and keep it looking exactly like itself.

That's the whole mindset, and it's also the shape of every prompt below:

1. Say what's changing. The background, the surface, the season, the SKU.

2. Declare the product untouchable. Name the parts that matter—label text, logo, proportions, color.

3. Match the new scene to the old shot. Lighting direction, shadow depth, perspective, scale. This is what separates composited from convincing.

Skip step three and you get a product floating in a photo. Include it and you get a photo.

Use this when the product shot is already right and only the setting is wrong.

Copy this:

Replace [surface / furniture / background] with [new version]. Change the background to [new setting] with [lighting description].

Keep [product] in its exact position, angle, scale, and lighting. Keep camera angle, framing, and composition exactly the same.

Only change [the specific elements listed]. Everything else stays identical.

Pro tip: name the surface separately from the background. "Wooden side table" and "bedroom at golden hour" are two different instructions, and models handle them better apart than together.

This one is for the version where you want a genuinely new photo, not a background swap—different environment, different light, different mood.

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Place [product] from the first image into [new setting]. Match the photographic style, composition, lighting direction, and color grading of [the second reference image / this description].

Keep the product's design, colors, and proportions exactly the same.

Ensure it is well-lit and clearly separated from the background—increase contrast and definition so it doesn't blend into [background element].

[Scene details: props, season, time of day, surface, lighting quality.]

Filled in:

Place [the bottle] from the first image into [an outdoor setting on a stone ledge, mid-autumn, late afternoon light]. Match the lighting direction and color grading of the second image. Keep the product's design, colors, and proportions exactly the same. Ensure it's clearly separated from the background so it doesn't blend into [the foliage].

Pro tip: that separation line does more work than it looks like. Left out, products sink into busy backgrounds—and autumn scenes, foliage, and anything textured are the worst offenders.

The highest-leverage prompt on this page. One good lifestyle photo becomes a photo of your entire line.

Copy this:

Replace [product] in the first image with [product] from the second image.

Preserve the new product's design exactly: label text, logo, typography, colors, and proportions. Do not redesign or alter any part of it.

Keep everything else in the first image exactly the same—position, size, angle, perspective, hands, background, lighting, shadows, and reflections. Only swap the product.

Match the new product's lighting, shadows, scale, and perspective to the original scene so it integrates naturally.

Working in video instead of stills? Add this:

Keep the exact camera movement, framing, motion, timing, and interaction the same. The label stays clean, sharp, flat, and undistorted throughout—no warping, wobbling, or flickering.

Pro tip: list your label elements by name rather than saying "keep the label." Models protect what you name and improvise on what you don't.

Packaging dielines, garment flats, signage files. All of them can become a photograph of the real thing before the real thing exists.

Copy this:

Create a photorealistic product render from this [dieline / flat artwork / design].

Build it as a fully assembled [3D box / garment / mounted sign] with [material and finish]. Show the front panel with [key design elements and text, listed exactly].

Place it [setting and surface]. [Lighting description] with soft shadows.

Professional product photography, shallow depth of field, high resolution.

Pro tip: spell out the material and finish. "Matte carton with sharp square corners" and "glossy box" produce very different results, and the vague version usually looks like plastic.

Reference images beat adjectives. If you have a photo shot the way you want this one to look, use it. Describing "warm autumn lighting" is a distant second to showing it.

Busy scenes need a separation instruction. Any time the background has texture or detail, tell the model to keep the product distinct from it.

Check the label at full size. Small text is where these fail, and it's easy to miss in a thumbnail.

Try a different model when you're stuck. They behave differently, and switching is often faster than rewriting. See the FAQ below.

Can I change the background of a product photo with AI?

Yes. Select the photo in Canvas and describe the new background, while stating that the product's position, angle, scale, and lighting stay unchanged.

How do I keep my product looking the same when I change the scene?

Name the specific elements that must be preserved—label text, logo, typography, colors, proportions—rather than asking generally to "keep the product the same."

Can I swap one product for another in a photo I already have?

Yes. Provide the original photo and a photo of the new product, then ask for the swap while keeping position, perspective, hands, background, lighting, and shadows identical.

Why does my product look pasted into the scene?

Because the lighting and shadows don't match. Ask explicitly for the product's lighting, shadows, scale, and perspective to be matched to the new scene.

Can I make a product photo before the product exists?

Yes. Upload the dieline or flat artwork and describe the assembled object, its material and finish, and the setting you want it photographed in.

Which model should I use?

Scene work is image editing, so start with an image model. Nano Banana 2 Lite is the cheapest and fastest way to iterate—roughly half the credits of Nano Banana 2 and under three seconds a generation—so use it while you're still working out the wording. Move up to Nano Banana 2, Seedream 4.5, or Flux 2 Max for the final version, when holding fine detail matters more than speed.

If you're swapping a product inside a video instead of a still, MiniMax H3 returns outputs quickly and Seedance 2.5 supports longer clips with more reference images.

Credit costs per model change as providers reprice them, so check the model picker in Canvas for current rates.