Vivienne Reay

Notes on Technology:
Midjourney Basics
Oct 22, 2023

photo of mj

What is Midjourney?

Midjourney text-to-image AI is a technology that takes written descriptions and converts them into images.

This and other text-to-image AI technologies can be useful for various people and industries. Here are a few examples of who might benefit from it:

  • Artists and creatives can use it to generate visual concepts helping them visualise ideas more easily.
  • Video producers and content creators can use it to generate images and scenes for their videos.
  • Educators can use it to create visual aids and illustrations for teaching materials.

How Much Does Midjourney Cost?

The Basic Plan cost me $12 USD (£9.82 GBP) for one month. I'm just trying to learn about Midjourney for now so I didn't go for the annual subscription. This basic plan lets you generate up to 200 images per month. See Midjourney pricing plans here.

Set Up a Discord Server

  1. If you don't have a Discord account already then you can register at discord.com.
  2. Once you have a Discord account you can either use it online or you can download the desktop app.
  3. Click on the 'Add a Server' button which you can find on the left side bar.
  4. Select 'Create My Own' from the list of options.
  5. Either select 'For me and my friends', 'For a Club or community' or you can skip this question because it doesn't matter.
  6. Add a server name. Call it anything you want.
  7. Your new server will now appear on the left side bar. Click on it and you'll see a channel called #general. You can use this channel or you can create another one. You only need a text channel to use with Midjourney (not a voice channel).

Set Up a Midjourney Account

  1. Make sure you're signed into Discord either on your browser or on the desktop app.
  2. Go to midjourney.com and click the 'Sign In' button at the bottom of the page.
  3. A screen will pop up from Midjourney asking for permission to set up an account through Discord. Click the 'Authorise' button and you'll be taken to your Midjourney account page.
  4. Click on the 'Purchase Plan' button located around the top right side of the screen.
  5. You can choose from yearly or monthly plans. As mentioned I went for the basic monthly plan just to try it out.
  6. When the purchase is done you will end up back on your Midjourney account home page. Click the 'Join the Discord to start creating' link.
  7. A screen opens inside of Discord. Click on the 'Join Midjourney' button.
  8. A new icon appears on the Discord left side panel showing the Midjourney logo. This is the Midjourney server.

Set Up Your Server with the Midjourney Bot

  1. Near the top right of the Discord page click on the 'Show Member List' button. A list will appear on the right side of the screen, scroll to find the Midjourney Bot in the member list.
  2. Left-click on the Midjourney Bot then left-click 'Add to Server'.
  3. Left-click, 'Select Your Server' drop-down and choose the server you created earlier, then click 'Continue' and 'Authorise'. The Midjourney Bot has now been added to your server.

Generate an Image

  1. Go to your server and select one of your text channels. Type /imagine prompt: in the message box. (When you type the forward slash / a list of commands pop up, you can choose the imagine command from this list instead of typing it).
  2. Type a description of the picture you want Midjourney to generate then click the return key to send your message.

Reference