# Mood > Pick 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. Source: https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/creative-controls/mood The **Mood** picker sets the emotional tone of an image or a video. You choose up to two moods from its catalog — calm, tense, melancholic, joyful, ominous and more — and Nodaro adds tested wording for that emotion to the prompt of every node you connect it to. The picker never calls a model, so it costs no credits. - Found in: Creative Controls › Light & Look - Output: text - API type: `mood` ## When to use it - Give a character or a scene a clear emotion without rewriting the prompt. - Keep the same mood across many shots: connect one Mood picker to several image or video nodes. - Try the same scene in different moods: change the picker and run the image node again. ## How to use it ### Add the picker Open the node picker and choose **Creative Controls › Light & Look › Mood**. ### Choose a mood Click the node and choose a mood from the grid. Each tile shows the same base image rendered with that mood. ### Connect it Drag from the picker's output to the **Look** input of a [Generate Image](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/image/generate-image) or [Generate Video](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/video/generate-video) node. You can also connect it to a [Text](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/automate/text) or [Prompt](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/automate/prompt) node to include the wording in a longer text. ### Run the image or video node The picker's wording is added to the end of the prompt when the connected node runs. Workflow: Mood and Lighting pickers wired into the Look input of Generate Image. - Text → Generate Image (prompt) - Mood → Generate Image (look) - Lighting → Generate Image (look) ## Settings | Setting | What it does | | --- | --- | | **Mood** | The mood to add. You can pick up to two. The default is **Calm**. | | **Prompt hint** | **Full** adds a longer description of the mood. **Compact** adds only the short term. See [Full and Compact](#full-or-compact). | | **Custom text (before)** | Your own words, added before the mood's wording. | | **Custom text (after)** | Your own words, added after the mood's wording. | To see the exact words the picker will add, switch the node to the **Prompt** or **Both** display mode. The settings panel shows the same text under **Will inject into prompt**. ## Four moods, one portrait Each portrait below comes from the same workflow: one prompt, one character board connected to **References**, and GPT Image 2 in [Generate Image](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/image/generate-image). The prompt names no expression. Only the Mood changes, with the prompt hint on **Full**, and under each image is the exact text the picker added to the end of the prompt. ``` Head-and-shoulders portrait of the woman in the reference board. Use her exact face, hair and skin; do not use the green dress. She wears a soft cream knit sweater, blurred warm living-room background, soft window light from the left. No text, no logos, no watermark. ``` ![A woman with long dark hair in a cream sweater, smiling widely in a warm living room.](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/mood/joyful.webp) Joyful Added to the prompt: `with a radiant, joyful expression full of delight, the corners of the mouth rising uncontrollably, steps light` ![The same woman resting her cheek on her hand, looking away with a wistful, distant expression.](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/mood/melancholy.webp) Melancholy Added to the prompt: `with a melancholy, wistful expression lost in thought` ![The same woman looking straight into the lens with a hard, intense stare and a set jaw.](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/mood/fierce.webp) Fierce Added to the prompt: `with a fierce, commanding expression and blazing intensity` ![The same woman with wide eyes, raised brows and an open mouth.](https://nodaro.ai/docs-media/examples/mood/shocked.webp) Shocked Added to the prompt: `with a shocked, surprised expression, eyes wide, brows raised and mouth open` In **Full** mode, each mood adds a short description of the face and the body, such as the raised brows and open mouth of Shocked. In **Compact** mode, the picker adds only the term, such as `shocked expression`. In an earlier test with the same character board and only the Compact terms, the faces barely changed. The Full wording gave the clear change you see above, so keep Mood on **Full** when a character board or other face references are connected. ## Every mood Search the catalog or filter it by group. The words under each name are the term the picker adds in **Compact** mode. **Positive** - Happy: `happy expression` - Joyful: `radiant joyful expression` - Relieved: `relieved expression` - Serene: `serene expression` - Playful: `playful expression` - Confident: `confident, self-assured demeanor` - Loving: `tender, loving expression` - Amused: `faintly amused expression` **Neutral** - Smirking: `cocky smirk` **Positive** - Eccentric: `quirky, eccentric energy` - Hopeful: `hopeful expression` **Negative** - Sad: `sad, downcast expression` - Angry: `angry expression` - Afraid: `fearful expression` - Anxious: `anxious, nervous expression` - Melancholy: `melancholic expression` - Devastated: `devastated, heartbroken expression` - Grieving: `grief-stricken expression` - Caught Off Guard: `caught-off-guard expression` - Aloof: `aloof, detached expression` - Vulnerable: `vulnerable, exposed expression` - Coy: `coy, bashful expression` - Bored: `bored, deadpan expression` - Embarrassed: `embarrassed, flushed expression` - Disgusted: `disgusted expression` - Bewildered: `bewildered expression` **Neutral** - Thoughtful: `thoughtful, contemplative expression` - Stoic: `stoic, impassive expression` - Calm: `calm expression` - Curious: `curious expression` - Mysterious: `mysterious, enigmatic expression` - Dazed: `dazed, dreamy expression` - Sleepy: `sleepy expression` - Unbothered: `unbothered, self-possessed calm` **Intense** - Fierce: `fierce, commanding intensity` - Determined: `determined, resolute expression` - Passionate: `passionate expression` - Brooding: `brooding expression` - Seductive: `seductive expression` - Defiant: `defiant expression` - Sultry: `sultry expression` - Smoldering: `smoldering intensity` - Sinister: `sinister expression` - Wiccan / Mystical: `occult, otherworldly mystical expression` **Neutral** - Lazy Shy: `drowsy, half-shy expression` **Intense** - Awe: `awestruck wonder` - Shocked: `shocked expression` **Positive** - Flirty: `flirty expression` **Negative** - Suspicious: `suspicious, wary expression` **Neutral** - Resigned: `resigned expression of quiet acceptance` - Conflicted: `conflicted, torn expression` ## 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 | The model needs more to work with, or the picker is the only look control | | **Compact** | Only the short professional term | Many pickers feed one node, or the model already knows the term | Switch the mode with the **Prompt hint** toggle at the top of the node or in the settings panel. Your **Custom text (before)** and **Custom text (after)** are added in both modes. ## Tips - **Pair it with light and color.** Mood works best with [Lighting](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/creative-controls/lighting) and [Color / Look](https://nodaro.ai/docs/nodes/creative-controls/color-look): a melancholic mood with blue-hour light and a cold grade reads stronger than any one of them alone. - **Drive a scene per mood.** In a story workflow, use one Mood picker per scene so that each scene can have its own emotion. - **Add a detail the catalog does not have.** Use **Custom text (after)**, for example `with tears in her eyes`. ## Frequently asked questions ### What does the Mood picker do? It adds a short description of an emotion to the prompt of every image or video node it is connected to. It never runs a model and costs no credits. ### Does the Mood picker cost credits? No. Pickers only change the prompt. You pay only for the generation node that uses it. ### What is the difference between Full and Compact hint mode? Full adds a longer description that gives the model more to work with. Compact adds only the short professional term, which keeps the prompt short when many pickers feed one node. ### Can I use the Mood picker with any model? Yes. The picker writes plain words into the prompt, so it works with every image and video model in Nodaro.