1. Eight slides, eight visual languages

You ask an image generator for eight illustrations for next week's review. Each prompt describes the subject correctly, yet the set looks assembled from eight unrelated projects. One image is photographic, one resembles a paper cut-out, two use different blues, and every object casts a different kind of shadow. A teammate replaces three images, making the mismatch worse.

This is the Level 2 Power user blast radius: your images now appear together in material that teammates review, reuse, or present. One inconsistent, misleading, or uncleared image can weaken the whole poster, talk, or product page.

The problem is not a shortage of style adjectives. Nobody saved what must remain constant, which references were approved, or which settings produced the first acceptable image. There is also no record showing whether the reference files may be used for generation. A recognizable person has appeared in one candidate even though no person was requested.

Start with your chosen media project and the set a colleague needs for a presentation, publication, campaign, or other shared work. Save a brief, permitted references where useful, a reusable prompt, a do-not list, controlled settings, and a review record. Choose the medium, style, and asset count for that job. The five-image Lab/Company kit below is an optional complete example, not a compulsory palette or visual identity.

2. After this you can

  • Define the visual or sound constants that make your chosen media set feel consistent.
  • Build a reusable prompt and permitted-reference kit another teammate can follow.
  • Control variation with fixed settings and seeds where the selected tool supports them.
  • Check the applicable terms for the actual model, account, input, and publication use.
  • Release a consistent set with provenance, consent, accessibility, and human review recorded.

3. Prerequisites

  • T09-L01 · Images, voice and video for your own work.
  • An organisation-approved generator and editor for your chosen medium; the illustrated example uses an image generator and image or slide editor.
  • Permission to read the provider's current terms and account or plan details.
  • A folder for prompts, approved references, candidates, editable masters, exports, and the release record.
  • About 45 minutes and the synthetic fixtures below, or equally safe public or explicitly approved material.

Do not upload unpublished figures, participant or patient images, customer files, employee photographs, logos, confidential product screens, licensed artwork, or found images unless an accountable owner has approved that specific input and intended transformation/use. Use non-identifying synthetic references when appropriate permissions are unavailable.

4. The idea in one page

Consistency is a list of decisions, not a mood. Save these six controls before making the set. The values shown are an illustration example; replace them with your project's approved style rather than copying its geometry or colours by default:

ControlFix it in the kitAllow per asset
Visual grammarFlat geometric construction; rounded shapes; no photorealismWhich permitted objects appear
PaletteExact colour values and background familyWhich colour is dominant
CompositionViewpoint, whitespace, border, shadow, and crop rulesFocal position and aspect ratio
ReferencesThree approved images with one stated purpose eachSelect only the relevant references
PromptShared style block, exclusions, and review boundarySubject, communication job, orientation
Generation recordTool, model or mode, date, settings, and reference IDsCandidate ID and accepted variation

Use references to show visual decisions that words describe poorly. Reference A can anchor colour and shape, B spacing and composition, and C texture and line treatment. Do not use a reference merely because you like it. Record its origin, permission, permitted channels, and whether alteration or use as a generative input is allowed. A public image is not automatically a permitted reference.

A seed, when exposed by the tool, can make controlled reruns easier. It does not guarantee identical output across model updates, tools, or changed prompts, and it does not prove provenance. Save the model or mode, aspect ratio, reference settings, prompt, date, and selected output as well. If the tool has no seed control, keep the reference set and fixed prompt unchanged and generate only a small batch.

Create facts and exact text outside the generator. Generated pixels are a poor authority for measurements, labels, product functions, logos, citations, or findings. Add checked copy in an editor, retain an editable master, and inspect the exported files at their real display sizes.

Terms check before production

Current-product check — last verified 2026-09-04: Terms, models, and plans change. Inspect the primary terms for the exact service, account, inputs, and channel. Check output rights, reference restrictions, commercial or publication permission, plan conditions, provider reuse and retention, visibility defaults, and required disclosure. “Open weights,” “commercially safe,” paid access, or access through another platform is not permission. If the planned use is unclear, record BLOCKED and do not upload or publish.

Use one row in the release record for the decision: service route | exact model shown | account/plan | primary terms URL | checked date | input permission | output/channel permission | visibility and provider-use setting | owner | PASS/BLOCKED. A blank or assumed field is BLOCKED, not permission.

Do not choose by brand name:

OptionDistinction that changes the decision
MidjourneyIts terms distinguish revenue and subscription conditions for ownership and state that content is public and remixable by default. Check the account, workspace, and references.
FLUXBFL publishes separate API, non-commercial-weight, and self-hosted commercial terms. Record the model and route; “FLUX” is not one permission.
Adobe FireflyConfirm the selected Adobe or partner model, feature status, account, and publication use; one model's terms do not cover every interface option.
Google image serviceDistinguish a consumer app, Gemini API, and managed cloud route, then record that route's terms and data controls.

Consent is separate from provider terms. Permission to photograph someone may not cover a style reference, synthetic variation, advertising, or publication. Record permission for the input, transformation, portrayal, channels, and duration, or use no recognizable person. Disclosure does not repair missing consent.

5. The worked example: one kit, two settings

The following exact counts, colours, reference files, prompts, and five-check rerun rule belong to this optional illustration kit. For your own set, declare equivalent medium-appropriate constants and rerun criteria before generating, and retain the rights, consent, provenance, accessibility, editable-source, and review requirements.

The fictional Aster-9 Lab and Northstar Desk Company projects use the same production skeleton. Each needs five coordinated illustrations. No real people, organisations, products, findings, or source media are used.

Step 1: lock the boundary and asset roles

Lab framing: The Aster-9 set supports a practice poster and internal talk about a synthetic literature-review workflow. The five roles are poster opener, corpus collection, screening, synthesis, and talk divider. The illustrations may show abstract cards, paths, and containers. They must not resemble experimental evidence, real apparatus, journal branding, a published figure, or a scientific result.

Company framing: The Northstar Desk set supports a private product-page prototype. The five roles are page hero, request intake, sorting, handoff, and section divider. The illustrations may show abstract cards, paths, and containers. They must not resemble a real interface, customer testimonial, employee, certification, available feature, or performance result.

The factual copy is synthetic and added later. Aster-9 is a fictional training workflow. and Northstar Desk is a fictional product concept. appear near the relevant set. Neither sentence claims a measured benefit.

Step 2: create three permitted references

Make the reference board yourself in the editor, using only rectangles, circles, lines, and these invented colours:

IDWhat it containsWhat it controlsProvenance and consent
REF-ACream background, navy rounded cards, coral focal circlePalette and shapeCreated for this exercise from synthetic geometry; no person or external asset
REF-BWide frame with subject in left two-thirds and clear copy areaComposition and spacingCreated for this exercise from synthetic geometry; no person or external asset
REF-CThin navy outlines, one offset coral shadow, subtle paper grainLine and textureCreated for this exercise from synthetic geometry; no person or external asset

Save the three references as one labelled board and as separate files. The board is not a mood board scraped from search results. Its provenance entry states creator, date, editor, source elements, permitted synthetic-reference use, and Consent: not applicable; no person or voice represented.

Step 3: save the reusable kit

Use this shared skeleton for either framing:

PROJECT: [Aster-9 / Northstar Desk]
ASSET ROLE: [one of the five approved roles]
COMMUNICATION JOB: Illustrate [bounded concept], not evidence of a real event,
result, person, workplace, product interface, or available feature.

SUBJECT: [2-4 permitted abstract objects and one relationship]
STYLE: Flat geometric editorial illustration; rounded modular shapes; thin navy
outlines; cream background; one coral focal accent; subtle paper grain; one
small offset shadow; restrained, calm, non-photographic.
COMPOSITION: [orientation]; subject within left two-thirds; generous negative
space; one focal point; simple silhouette readable at thumbnail size.
REFERENCES: REF-A for palette and shape; REF-B for spacing; REF-C for line and
texture. Do not copy their exact arrangement.
EXCLUDE: people, faces, hands, logos, lettering, numerals, badges, watermarks,
screenshots, realistic instruments, realistic products, results, charts,
certification marks, dramatic lighting, gradients, and extra decorative objects.
OUTPUT: illustration only. Add all verified copy, labels, and disclosure later.

The kit also saves the three reference files, colour values #F4EFE6, #17324D, and #E56B5D, the five asset roles, aspect ratios, selected service route and exact model label shown by the service, all exposed generation and reference-strength settings, editor/export settings, and the do-not list. Record unavailable controls as not exposed; do not silently omit them. If a seed is available, save the accepted starting seed and treat it as a rerun aid, not an identity lock.

Use one concrete pack structure so a teammate does not have to infer where evidence belongs:

T09-L02-consistency-pack.zip
  manifest.md
  kit/prompt-skeleton.txt
  kit/settings-and-terms.md
  kit/REF-A.png  kit/REF-B.png  kit/REF-C.png
  review/contact-sheet.jpg
  masters/ASSET-01-to-05-editable-files
  exports/ASSET-01.png ... ASSET-05.png
  rerun/test-output.png

In manifest.md, list the project boundary, five asset roles, variable values, source and candidate IDs, final filenames, SHA-256 hashes for the three references and five exports, alt text, disclosure, edit history, reviewer, channel, and release decision. The ZIP is the single delivered artifact; its entries are components and evidence, not separate submissions.

Step 4: generate bounded variations

For each role, change only ASSET ROLE, SUBJECT, COMMUNICATION JOB, and orientation. Keep every style line, reference, exclusion, service route, model label, and exposed setting fixed. Generate two candidates per role. Give candidates stable IDs such as ASSET-03-C1; record the complete rendered prompt rather than only the template.

For the Lab screening image, use three abstract document cards passing through a rounded gate; one coral card remains in focus. For the Company sorting image, use three abstract request cards moving into two rounded trays; one coral card remains in focus. The structure is parallel while the meaning remains appropriate to each setting.

Review the ten candidates as a contact sheet. Reject any candidate with accidental writing, an invented mark, a realistic person or instrument, an implied result, a product screen, a new palette colour, incompatible texture, or a different visual depth. Do not crop a rights or identity problem out of sight. Record the candidate ID and rejection reason.

Step 5: finish and release the set

Choose one candidate per role. In the editor, apply the exact output dimensions and add only approved copy. Add useful alt text based on each image's communication purpose, not a list of every shape. Place the accurate disclosure AI-generated illustrations assembled from an original synthetic reference kit; copy reviewed by the project owner. where it remains associated with the set.

The reviewer compares all five exports side by side and checks palette, line weight, depth, spacing, texture, disclosure, factual implications, input rights, non-identifying status, alt text, and final crops. Before the handoff, define the rerun pass rule: the teammate uses the unchanged ZIP contents and one recorded asset row; the service route, model label, rendered prompt, references, and exposed settings match the manifest; the raw rerun contains no excluded element; and it passes all five named style checks: only the cream, navy, and coral palette; rounded flat shapes; subject in the left two-thirds; thin navy outlines; and subtle grain with one small offset shadow. Pixel identity is neither expected nor required.

Keep the manifest even if the service supplies Content Credentials: metadata can be stripped and does not prove truth, rights, or consent.

6. What goes wrong

Adjectives replace references

Symptom: every prompt says “clean, modern, professional,” but colour, depth, and texture still drift.

Fix: create three permitted references with one visual job each. Save exact palette, composition, and exclusion rules.

The reference board has no rights record

Symptom: a teammate collects attractive web images, and nobody knows whether generative use or publication is permitted.

Fix: record origin and permission for every reference. Replace unclear material with original synthetic geometry or explicitly approved assets.

A seed is treated as a guarantee

Symptom: a model update or prompt edit changes the look even though the same seed was entered.

Fix: retain the complete kit and accepted outputs. Recheck consistency after any tool, model, reference, prompt, or setting change.

The team mixes tools halfway through

Symptom: the last two images have different edges, colour handling, and depth.

Fix: complete the set in one approved tool and mode. If migration is necessary, regenerate a small comparison set and approve a new kit version.

Consistency preserves a bad implication

Symptom: all five images consistently look like real experiments, customer evidence, or released product screens.

Fix: return to the communication boundary. Use unmistakably illustrative forms and remove unsupported visual claims; consistency cannot make fiction factual.

Symptom: a colleague's portrait is used because it was in a shared folder or earlier slide deck.

Fix: obtain specific documented permission for synthetic reference and release, or redesign with no recognizable person. Keep the decision in the record.

The kit works only for its author

Symptom: another teammate cannot reproduce the style because settings, references, or variable fields are missing.

Fix: hand the unchanged kit to that teammate for one controlled test-asset rerun. Keep the rerun output, settings record, and any missing-instruction note in the consistency pack; update the kit and rerun before release if the test fails.

7. Do it yourself: build your project's reusable media set

Minutes 0-5: choose your actual shared media project, audience, channel, medium, and useful asset roles/count. State what the set communicates and must never imply. The Lab/Company five-image kit is available as practice.

Minutes 5-12: select or create the permitted references your medium needs and state each one's job. Record provenance, transformation permission, and any person/voice consent. The illustration route uses three original geometry references; your set may need fewer, different, or no media references.

Minutes 12-18: save the fixed prompt, style constants, do-not list, service route, model label, and exposed settings for your medium. Complete the terms row for the exact account and intended channel. Mark unavailable controls honestly; pause rather than guessing about permission.

Minutes 18-30: generate two candidates for each role. Change only the allowed fields and retain each rendered prompt.

Minutes 30-37: compare candidates side by side. Select one per role and record every rejection reason.

Minutes 37-42: finish the chosen set in its editor. Add checked copy, accurate disclosure, and the relevant accessibility support. Keep editable sources and export at the dimensions or playback settings the destination needs.

Minutes 42-45: give the saved kit to a teammate for one controlled rerun or extension of a selected asset, without private explanation. Keep the result, rendered prompt, reference hashes where used, settings, UTC date, teammate identifier, and comparison against your declared style rules. Have them place or play the reviewed set in its intended destination. If they are unavailable, leave the handoff unfinished until it occurs; a proposed rerun is not an observed one.

If your project uses voice or video

Keep the same handoff, but define sound and timing constants as well as visual ones. For voice, save the checked script, selected permitted voice and settings, pronunciation notes, pacing, pauses, and the editable audio project or source takes. Do not clone or imitate an identifiable person's voice without specific permission for that transformation and release. A provider offering a voice does not settle every intended portrayal or use.

For video, retain the storyboard, source clips, editable timeline, title/caption styling, aspect ratio, and export settings. Check continuity between clips and avoid implying that generated footage records a real event. Supply corrected captions for relevant speech and sounds, and a transcript; provide a text description of essential visual information where needed. Check them after export, not only in the editor. Ask the teammate to produce or revise one short segment from the kit and play it in the destination. Review intelligibility, consistent levels and pacing, accurate names and claims, caption timing/readability, and any remaining rights or consent limits. These replace the example's palette/geometry criteria, not its accountability.

8. Exit check

Deliver one consistency pack: your chosen project's useful media set, reusable kit, editable sources, manifest, terms/consent decisions, accessibility materials, and teammate handoff evidence. A ZIP such as T09-L02-consistency-pack.zip is convenient. Use the asset count and formats the project needs.

It passes when the pack opens, the complete chosen set is usable in its destination, and a teammate has extended or rerun one asset using the recorded kit. The result must meet the declared medium-specific consistency criteria. Hashes must identify the included references and exports; every input must be permitted, terms/consent decisions explicit, and each export traceable to its prompt, edits, accessibility support, disclosure, and actual human approval. No asset may imply unsupported evidence or identity. For the optional illustration kit, retain its exact five-export, three-reference, and five-style-check requirements.

9. Rule to remember

Consistency is a saved kit, not a lucky prompt.

10. Further reading & tools