Nodaro DocsCreative Controls
Creative Controls are picker nodes that add tested wording for light, camera, motion, effects, music and voice to your prompts, at no credit cost.
Creative Controls are picker nodes that describe one part of a shot or a sound with tested wording. Each picker covers one thing, such as the light, the camera move, an effect, a music genre or a voice. You choose an option from the picker's catalog and connect the picker to a generation node. When that node runs, Nodaro adds the matching words to its prompt. Pickers never call a model, so they cost no credits.
How pickers work
- A picker holds a choice. It has one output and no model. Its settings panel shows the catalog as a grid of tiles.
- The wording goes to the end of the prompt. When the connected node runs, each picker's words are added after your prompt.
- Change the picker, not the prompt. To try another light or another camera move, change the picker and run the node again.
- One picker can feed many nodes. Connect one Lighting picker to every shot of a scene to keep the same light.
- Many pickers can feed one node. A Generate Image node can take a Lighting, a Color / Look and a Mood picker at the same time.
Where to find them
Press Tab on the canvas to open the node picker. On the Image, Video and Audio tabs, a collapsed Creative Controls block sits at the foot of the list. Click it to show the families. The Music & Voice family appears only on the Audio tab. The sidebar also has a Creative Controls section with every picker.
You can also start from the generation node. Click its Look or Elements input, and the list shows only the pickers that fit that input.
Which input to connect
| Input | On these nodes | Accepts |
|---|---|---|
| Look | Generate Image, Generate Video, Generate Video Pro, Retake Video | Light & Look, Camera, Motion & Time and Effects pickers, and the Scene pickers Setting, Era / Period, Backdrop and Loop Subject |
| Elements | Generate Image, Generate Video | Subject and Wardrobe & Pose pickers, and the Scene pickers Furniture, Held Prop and Material |
| Audio style | Suno Create Music, Generate Music, Text to Audio, Voice Design | Music & Voice pickers. The music pickers are for the music nodes and Text to Audio; the voice pickers are for Voice Design. |
You can also connect any picker to a Text or Prompt node to use its wording inside a longer text.
Pickers for video only
Five pickers describe movement over time: Camera Motion, Temporal, Transition, Character FX and Character Motion. They work only with video nodes. Still-image nodes, such as Generate Image and Modify Image, never receive their wording, and the Look input of Generate Image does not offer them.
Full or Compact
Every catalog picker can add its choice in two ways:
| Mode | What it adds | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
| Full (default) | A longer description of the choice, written for models that respond to plain sentences | The model needs more to work with, or the picker is the only look control |
| Compact | Only the short professional term, the words a film crew would use | Many pickers feed one node, or the model already knows the term |
Switch the mode with the Prompt hint toggle. It sits at the top of the node when you point at it or select it, and beside the preview in the settings panel. The mode is saved on the node, so it stays when you copy the node, save it in a preset or export the workflow.
Two pickers combine other pickers into one sentence: Camera Motion and Transition, through their Start state and End state inputs. When one of them is set to Compact, the pickers wired into those inputs switch to Compact too, so the sentence keeps one level of detail. A wired picker keeps its own mode if you have set its toggle, even to Full.
Transition is the one exception to the two modes. It always writes the transition's name followed by its full description, because video models did not perform a transition from its name alone.
Add your own words
Every catalog picker has two free-text fields in its settings panel. Custom text (before) is added before the picker's wording, and Custom text (after) is added after it. Use them for a detail the catalog does not have, for example wet hair, covered in paint. Both fields are added in Full and Compact mode, and an empty field adds nothing.
See the exact words
Each picker node has three display modes: Picks shows your choice, Prompt shows the words it will add, and Both shows the two. The settings panel shows the same words under Will inject into prompt, with a button to copy them.
Pictures: real renders or illustrations
On Nodaro Cloud, the look pickers show each option as a real render: the same base frame put through that option. Camera Motion shows a short clip that plays over its still.
- Switch between the two. Camera Motion, Color / Look, Style, Lens, Lighting, Atmosphere, Camera / Film Stock, Framing and Mood also have drawn illustrations. The illustration of Mood is an emoji. A switch beside the selected option (film for real, pen for illustration) changes the pictures on the node and in the settings panel. The switch never changes the prompt.
- Render only. Era / Period and Composition Effects have no illustrations, so they always show the render.
- Self-hosted installs have no renders. They show the illustrations and do not offer the switch.
- Other pictures. Person, Styling, Held Prop, Material and Animal show photos, and the music and voice pickers show their own art, on every edition.
The choice is saved on the node. Nodaro also remembers your last choice for each picker type in your browser and uses it for the next node of that type.
The eight families
| Family | Pickers | What they control |
|---|---|---|
| Subject | Person, Animal, Vehicle, Weapon | Who or what is in the shot |
| Wardrobe & Pose | Styling, Pose | Makeup, accessories, hair and fabric, and how the body is held |
| Scene | Setting, Era / Period, Furniture, Held Prop, Material, Backdrop, Loop Subject | Where and when the shot happens, and the objects in it |
| Camera | Framing, Lens, Camera / Film Stock, Exposure Settings | Shot size, angle, lens, recording medium and exposure |
| Light & Look | Lighting, Color / Look, Mood, Atmosphere, Style, Photo Genre, Photographer / Artist Style, Render Quality, Aesthetic / Microtrend | Light, color grade, emotion, weather and the overall visual style |
| Motion & Time | Camera Motion, Temporal, Character Motion | How the camera moves, how time flows and what the subject does |
| Effects | Action FX, Character FX, Composition Effects, Post-Process Effects, Transition | Events in the scene, changes to a character, frame tricks, finishing effects and transitions |
| Music & Voice | Music Genre, Music Mood, Instrumentation, Voice Character, Voice Delivery, Suno Voice | The genre, feel and instruments of music, and the sound of a voice |
Which picker for which goal
| You want to | Use |
|---|---|
| Describe a person's age, face, hair and build | Person |
| Add an animal, a vehicle or a weapon to the shot | Animal, Vehicle, Weapon |
| Dress a character: makeup, glasses, hats, jewelry, fabric | Styling |
| Set one held body position | Pose |
| Place the scene somewhere, or in a period | Setting, Era / Period |
| Put the subject in front of a studio backdrop | Backdrop |
| Add furniture, an object in the hand, or a material such as glass or gold | Furniture, Held Prop, Material |
| Make a seamlessly looping video subject | Loop Subject |
| Choose the shot size and the camera angle | Framing |
| Choose the lens or the film camera | Lens, Camera / Film Stock |
| Set the aperture, the shutter speed and the ISO | Exposure Settings |
| Set the time of day and the light | Lighting |
| Grade the colors like a film stock or a social filter | Color / Look |
| Give a face or a scene an emotion | Mood |
| Add fog, rain, snow, smoke or dust in the air | Atmosphere |
| Turn the image into anime, oil paint or pixel art | Style |
| Make the image read as a selfie, a headshot or a movie poster | Photo Genre |
| Borrow the signature of a photographer or an illustrator | Photographer / Artist Style |
| Push a 3D render look | Render Quality |
| Match an online aesthetic, such as Y2K or Cottagecore | Aesthetic / Microtrend |
| Move the camera in a video | Camera Motion |
| Use slow motion, a time-lapse or a freeze frame | Temporal |
| Make a character walk in, wave, dance or fight | Character Motion |
| Add an explosion, lightning or an earthquake | Action FX |
| Transform a character or give it a power | Character FX |
| Make the subject break out of the frame or dissolve into pixels | Composition Effects |
| Add film grain, a vignette or a light leak | Post-Process Effects |
| Change scenes inside one clip | Transition |
| Set the genre, the feel or the instruments of a song | Music Genre, Music Mood, Instrumentation |
| Describe a new voice and how it speaks | Voice Character, Voice Delivery |
| Sing a Suno song in your own voice | Suno Voice |
To copy the look of an existing image into pickers, use Describe to Picker. It reads an image and fills the Person, Styling, Framing, Lens and Camera / Film Stock pickers you connect to it.
From the API
Every picker catalog is also available to developers. They can list the options with GET /v1/picker-catalogs, and send picker ids in the direction field of POST /v1/generate-image and POST /v1/generate-video. Nodaro then writes the matching words into the prompt. See Picker catalogs.
Every picker
Each card links to the picker's page, with every option it offers.
Subject
- PersonDescribe a person for AI images and video with 575 options in 33 settings, from age and body to face geometry, hair and eyes. The picker writes the prompt.
- AnimalPick one of 126 animals, from pets and wildlife to dinosaurs and dragons, and Nodaro adds the animal and a short description of its look to your prompt.
- VehiclePick one of 107 vehicles, from classic cars and trains to aircraft, ships and spaceships, and Nodaro adds the vehicle and a short description to your prompt.
- WeaponPick one of 85 weapons, from katanas and longbows to muskets, blasters and magic staffs, and Nodaro adds the weapon and a short description to your prompt.
Wardrobe & Pose
- StylingStyle a person for AI images and video with 274 options in 17 settings, from makeup, hair and jewelry to outfits, shoes and fabric. Nodaro writes the prompt.
- PosePick one of 81 poses, from standing and seated postures to running, leaping and hand gestures, and Nodaro adds tested wording for the pose to your prompt.
Scene
- SettingPick one of 66 settings, from a coffee shop or a rooftop to a desert or an alien planet, and Nodaro adds a tested description of the place to your prompt.
- Era / PeriodPick one of 28 eras, from Ancient Egypt and Victorian to 1980s Neon and Cyberpunk Future, and Nodaro adds its fashion, places and film look to your prompt.
- FurniturePick one of 78 furniture pieces, from sofas and four-poster beds to chandeliers and bathtubs, and Nodaro adds the piece and a short description to your prompt.
- Held PropPick up to 2 of 60 props for a subject to hold, such as a smartphone, a coffee cup, a book or a bouquet, and Nodaro adds how the prop is held to your prompt.
- MaterialPick up to 2 of 67 materials, from silk and leather to gold, marble and glass, and Nodaro adds how each surface looks and takes light to your prompt.
- BackdropPick one of 40 studio backdrops, from white seamless paper and gradients to brick walls, velvet drapes and chroma green, and Nodaro adds it to your prompt.
- Loop SubjectPick one of 31 loop subjects, such as a neon tunnel, a starfield or falling snow, and build a seamless looping video for streams, screens and ambient visuals.
Camera
- FramingSet the shot size, angle, coverage, composition and vantage of AI images and video from 66 options, and Nodaro writes the framing into your prompt.
- LensPick one of 18 lenses, from a 14mm ultra-wide and an 85mm portrait lens to fisheye, anamorphic and vintage primes, and Nodaro adds its look to your prompt.
- Camera / Film StockPick one of 31 cameras and film stocks, from 35mm film and Arri Alexa to VHS, Polaroid and daguerreotype, and Nodaro adds that medium's look to your prompt.
- Exposure SettingsSet the aperture, shutter speed and ISO of an AI image or video from 20 options, for a soft background, frozen action, light trails or film grain.
Light & Look
- LightingSet how an AI image or video is lit. Combine the time of day, lighting style, direction, lighting ratio and color temperature from 72 tested options.
- Color / LookPick one of 41 color grades, such as Teal & Orange, Kodak Portra or Bleach Bypass, and Nodaro adds that grade to the prompt of your image and video nodes.
- MoodPick up to two of 51 moods, such as calm, tense or joyful, and Nodaro adds tested wording for the emotion to the prompt of the image or video nodes you connect.
- AtmosphereAdd weather and particles to an AI image or video. Pick up to 2 of 40 conditions, such as Fog, Light Rain, Snow, Smoke or God Rays, from one picker.
- StyleSet the visual style of an AI image or video, such as Cinematic, Anime, Oil Painting or Pixel Art. Pick one of 49 styles and Nodaro adds it to the prompt.
- Photo GenreMake an AI image read as a specific kind of photo, such as a fashion editorial, a street photo, a mirror selfie or a movie poster. Pick one of 46 genres.
- Photographer / Artist StyleGround an AI image or video in the signature of a photographer, cinematographer or illustrator. Pick up to 2 of 63 creators, such as Roger Deakins.
- Render QualityPush an AI image toward a CG render look, such as Ray Tracing, Unreal Engine 5 or Octane Render, or add a quality term. Pick one of 24 render presets.
- Aesthetic / MicrotrendTune an AI image or video to an online aesthetic, such as Y2K, Cottagecore, Dark Academia or Balletcore. Pick up to 2 of 42 named aesthetics.
Motion & Time
- Camera MotionTell an AI video model how the camera moves. Pick one of 66 camera motions, such as Dolly In, Orbit Left or Crane Up, and Nodaro adds tested wording.
- TemporalControl time in an AI video clip. Combine speed, freeze, direction and shutter, such as Slow Motion, Bullet Time or Reverse, from 18 tested options.
- Character MotionDirect what a character does in an AI video clip. Chain up to 3 of more than 1,000 moves, such as walk in, wave or hug, and name who performs them.
Effects
- Action FXAdd an event to an AI scene, such as an explosion, a lightning strike, an earthquake or a magic portal. Pick up to 2 of 72 tested action effects.
- Character FXTransform a character or give it a power in an AI video: werewolf, fire breathing, wings, glowing eyes and more. Pick up to 2 of 55 character effects.
- Composition EffectsGive an AI image or video a bold frame effect, such as Bursting Through Frame, Pixel Disintegration or Double Exposure. Pick one of 18 composition effects.
- Post-Process EffectsAdd finishing effects to an AI image or video, such as Fine Film Grain, Soft Vignette, Halation Glow or Light Leak. Pick up to 2 of 18 post-process effects.
- TransitionMake an AI video model perform a transition inside one clip, such as a Whip Pan, a Match Cut or a Liquid Morph. Choose from more than 80 transitions.
Music & Voice
- Music GenreSet the genre of AI music: up to 3 of 29 genres for a fusion, or one genre with a subgenre, plus an era. Works with Suno, Generate Music and Text to Audio.
- Music MoodDescribe how AI music should feel: one energy level, up to 3 emotions and up to 3 vibes, such as Driving, Triumphant and Cinematic. Works with Suno and more.
- InstrumentationChoose the sound of AI music: up to 5 of 112 instruments, a production style, the vocals and a singing style. Works with Suno, Generate Music and Text to Audio.
- Voice CharacterDescribe who a designed voice is: age, gender, up to 3 languages, one of 45 accents and a timbre. Nodaro adds it to the voice description of Voice Design.
- Voice DeliveryDescribe how a designed voice speaks: its pace, its emotion and a voice-acting style, such as Documentary Narrator. Nodaro adds it to Voice Design.
- Suno VoiceCreate a custom voice persona from a short recording of your own voice, then use it as the singer on Suno Create Music, Suno Cover and Suno Extend.
Frequently asked questions
Related
Mood
Generate Image
Generate Video
Creative controls
Picker catalogs
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Person
Describe a person for AI images and video with 575 options in 33 settings, from age and body to face geometry, hair and eyes. The picker writes the prompt.