# The same face in every picture

Make one character sheet, attach it to every new scene, and GPT Image 2 keeps the face. Without it, the same words gave us three different men.

OpenAI's [GPT Image prompting guide](https://developers.openai.com/cookbook/examples/multimodal/image-gen-models-prompting-guide.md) builds a picture-book series on a reusable *character anchor*: one picture that locks the look, reused for every new scene. We tested it with Otto, a man we made up. With the anchor attached, 3 runs out of 3 kept his face. Without it, 3 runs gave 3 different men.

## Step 1: Make your character once

Start with one clear portrait. Ours came from GPT Image 2 and a plain description: round wire glasses, short grey beard, bushy dark eyebrows, a slightly crooked nose, a mustard cardigan, grey background.

![Otto, a sixty-year-old man with round wire glasses, a short grey beard and bushy dark eyebrows, in a mustard cardigan on a grey background](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPQEE485NA6PBWXCDZV4/w1200.webp)

## Step 2: Turn the portrait into a sheet

Attach the portrait and ask for a turnaround sheet. Our prompt was one line, and GPT Image 2 drew six full-body views of Otto on grey: front, three-quarter turns, both sides and the back. This sheet is the anchor. It shows the model his clothes from head to feet and his head from every side. The faces on it are small, and it still worked.

```text
Create a six-panel character reference turnaround sheet on a seamless neutral gray studio
```

Prompt: [Character Reference Turnaround Sheet](https://promptclay.com/prompts/character-reference-turnaround-sheet-47w1j9)

Change these words to your own: six-panel character reference turnaround sheet, seamless neutral gray studio.

Note: Attach your portrait first. The prompt is one line; the attached picture says who.

![A six-view turnaround sheet of Otto on grey: front, three-quarter, side and back views, full body](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPPPFBFZXNGCZGNXQYNQ/w1200.webp)

## Step 3: Attach the sheet to every new scene

We sent the same short prompt twice for three scenes: once with nothing attached, once with the sheet. The name and the glasses were in both. Only the sheet kept Otto: his heavy eyebrows, his nose, his face shape.

```text
{character} with {hair_color} in a {background} wearing a {outfit}
```

Prompt: [Character Consistency in Kyoto Setting](https://promptclay.com/prompts/character-consistency-in-kyoto-setting-z0ahjf)

Change these words to your own: {character}, {hair\_color}, {background}, {outfit}.

Note: Ours: Otto, a sixty-year-old man in round wire glasses / short grey hair and a grey beard / rainy night market / yellow raincoat.

Before and after: The same prompt, without and with the sheet attached. [Before](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPT7642YP7CNDR2HRZ56/w1200.webp), [after](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPSERPG0NBSNYHPTKH0H/w1200.webp).

## Step 4: Change the place, keep the man

Then only the place and the clothes change: a bakery and a flour-dusted apron, a misty lake and a green jumper.

![Otto kneading dough in a sunlit bakery kitchen, wearing a flour-dusted apron over a navy shirt](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPSTX5VTKYMB8CCGPNQD/w1200.webp)

![Otto rowing a wooden boat on a misty lake in a green wool jumper](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPRKXF5HSWM4XAW02M4D/w1200.webp)

> **Tip:** The sheet's navy shirt came along under the raincoat and the apron. Name another shirt to change it.

## Eight more prompts for one character

The two prompts above are the whole method. The eight below make it go further: other ways to build the anchor, more of the character on one sheet, new places, a new style. We ran four of them with Otto's sheet or portrait attached, and say what happened. For the other four we describe what the prompt asks for.

### Build the anchor from words alone

No portrait yet? A turnaround sheet made from text can be the anchor. This one asks for three labelled panels, front, side and back, on a plain studio wall, and says only the camera angle changes. The blanks cover who, the hair, the top and the trousers. Read the fixed text before you run it: it says *her* and *natural minimal makeup*, and it puts white sneakers and a silver watch on everyone.

```text
Create a clean studio character turnaround reference sheet in a 16:9 widescreen canvas. Show exactly 3 vertical panels separated by thin white dividers: left panel labeled “FRONT”, center panel labeled “SIDE”, right panel labeled “BACK”. Each panel must depict the same {character_description} as a full-body realistic fashion photo, standing upright against a plain light gray-white studio wall with a pale gray floor. Keep her identity, body proportions, outfit, hair, and accessories consistent across all three views; only the camera angle changes. She has {hair_style}, a calm neutral expression when visible, and natural minimal makeup. Outfit: {top}, {pants}, white low-top sneakers, and a silver wristwatch on her left wrist. Panel 1: front view, arms relaxed at sides, looking toward camera. Panel 2: true side profile view facing left, arms relaxed, the silver watch visible on the left wrist. Panel 3: back view, arms relaxed, cardigan back and jean pockets visible. Use soft even studio lighting, realistic proportions, crisp details, no extra props, no additional people, no watermark, and keep the three labels centered below their panels in simple black uppercase sans-serif text.
```

Prompt: [Three-View Character Turnaround](https://promptclay.com/prompts/three-view-character-turnaround-w65nw0)

Change these words to your own: {character\_description}, {hair\_style}, {top}, {pants}.

Note: Rewrite her, the makeup, the sneakers and the watch if they don't fit your character.

This one goes further: five views, a height scale beside each body, and a small info panel with a name. The face is written into the fixed text: short dark pixie cut, hazel-green eyes, subtle wrinkles. Change that paragraph to your character, or every run will be the same woman, which is consistent, but not with yours.

```text
Ultra realistic character turnaround sheet of a {subject}, displayed as a professional character reference/model sheet on a clean white studio background. The layout includes five views arranged horizontally: face close up, front view, back view, left profile, and right profile. A vertical height measurement scale appears beside each full body view.

The woman has short dark brown hair in a neat pixie cut, light skin, subtle natural wrinkles, soft hazel-green eyes, no makeup, and a calm, neutral expression. She has an average build, standing approximately 5'8" (173 cm) with relaxed posture.

She wears a {clothing}. The clothing shows realistic fabric texture, light wear, wrinkles, and natural folds from everyday café work.

The lighting is soft studio lighting, evenly illuminating every angle with minimal shadows. The image has photorealistic skin texture, highly detailed clothing materials, accurate anatomy, and consistent proportions across all views.

The sheet includes clean typography with labels similar to:
FACE CLOSE UP
FRONT
BACK
LEFT PROFILE
RIGHT PROFILE

In the lower left information panel:

NAME: {character_name}
AGE: 40s
HEIGHT: 5'8" / 173
WEIGHT:
GENDER:

Style: AAA game character reference sheet, production ready turnaround, cinematic realism, forensic/model sheet presentation, neutral white background, 8K, ultra detailed, consistent identity across every angle, professional concept art reference.
```

Prompt: [Barista Character Turnaround Reference](https://promptclay.com/prompts/barista-character-turnaround-reference-ndmb6d)

Change these words to your own: {subject}, {clothing}, {character\_name}.

Note: The labels it asks for are drawn into the picture. Crop them off if you only want the views.

### Get more of him on one sheet

The shortest prompt in this guide. We attached Otto's sheet and wrote *man* in the blank. Back came a full pose sheet: eight labelled turns, seven standing poses and six expressions, all clearly him, with a small profile panel it added on its own. For scenes later, a sheet like this gives the model poses and expressions the turnaround doesn't have.

```text
create a pose sheet of this {avatar}
```

Prompt: [Avatar Character Pose Sheet](https://promptclay.com/prompts/avatar-character-pose-sheet-72a28m)

Change these words to your own: {avatar}.

Note: Attach your sheet or portrait. Ours: man.

![A pose sheet of Otto: eight labelled turns, seven standing poses and six expressions on grey, with a small profile panel](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPRA08D9FJT0BT20TWXF/w1200.webp)

The expression sheet is the hard test, because the prompt describes a different man. It says *short, slightly tousled dark hair* and *light stubble*, and asks for a 3D animated look. With the sheet attached, GPT Image 2 kept Otto's grey hair, beard and glasses in all nine panels and stayed photographic. The picture won over the words. Fix the fixed text anyway, so you don't depend on that.

```text
Create a polished 3×3 character-expression portrait sheet featuring the same {character} character use image for face reference throughout all panels. He has short, slightly tousled dark hair, natural eyebrows, warm expressive eyes, light stubble, a defined but friendly face, and realistic youthful proportions. Keep his facial identity, hairstyle, skin tone, and clothing consistent across every panel. Arrange the portraits in a clean 3×3 grid with rounded-square panels and soft white spacing.

Center panel: full-body character standing confidently with a relaxed slight smile, wearing a {outfit}, hands casually in pockets.

Surrounding panels: close-up or half-body portraits showing different expressive emotions and poses:

1. unimpressed / skeptical expression, gray background

2. playful confident smirk with one raised eyebrow, purple background

3. genuinely angry expression, arms crossed, red background

4. happy mischievous grin, arms crossed, blue background

5. calm friendly smile, warm black-to-gold background

6. annoyed pout, arms crossed, green background

7. frustrated skeptical expression, arms crossed, green background

8. stressed / embarrassed expression with one hand on his forehead, orange-brown background

Style: high-end polished 3D animated movie character, modern stylized realism, attractive ordinary young man, subtle caricature but natural proportions, realistic skin texture, detailed eyes and hair, expressive eyebrows and facial muscles, cinematic soft lighting, subtle rim lighting, smooth materials, vibrant studio backgrounds, professional character-expression sheet, consistent character identity in every panel, clean symmetrical composition, rounded corners, white borders, sharp focus, premium 3D rendering, 4K.
```

Prompt: [3x3 Character Expression Portrait Sheet](https://promptclay.com/prompts/3x3-character-expression-portrait-sheet-r8cxq5)

Change these words to your own: {character}, {outfit}.

Note: Ours: sixty-year-old man / mustard knit cardigan over a navy shirt, dark trousers and brown shoes.

![A three by three grid of Otto with nine expressions on coloured backgrounds, from skeptical to grinning to stressed](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPQWPTB3ACDH96VAFKCZ/w1200.webp)

### Put him somewhere new

A short scene prompt with two blanks, a pose and a background, and a list of what to keep. That list includes a *headset*, because the original character wore one. Otto doesn't. With an earlier sheet of him attached, made before we changed the step 2 prompt, the run put him on a park bench with a newspaper and added no headset. It did print a real newspaper's title on the front page, so that picture is not shown. Name a made-up paper, or *a newspaper with no title*.

```text
Please create a single illustration with a {pose} and a {background}, maintaining the face, hairstyle, headset, and color design of this character. Format 9:16
```

Prompt: [Consistent Character Illustration with Stylish Pose](https://promptclay.com/prompts/consistent-character-illustration-with-stylish-pose-f4r84h)

Change these words to your own: {pose}, {background}.

Note: Delete headset from the keep list if your character has none. Its Format 9:16 line is a tall frame.

For a pose you can't describe, this one takes two pictures: your character, and a picture of the pose you want. The blanks say which is which, then where to put him. The example fills them with *the character from Image 1* and *the 11th pose from Image 2*, which suits a pose sheet like the one above.

```text
Please create an image using {character} and {pose}, combining them with {background} featuring a bold composition, perspective, and depth.
```

Prompt: [Character Pose and Background Composition Prompt](https://promptclay.com/prompts/character-pose-and-background-composition-prompt-yagb2m)

Change these words to your own: {character}, {pose}, {background}.

Note: Attach the character first and the pose picture second, and say so in the blanks.

### Change the style, keep the face

A style change is the strictest test of an anchor. This prompt turns one photo into a storybook drawing and lists what must survive: face, hair, clothes, glasses. We attached Otto's first portrait. He came back as a crayon-and-gouache drawing with the round glasses, grey beard, mustard cardigan and navy shirt, and even the small scar through his left eyebrow.

```text
Use the single uploaded photo as the only visual reference. Transform the person into an adorable {style}, while keeping their identity immediately recognizable. Preserve exactly from the photo: - Facial features and skin tone - Real hairstyle, length, texture, and color - Exact clothing, colors, patterns, and layering - Glasses, jewelry, headwear, bags, and all visible accessories. Do not invent or copy hairstyles, outfits, accessories, braids, pigtails, bows, bonnets, or headscarves from any reference artwork. ### Character Use an oversized rounded head, tiny compact body, short arms, narrow shoulders, soft rounded silhouette, and cute childlike proportions. Keep the head visually dominant. Avoid realistic anatomy. ### Face Simplify into tiny dot/oval eyes, minimal nose, tiny smiling mouth, rounded cheeks, and soft peach/pink blush. Keep recognizable facial characteristics. No realistic eyes, detailed lips, anime features, glossy 3D rendering, or heavy shading. ### Hair & Clothing Recreate the exact hairstyle and outfit from the uploaded photo, simplified into chunky hand-drawn shapes. Preserve important colors, patterns, jewelry, glasses, and other recognizable details. ### Style Handmade 2D picture-book aesthetic using soft gouache, wax crayon, colored pencil, and dry pastel. Use slightly irregular dark-brown linework, subtle paper grain, uneven pigment, soft brush marks, and imperfect painted edges. Avoid clean vector art, CGI, anime, or photorealism. ### Composition Square 1:1 portrait, chest/waist-up, centered and facing mostly forward, with balanced negative space. Use a relaxed, charming pose. ### Background Simple {background_color} background with subtle paper texture. No scenery, objects, text, borders, or distractions. Final feeling: the same person lovingly redrawn as an extremely cute, warm, wholesome, nostalgic, handcrafted children’s-book character—same identity, same hair, same clothes, same accessories, completely simplified and adorable.
```

Prompt: [Children's Storybook Character Transformation](https://promptclay.com/prompts/children-s-storybook-character-transformation-h978xe)

Change these words to your own: {style}, {background\_color}.

Note: Ours: hand-drawn 2D children's storybook character / cream.

![Otto redrawn as a children's storybook character in crayon and gouache, with round glasses, grey beard and mustard cardigan](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPS3H3JZ6HRRWJB7WJST/w1200.webp)

### Two views in one picture

Sometimes one picture is enough. This text-only prompt asks for a wide banner with the same woman twice: a square portrait in the middle and a full-length view on the right, as if one picture had been extended. Keeping a face inside one picture is easier than across many, since the model draws both at once. Describe your character in the name blank.

```text
Create a cinematic wide banner image demonstrating AI image editing and consistent character generation. The scene is a moody urban street at dusk in a dense old city, with tall buildings on both sides, wet pavement, parked and moving cars, soft streetlights, and a dark vignette. Show exactly three visual zones across one continuous composition: on the left, a dim empty city street with no main person, desaturated and slightly blurred; in the center, a sharp square inset framed by a thin white border containing a realistic portrait of the same woman standing on a city street; on the right, the same woman appears again full-body in a different but matching street setting, holding a takeaway coffee cup. The woman is {character_name}: shoulder-length wavy dark brown hair, medium-light skin, natural makeup, calm confident expression, looking slightly to her left, wearing a long dark charcoal overcoat, gray knit sweater, black high-waisted trousers, and a small black shoulder bag. Make the center inset look like the original generated square image, while the left and right sides look like outpainted extensions and a variation of the same character and style. Use photorealistic editorial photography, shallow depth of field, soft evening light, warm lamps on the right contrasting with cool blue-gray shadows on the left, high dynamic range, cinematic color grading, realistic reflections on wet cobblestones and asphalt. No text, no logos, no UI controls, no watermark.
```

Prompt: [Consistent Character Image Editing Banner](https://promptclay.com/prompts/consistent-character-image-editing-banner-bdd3bc)

Change these words to your own: {character\_name}.

Note: The fixed text describes her hair, coat and bag. Replace that sentence with your own character's look.

## More looks to try

More GPT Image 2 prompts that reuse one character, each on its page.

Shots:

- [Fantasy Sky Train Attendant Instruction](https://promptclay.com/prompts/fantasy-sky-train-attendant-instruction-19879k)
- [Character Aging Consistency Test](https://promptclay.com/prompts/character-aging-consistency-test-jr7yr8)
- [Gritty Bounty Hunter Turnaround](https://promptclay.com/prompts/gritty-bounty-hunter-turnaround-cjp54a)
- [Felt Cat Character Reference Sheet](https://promptclay.com/prompts/felt-cat-character-reference-sheet-d7bwny)

## Questions

### Does giving the character a name keep the face?

No. "Otto" was in every prompt, and the three runs without the sheet still gave three different men. The name only helps once a picture of him is attached.

### Do I need a full sheet, or is one portrait enough?

OpenAI's own example reuses a single picture from its first step. We tried it: with only the first portrait attached, 2 of 2 scenes (the market and the bakery) kept Otto's face as well as the sheet did. We have not tested back views or full-body poses that way.

Before and after: Market scene with the sheet attached, and with one portrait attached. [Before](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPSERPG0NBSNYHPTKH0H/w1200.webp), [after](https://cdn.promptclay.com/media/v/01M6TZVPQ5FNPS20KDHGT0RR95/w1200.webp).

### What should the scene prompt say?

Only what changes: the place, the clothes, the action. OpenAI's example also adds *Same facial features, proportions, and color palette* and *Do not redesign the character* at the end.

### What wins when the prompt and the picture disagree?

In our run, the picture. The expression prompt described a younger man with dark hair, and every panel still showed Otto. That is one run, so don't rely on it: change the words to match your character.

### How do I keep the clothes the same, not just the face?

Say so in every prompt. OpenAI's guide advises repeating the list of what must not change on each new edit to reduce drift. Our runs show why: the sheet's navy shirt carried into the market and the bakery because nothing said otherwise.

### Can I do this with a photo of a real person?

GPT Image 2 can take a photo as the reference, and OpenAI's guide covers identity-sensitive edits. We tested only Otto, who is made up. Use photos of yourself, or of people who have said yes.

---
Canonical: https://promptclay.com/guides/same-face-in-every-picture