I used to spend hours agonizing over the perfect prompt. I treated every generation like a precious, expensive event.
I thought the magic lived in the words. I was wrong. The magic lives in the selection. I learned that cherry-picking is really just curating.
It changed everything.
Now I treat the process like a gallery director. I create volume on purpose, then select with clear eyes. The keepers come from disciplined choosing, not from perfect prompting. The model generates possibilities. I choose with intention. That shift from consumer to curator is where the craft lives.
2/9
The volume-first mindset
Midjourney in relaxed mode is basically all-you-can-eat. It gives you unlimited generations if you are willing to wait. That removes the friction entirely. I no longer worry about burning through hours or credits. I focus on smart volume and ruthless selection.
This is how it actually works in my studio right now.
Lab note: good curation beats better prompting most days.
3/9
Step 1: generate in smart volume
I start with one solid, well-defined prompt. Then I run four consistent variations using –chaos 10 –stylize 250. This is my standard recipe.
It gives me meaningful diversity without total randomness. One session easily produces 300 to 500 images. Patience is the only real cost. Relaxed mode makes the quantity free.
4/9
Step 2: fast technical sweep
I go through the full set once. I am looking for obvious technical failures only. Bad hands, warped anatomy, broken perspective, major artifacts.
The fallout rate is surprisingly low, usually around 10 percent. Everything else gets kept for deeper review. One pass keeps the process fast and clear. No deep thinking yet. Just quick elimination of the junk.
5/9
Step 3: the real selection layer
From the survivors I look for presence. I open them in a grid viewer and score for emotional clarity, interesting light, and that hard-to-name quality that makes an image feel alive.
I narrow it down to the top 18 to 30 stills. This is the true curation stage. I compare them side-by-side, flip some horizontally, and live with them for a bit. I look for air and coherence in the frame.
6/9
Step 4: the video filter
I take those 18 to 30 strongest stills and send them through Grok image-to-video. I use minimal or zero prompting. This is where the final decisions happen.
Some technically beautiful stills die in motion. They flatten out. Some average-looking ones suddenly breathe and become the clear winners. Motion reveals what stills hide. This stage usually cuts the group down to just a handful of true contenders.
Lab note: keeping the technical cull light prevents decision fatigue.
7/9
Step 5: final commitment
I pick the one or two that feel strongest in motion. The rest go into an archive folder. I date them and save the original prompt.
Many of those “almost” images become gold later when paired with new ideas. Yesterday’s second choice is often tomorrow’s winner. Relaxed mode plus patient curation turns unlimited generations from a curse into a genuine advantage.
8/9
Tools and creative stack
- Midjourney in relaxed mode for unlimited high-volume stills
–chaos 10 –stylize 250 as my standard variation recipe - Grok Imagine for quick tests and image-to-video with empty prompts
- Simple folder system: Raw_Batch to After_Quick_Cull to separate keepers to Video_Finalists
- External image browser for comparing the top 30
9/9
Discovery and takeaway
Refined curation turns raw volume into directed work. It is not about deleting most of the batch in panic. It is about generating smart volume, doing a light technical pass, selecting the strongest stills, and letting video motion make the final call.
Key strategies that sharpened my process: use relaxed mode for true volume, keep variation controlled, do one quick technical pass, send a generous top group to video instead of just a few, and trust motion to reveal what stills cannot show.
TL;DR: Generate hundreds in relaxed mode. Quick 10 percent technical cull. Curate top 18 to 30 stills. Let Grok video with minimal prompting decide the winners.
I used to dread the selection phase. Now it feels like the place where I actually do the creative work.
Steve Teare
video alchemist
TerminallyBored.Monster
Palouse, Washington USA