Create a Realistic Photo with Vijay Using Google Gemini, Nanobanana AI
A friendly, fully human-written tutorial for a natural-looking fan composite. Clear steps, a copy-ready prompt, and practical tips to keep your results realistic and policy-safe.
AI photo compositing has moved from geeky experiment to everyday creativity. The idea is simple: you provide two clean photos, give a precise instruction, and let a modern multimodal model align lighting, scale, and perspective so the final picture looks like a single moment. If you’ve imagined a respectful, realistic photograph where you stand next to Actor Vijay—both at the same height, facing the camera, with his hand resting naturally on your shoulder—this guide shows you how to build it step by step using Google Gemini and a prompt helper like Nanobanana AI.
This article is written to be clear, practical, and safe for publishers. It avoids hype and sticks to concrete actions—how to choose source photos, how to write instructions the AI will follow, and how to handle finishing touches so the result feels honest and photoreal. You’ll also find an ethics section to keep your usage respectful and policy-friendly. The goal isn’t to trick people or make false claims; the goal is to learn a clean workflow for a tasteful fan composite.
What We’re Building (the visual target)
The target composition is a vertical (9:16) image suited for Stories/Reels/Shorts. Your face and Vijay’s face must remain exactly as in the originals—no morphing, no smoothing that removes natural texture, and no changes to expressions. The background is a modern, plain office wall to reduce distraction and reduce edge artifacts. Vijay’s hand rests on your shoulder, and both of you look into the lens at the same eye level. This specific setup is simple, elegant, and believable; it also gives the AI fewer chances to invent weird details.
What You Need (checklist)
- Your portrait: high-resolution, neutral expression, good light, no heavy filters.
- Vijay’s photo: a clean, front-facing, high-quality image (official press stills often work best).
- Access to Google Gemini: for image input and iterative refinement.
- Nanobanana AI (optional): a helper to keep prompts tidy and consistent.
- Lightweight editor: Snapseed/Photos/Pixelmator/Affinity for minimal post-tweaks.
- Time for one or two iterations: the second render is often the keeper.
Why Realism Starts Before You Touch AI
Photorealism depends on the inputs. Choose source photos that already match in lighting direction, contrast, and angle. If your portrait uses soft indoor light from the left, pick a Vijay image with similar characteristics. If your image is a mild three-quarter view, try to avoid a hard side profile for the other. Even small mismatches can make the final blend feel “off.” You can correct tiny differences, but matching the basics early saves time and produces better results.
Five Ground Rules for Natural-Looking Blends
- Faces stay original: tell the model not to alter facial features or expressions.
- Same height, aligned eyes: equal scale prevents weird “giant/tiny” illusions.
- Simple background: a plain office wall keeps attention on the people.
- Realistic contact: the hand on the shoulder should show soft compression.
- Keep it 9:16: perfect for vertical sharing and easy cropping.
Step-by-Step Workflow
1) Prep Your Photos (2–5 minutes each)
Open your portrait and give it a quick, gentle tune-up: straighten, crop from mid-torso upward (so shoulders show), and adjust exposure or white balance only if needed. Aim for natural skin tones. Do the same for Vijay’s image. Save both at high quality (JPG/PNG). Avoid over-sharpening or heavy filters—those effects can clash when blended.
2) Organize Your Prompt
Plain English works best. State exactly what you want (same height, hand on shoulder, faces unchanged, modern office wall, 9:16). You can paste your text directly into Gemini, or run it through a helper like Nanobanana to keep wording consistent across attempts. The key is clarity over cleverness.
3) Upload & Generate in Google Gemini
In Gemini, choose image input and upload both files. Paste the prompt. If the interface lets you set output size, choose a vertical frame such as 1080×1920 or higher. If there’s a “style” slider, keep it low. Your goal is documentary-style realism, not cinematic stylization.
4) Review with a Sharp Eye
Check the first render like an art director. Are both faces untouched? Is the hand contact natural? Do the shoulders align? Are shadows soft and consistent with indoor light? If anything looks off, ask for small, targeted fixes: “align eye levels,” “reduce skin smoothing,” “ensure hand rests naturally with slight compression,” “soften shadow edges.”
5) Apply Quiet Finishing Touches
Export and open the composite in your editor. Make tiny adjustments only: unify white balance, reduce highlights a bit, and (optionally) add a whisper of grain to re-introduce micro-texture. Skip heavy filters—your goal is to make the image look like it came straight from a good phone camera under great indoor lighting.
Micro-Details That Sell the Illusion
- Catchlights: reflections in the eyes should be similar; ask Gemini to harmonize if they’re mismatched.
- Edge clean-up: look for light halos around hair/ears; request “refine hair edges” or gently mask them in your editor.
- Color harmony: if shirts clash strongly, nudge one hue slightly cooler/warmer—small changes are enough.
- Shadow softness: office light usually means soft edges; ask the model to avoid hard, directional shadows.
- Scale sanity: equal head size and similar shoulder width keep proportions believable.
Common Mistakes (and Easy Fixes)
- AI-smooth faces: say “retain natural skin texture.” If needed, add subtle grain (6–10%).
- Floating hand: request “clear physical contact with soft compression on the shoulder fabric.”
- Off-camera gaze: specify “both look directly into the camera, neutral friendly expressions.”
- Busy background: keep it “plain modern office wall, minimal decor, neutral colors.”
- Perspective mismatch: ask for “matched perspective; same eye level; equal scale.”
Ethics, Attribution, and Platform Safety
Fan composites are fun when they’re honest. Don’t frame your image as a real meeting or brand endorsement. If you post on social media, consider adding “fan edit / AI composite” in the caption. Use images you have rights to use (your portrait and licensed/press images of Vijay). If anyone in the image requests removal, honor it quickly. These simple habits protect your reputation and keep your blog eligible for advertising.
Export for Sharing
Save at 1080×1920 (or 1440×2560) for vertical clarity. Keep the file size modest for faster loading. If you publish on a blog, serve images as WebP or an optimized JPEG, add descriptive text for accessibility/SEO, and use loading="lazy" to improve performance.
<img src="final-composite.webp" alt="Realistic AI composite: me with Actor Vijay by a modern office wall" loading="lazy" width="1080" height="1920" />
Copy-Paste Prompt 👇
Paste this exactly as written the first time. If you need tweaks, change one detail at a time and regenerate.
Quick FAQ
Can I change the background later?
Yes—keep it simple. A flat wall, a soft gradient, or lightly blurred glass works best. Busy scenes increase artifacts.
Why keep “style strength” low?
High style pushes you toward illustrations or “cinematic” looks. For realism, subtlety wins.
Will the model change our faces?
Not if you insist it shouldn’t. The prompt explicitly says to keep facial features and expressions unchanged. If it slips, repeat the constraint and regenerate.
Is this type of article ad-friendly?
Yes. It’s original, educational, and respectful. Avoid false claims, keep navigation clear, and maintain overall site quality for best approval chances.
Final Thoughts
Great composites don’t come from tricks; they come from good inputs, precise instructions, and gentle finishing. When you match lighting, align scale, keep faces original, and choose a calm background, the model has everything it needs to produce a believable image. Use the prompt, iterate once or twice, and polish lightly. The result is a clean, respectful fan edit that looks like a real moment—no drama, no confusion, just a tasteful piece of creative fun you can proudly share.
Disclaimer: This tutorial is for educational and personal fan-art use. Respect image rights, platform rules, and privacy. Do not use composites to deceive, endorse, or advertise without permission.