Enhance Your Midjourney Videos: Essential Tips for Camera Control and Visual Effects

Creating appealing videos with Midjourney can open up new creative paths. Whether you are new to video generation or looking to refine your clips, knowing a few key tips can greatly improve your results. This guide offers practical advice to help you get more from your Midjourney video projects, from managing character actions to directing camera movements and adding special effects.

Stop Lip Movement in Midjourney Videos

A common challenge is preventing characters from moving their mouths. The Midjourney video model often tries to animate everything in a scene. It wants to show body motion, facial expressions, or talking. To keep a character's mouth still, use clear phrases in your prompt:

• “character is silent”

• “quiet”

• “no talking”

This approach works well for most characters, even if their mouths are already open in the starting image. Remember, if your first frame shows very expressive characters, it might take a few tries to get them to remain still. For instance, being precise with "they close their mouths and remain silent while staring at each other" can help.

Use the —raw Parameter for Precise Control

Unlike the image models, the Midjourney video model has fewer direct parameters. However, the `—raw` parameter is very useful. When you submit a video prompt, an internal language model (LLM) often tries to refine your prompt automatically. This can be helpful, but sometimes it changes your original idea.

To make Midjourney use your prompt exactly as you wrote it, include `—raw` in your prompt when using manual mode. This tells the model to bypass the LLM's influence. It gives you more control over your results and helps the video match your initial vision more closely. For users aiming for consistent, high-quality output, consider exploring tools like the Midjourney Automation Suite from TitanXT. It can streamline your workflow and expand your creative options.

Plan Your Starting Scene Carefully

The Midjourney video model works best by animating things that are already in your scene. Try to have all characters and items visible from the start. This is quite important when you are creating scenes with two characters. Both characters need to be present in your first image. You cannot add a new character later since video prompts do not support parameters for adding new reference figures.

Directing Your Scene: Order of Events and Timing

Sequence Your Actions

Think of yourself as the director. What happens first, and what happens next? Use words like "first," "then," "next," and "while" to set up the order of actions. Remember, your first video clip is only 5 seconds long. You might need to split your sequence into several clips and extend them. Also, think about timing. Does a character pick up an object, and then the camera zooms in? Or does the camera slowly zoom in the whole time? For two-character scenes, does the left character speak, and then the right character reacts?

Focus on one or two main actions in your first clip. If you have more actions in mind, finalize the first clip. Then use the extend button to add 4 seconds of a new action. You can extend a video up to four times, making a final video that is up to 21 seconds long.

Introduce New Items Smoothly

You can add new items to a scene, but consider how they appear. You want the new object to show up naturally, not just out of nowhere. For example, if your scene has a character, and you want them to put on a hat, but there is no hat in the starting image, you can prompt the camera to dolly backward. This reveals a table with a hat on it as the character walks forward. Then, extend the video and change the prompt so the character reaches for the hat and puts it on. This creates a natural flow.

Keeping the Camera Still

It can be tough to keep the camera steady in Midjourney. Phrases that can help include "static shot," "tripod mounted shot," "fixed camera shot," or "locked off camera shot." Combining "fixed camera shot" or "locked down camera shot" with "low motion" often works well.

It is helpful to understand the natural motion that your starting frame suggests. Scenes that look calm initially are easier to keep stable. If your starting frame shows a car chase, the camera will likely want to follow the cars or move to keep them in view. To keep the camera still while cars pass by, you might need more detail. You could explain that "the cars pass out of the frame and reveal a calm, empty street." You need to give Midjourney a clear reason for the camera to stay still. Keep in mind, this might not work perfectly for all types of shots, especially those with a lot of implied motion. Using a tool like the Midjourney Automation Suite from TitanXT can help manage these detailed prompts more efficiently, allowing for greater experimental freedom.

Control Camera Movement

Zooming and Dollying

To move the camera in or out, you can use phrases like "zoom," "dollies in," "dollies backwards," "camera moves towards," or "camera pulls away from the subject." The success of these phrases depends on the motion implied by your initial scene. Using "camera dollies backwards" works well, especially when combined with "revealing." This gives Midjourney more purpose for the camera movement, as it has to show something new.

Panning and Cranning

Use "pan left" or "pan right" if you want the camera to turn from a fixed position. Think about what might enter the frame. You might say "camera pans left toward" and then describe what appears. For moving the camera upward, try "camera cranes up into the air" or "camera rises high above." You can even combine upward camera movement with tilting down.

Maintain Consistent Style with References and Mood Boards

If you plan to create several video clips and want them to look similar, use a style reference or a mood board when making your starting frames. You can use an image as a style reference or use a specific code number linked to a style in Midjourney Style Space. A style reference provides consistent looks across many images.

A mood board is similar but allows for more variety in your results. You can make a mood board by going to the personalized page. The more diverse your mood board is, the more diverse your video output will be. Using the Midjourney Automation Suite from TitanXT can assist in managing these style references and mood board settings, ensuring stylistic consistency across larger projects.

Add Visual Flair with Effects

Experiment with visual effects to make your videos more interesting. Add particle effects with phrases like "golden light particles float upward." You can also try a "glitchy VHS effect." You do not always need to describe the scene itself, just type the effect you want. For example, try "spontaneous flowering" or "spontaneous combustion."

You can even add speech bubbles with text. Prompt something like "a speech bubble appears above their head with 'your words in quotes'." This allows you to add specific text directly into your scenes.

These tips help you generate more controlled and visually appealing videos in Midjourney. By understanding how to influence character actions, camera movements, and scene progression, you gain greater creative power. Practice these techniques, and you will see a noticeable difference in your video output. For even more help with your Midjourney projects, including advanced automation features, check out the Midjourney Automation Suite from TitanXT.