Chase Jarvis

Talent Is a Lie (Here’s What Actually Matters)

Chase — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 13:00:58 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here Let’s talk about something that quietly holds a lot of people back — something we’ve been taught to believe for most of our lives: Talent. The idea that some people are just born with “it.” The gift. The spark. The thing that makes them exceptional. And if you don’t have it? Well… maybe you just weren’t meant for this. Let me be clear: That idea is mostly a lie. Not because people don’t have natural inclinations or perspectives — they do. But because what we call talent is usually something much more accessible, much more practical, and much more within your control. This episode is about breaking that illusion — and replacing it with something far more empowering. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: The Myth of Talent We’ve built an entire mythology around the idea that greatness is reserved for a select few — that some people are simply born with abilities the rest of us don’t have. But here’s what most people don’t see: From the outside, confidence and competence can look exactly the same. And from the inside? It often feels like you’re just barely holding it together. There was a time...

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Perfect Is Dead: Why Your Flaws Are Your Creative Advantage

Chase — Wed, 25 Mar 2026 13:00:37 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here Let’s talk about something that might feel uncomfortable at first — especially if you’ve spent years trying to get better, sharper, more polished, more “professional.” Perfection is dead. Not metaphorically. Not eventually. I mean right now. And if you’re paying attention to what’s happening in the creative world — especially in an era of AI, automation, and endless content — you’re starting to feel it too. The things that used to signal quality… now feel generic. The things that used to impress… now barely register. And the things we used to hide — the rough edges, the quirks, the imperfections — are quickly becoming the only things that actually stand out. This episode is about why your flaws — the very things you’ve been trying to smooth out — might actually be your greatest creative advantage. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: The Shift: Why Perfect Doesn’t Work Anymore We are living in a moment where perfect is easy. AI can generate flawless images. Software can smooth every imperfection. Templates can make anything look “professional.” And that’s exactly the problem. Because when everything is polished… everything starts to look the same. Even the platforms...

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You Don’t Need Everyone

Chase — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:00:15 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here Let’s talk about something that quietly holds a lot of creators back — the belief that your work needs to resonate with everyone. It feels natural. We’re wired for connection. We want to be seen, appreciated, recognized. That’s human. But when that instinct starts driving your creative decisions, it can pull you further and further away from the very thing that makes your work meaningful in the first place. So here’s the truth I want you to hear clearly: You don’t need everyone. Not their approval. Not their attention. Not their validation. In fact, trying to get all of that is one of the fastest ways to dilute your voice and disconnect from what matters most. This episode is about what happens when you stop chasing everyone — and start creating from a place that’s actually true to you. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: The Core Idea If you try to make something for everyone, you end up making it for no one. I see this all the time — creators, entrepreneurs, builders of all kinds trying to shape their work so broadly that it appeals to the widest possible audience. And on...

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Why Hearing “No” Is Part of the Creative Path

Chase — Wed, 11 Mar 2026 13:00:03 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here Let’s talk about something every creator experiences — but almost nobody talks about openly. Rejection. If you’re pursuing anything creative — photography, writing, design, building a business, launching a project — you already know the truth: you hear a lot more no than you hear yes. But here’s the twist. Most people think rejection is the signal to stop. In reality, rejection is often the signal that you’re doing the work. In this episode, I’m unpacking why hearing “no” isn’t something to avoid — it’s something to learn from, grow through, and ultimately embrace as part of the creative path. Because more often than not, “no” doesn’t mean never. It means not yet. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: Let’s start with a simple truth: If you’re putting your work out into the world — pitching clients, submitting work, applying for opportunities, launching ideas — you’re going to hear “no.” A lot. And while that might feel discouraging at first, it’s actually a sign that you’re in the arena. That you’re taking risks. That you’re moving forward instead of sitting safely on the sidelines. The reality is that creative careers are built through repetition...

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Craft Is the Entry Fee

Chase — Wed, 04 Mar 2026 14:00:09 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here If you’re a creator who’s ever wondered why someone with “less talent” seems to get more opportunities… this episode is for you. Because here’s the truth: being great at your craft is only the price of admission. It gets you in the door. But what happens after that? That’s where your career is made. In today’s micro-show — Craft Is the Entry Fee — I’m talking about the things that matter most in the work you do… and the things that matter just as much in the way you do it. The stuff you can’t always point to on a resume. The stuff you can’t show in a portfolio. The stuff you can’t always “prove” — but everyone can feel. Because what you can’t see matters. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: The Big Idea Let’s start with a reframe that will save you years of frustration: Great work is the “get in the door” fee. Yes — you have to be good. You have to practice. You have to care about the craft. You have to put in the reps. But if you’re trying to get hired, land clients, build long-term relationships, or get...

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Designed, Not Discovered

Chase — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 14:00:53 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here There’s a myth that quietly messes with a lot of us — especially if you’re a maker, builder, or artist. It’s the myth that creative fulfillment is something you find. That if you just get lucky enough… brave enough… talented enough… you’ll stumble into “the thing” and everything will click. But here’s what I want to remind you today: Your path isn’t discovered. It’s designed. Not as in “perfectly planned.” As in: you choose it. You shape it. You tend it. You build it on purpose — even when you don’t feel ready. This episode is a short one, but it’s dense. It’s about why wildly creative careers aren’t an accident… and how to return to what makes your heart sing. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: Here’s what this episode explores: Creative lives don’t happen by accident. They happen intentionally. They’re designed. The Core Idea Creative lives are built on purpose. The “lucky ones” didn’t just stumble into it. In some way, shape, or form, they created a vision and worked toward it. This episode is about doing that — deliberately. What You’ll Hear in This Episode This one moves quickly, but...

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The Messy Middle Is the Point

Chase — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 14:00:34 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here Let’s talk about a part of the creative process that almost nobody celebrates — but everyone eventually meets. You start something because you feel alive doing it. There’s momentum. There’s curiosity. There’s possibility. And then… the middle shows up. The part where it’s not new anymore. The part where it’s not instantly rewarding. The part where you’re still not “there,” but you’re far enough in that turning back feels like quitting. That stretch is what I call the messy middle — and if you’ve been feeling stuck lately, I want you to hear this clearly: The messy middle isn’t in the way of the work. It is the work. Not because it’s glamorous. Not because it’s efficient. But because it’s the only place where real growth happens — the kind that actually changes you. This episode is a short one, but it’s dense. It’s about why we get distracted when things get hard, and how to come back to the original spark that made you start in the first place. 🎧 Listen to the Episode Right Here: Here’s what’s really happening when you’re in the messy middle: You’re doing the work… but you’re not getting...

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The Cost of Playing It Safe

Chase — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 14:00:30 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it centers on a truth most of us spend years trying to outgrow: playing it safe has a cost. Not just a financial cost. Not just an “I didn’t take the leap” cost. I’m talking about the hidden cost — the slow trade of your originality for approval, your curiosity for compliance, your honest voice for whatever feels least risky. A lot of us were trained early to optimize for fitting in. To sit still. To follow directions. To avoid disrupting the room. And to be clear: the people who guided us usually meant well. But the system most of us came through wasn’t designed to help you uncover what you’re here to make — it was designed to produce consistency. Efficiency. Predictable outcomes. Over time, that training can dull the very thing that makes your work matter: your vitality. Your weirdness. Your edge. The parts of you that feel a little too honest, too quirky, too intense, too much. Here’s the core idea: The price of playing it safe is your creative aliveness. Because safety doesn’t just keep you from failing — it keeps you from telling...

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Kling 3.0 AI Video Is Here: My 100% Honest Review

Finn Mckenty — Fri, 06 Feb 2026 21:00:41 +0000

Kling 3 is here, the followup to the popular Kling 2.6 AI video generation model. After spending the last 48 hours running it through the wringer, I’m ready to call it: this is arguably the most capable general-purpose video model available right now. I’d consider it state-of-the-art, overall. On par with Veo 3.1, and possibly better in some ways. But is it right for your workflow, and your budget? Let’s get into the details and find out. My starting image for the tests What’s New in Kling 3? This isn’t just a resolution bump. The team behind Kling has added features that directly address the pain points many creative pros have been asking about. (For the deep dive on every single spec, you can check out the official release notes here.) Here are the headlines that matter for us: Multi-shot Generation: You can now chain shots together coherently without starting from scratch every time. You can even specify the exact length of each shot. Reference Elements: This is the big one. Similar to Veo, you can now upload specific “elements” (like a character or a product) to maintain consistency across different shots. Duration: We’re finally hitting up to 15 seconds...

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How to Re-Light an Image with Nano Banana Pro

Finn Mckenty — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 03:59:19 +0000

Need to change the lighting in an image after you’ve shot it? Nano Banana Pro is surprisingly good at it. We’re talking about results that are on par with a high-end retoucher, but accessible on your devices 24/7. The best part? If you’re already using Nano Banana, you don’t need another subscription. You just need to know how to talk to it. But here’s the secret: getting the best results isn’t about some fancy “secret prompt.” It’s about understanding photography basics. LightingDiagram.com is a great tool to visualize lighting if you need a refresher Step 1: Reverse Engineer The Lighting Setup Work backwards. Decide exactly what lighting setup would create the look you want, and then describe that setup. Where is the light coming from? (Left, right, behind?) What kind of light is it? (Key light, fill light, rim light?) What is the quality? (Hard, soft, diffused?) What is the color? (Warm sunset, cool blue, stylized purple?) Step 2: Prompt Nano Banana Like A Photographer Nano Banana Pro understands photographic terminology. So when you prompt it, describe the light just like you would to someone on a real set. Here’s a few examples from my recent experiments to show you...

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Build the Next Chapter Before You’re Paid

Chase — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 14:00:26 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it centers on an idea that quietly changes everything once you see it: You don’t get paid first for the work you want to do next. You build it first. Most people wait for permission. They wait for a client, an investor, or an opportunity to show up before they start creating. But in my experience, it works the other way around. The next chapter of your career is built in parallel with the one you’re already in. I’ve always balanced paid work with deeply personal exploration. The commercial projects put food on the table. The personal work is where curiosity lives. And it turns out, that curiosity-driven work is where every meaningful breakthrough in my career has come from. Here’s the core idea: Build the next chapter before you’re paid. Your portfolio becomes your future. The work you make on your own time — without guarantees — becomes proof of what you’re capable of next. Clients don’t hire potential. Investors don’t fund intentions. They respond to momentum, prototypes, and evidence. Whether you’re trying to pivot creatively, grow your business, or step into a new role, the path...

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Higgsfield Vibe Motion Is Here: My Honest Review for Creative Pros

Finn Mckenty — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 04:51:38 +0000

Higgsfield just dropped this new feature that promises to turn your text prompts into motion graphics. It’s built in partnership with Anthropic (the folks behind Claude), and it seems to be leveraging the power of Remotion (although I’m not 100% sure about that), which has already generated a lot of buzz in the dev community. The promise? “Real-time” motion design control. Prompt, and you get polished motion graphics back. The reality? Well, I took it for a spin so you don’t have to guess. Here’s what I found. How to Use Vibe Motion The interface is clean and feels familiar if you’ve used any generative AI tools recently, and certainly much more accessible than using Remotion with Claude Code. Login: Head over to Higgsfield and select the Vibe Motion app. Choose Your Format: You can start from scratch or pick a preset. They have templates for things like “Infographics,” “Text Animation,” and “Posters.” Set the Vibe: You can choose a color palette preset (like “Mosaic,” “Prism,” or “Candy”) or customize your own brand colors. The Prompt: This is where the magic (supposedly) happens. You describe exactly what you want—transitions, particle effects, text behavior, hit generate and wait a few minutes....

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How To Use LoRAs in Weavy (vs ComfyUI)

Chase — Mon, 02 Feb 2026 18:23:36 +0000

I’m a huge fan of Weavy. It’s arguably the best generative AI canvas app for creative professionals who want the power of a node-based system without the headache of managing a raw ComfyUI installation. But there is a very powerful function in Weavy that is barely documented. I love the product and the company, but their official documentation doesn’t explain a lot of the critical details. So, I’m going to do it here. We’re talking about LoRAs: they give you access to a massive chunk of the open-source ecosystem, allowing you to fine-tune your aesthetic with precision – without the overwhelming complexity that you might find in ComfyUI. No LoRa (left) vs with an illustation LoRA (right) in Flux Dev What Are LoRAs and Why Should You Care? Think of LoRAs (Low-Rank Adaptations) as style presets or filters that plug into AI image models like Flux and Stable Diffusion. They’re small, efficient files that tweak the model to understand a specific concept, style, or character like oil painting, 8mm film, Batman, etc. You can even layer them together and change the weights, for example you could mix watercolor and colored pencil LoRAs to apply a unique illustration look to an...

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Higgsfield Angles 2.0 is here: My 100% Honest Review

Chase — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 13:12:51 +0000

Higgsfield AI just dropped a new app called Angles 2.0, which as you’d guess from the name allows you to create new angles from an existing image. Maybe you wish you’d stepped two feet to the left. Maybe you need a high-angle shot for a vertical social crop, but you only generated a wide eye-level frame… Angles 2.0 aims to solve that problem. I took it for a spin- here’s the breakdown of how it works, what I loved, and where it falls short. The Setup: A Virtual Vans Shoot To test this out, I used a project I’ve been building in Weavy: a virtual product shoot. I had this shot of a skater girl in a burgundy hoodie at a skatepark. I really liked the “golden hour” lighting and the texture of the concrete, but for the layout I was building, I needed more variety. I needed to see her from above, and I needed a few side profiles to tell a complete story. Instead of trying to brute-force new angles via complex prompting, I decided to drop the image into Higgsfield Angles 2.0. How It Works The interface is incredibly intuitive—honestly, it’s one of the best UI implementations...

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Krea AI Realtime Edit Is Here: My 100% Honest Review

Finn Mckenty — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 13:50:54 +0000

If you’re tired of tweaking a prompt or reference images, waiting for it to update, and repeating the cycle over and over, you’re going to be excited about Krea Realtime Edit. It’s exactly what it sounds like: a generative AI app that lets you create in real time. Honestly, I was skeptical at first – we’ve all seen tools that promise “instant” results but deliver a laggy mess. But after putting it through the paces in my own workflow, I can tell you it’s the real deal. How to Access Krea Realtime Edit Accessing it is straightforward. You just head over to Krea.ai and look for the Realtime button. It runs right in your browser. While there’s a free tier to get your feet wet, if you’re using this for professional work or high-speed iteration, you’ll run out of credits fairly fast (especially if you use your webcam as an input) so be prepared for that. The magic of Krea is how it bridges the gap between your hand and the machine. Here’s how I put it through its paces: Draw + Get Realtime Updates This is where the “realtime” part shines. You can draw lines and fill shapes, and...

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How To Add Film Grain With Nano Banana Pro (3 methods)

Finn Mckenty — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 01:11:42 +0000

We’ve all seen it: that “uncanny valley” look where an AI-generated image is just a little too perfect, and grain can be the antidote for that. If you’re looking for absolute world-class results, I’m still going to point you toward dedicated plugins like Dehancer Film or Real Nice Images. But lately, I’ve been experimenting with Nano Banana Pro. While it lacks the surgical precision of a dedicated film emulator, it’s surprisingly capable for the basics – plus, you can automate it. If you’re processing a high volume of images and don’t need to tweak every individual silver halide crystal, this might be your new best friend. Here are the three ways to get it done, ranked from “Pro” to “Meh” (using Weavy, but the same prompts will work in the Gemini app or anywhere else). Option 1: Use a reference image In my testing, this is the way to go. It’s the most intentional way to work with Nano Banana. Instead of letting the AI guess what “vintage” means to you, you show it. Prompt: – Goal: transfer the film grain of [@]img1 to [@]img2 – Create an image of the content as shown in [@]img2 but with the film...

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You Can’t Think Your Way Forward

Chase — Wed, 28 Jan 2026 14:00:49 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it centers on an idea that runs counter to how most of us try to solve creative problems. When we feel stuck, uncertain, or restless, our instinct is usually to think harder. To analyze. To wait for clarity. But here’s the truth I’ve learned the hard way: you can’t think your way forward. Clarity doesn’t come from sitting on the couch running mental simulations. It comes from action. From making. From trying things in the real world and paying attention to what happens next. Early in my career, I hit a real creative rut. I questioned whether photography was truly my thing, or whether some other medium might be a better fit. And I could have stayed stuck in that loop for months — thinking, debating, second-guessing. Instead, I ran experiments. I tried painting. I learned from it. And just as importantly, I learned what wasn’t my path. Here’s the core idea: action beats intellect. Thinking has its place, but it’s a terrible primary strategy for getting unstuck. You don’t reason your way into momentum — you move your way into it. Volume creates insight. Making creates feedback....

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How To Edit Images In Nano Banana Pro (inpainting)

Finn Mckenty — Tue, 27 Jan 2026 20:01:35 +0000

Nano Banana Pro is easily the most powerful image editing (aka inpainting) app I’ve seen to date. It’s a total game-changer for our community because it handles tasks in minutes that used to take hours – or even days – of high-end retouching. The best part? You don’t need to learn a million keyboard shortcuts. You just talk to it like you’ve got a world-class retoucher sitting right next to you. I’m using Weavy for these examples, but these techniques will work in the Gemini app or other AI platforms like Higgsfield, Flora, or Krea. 1. Text Prompt Only This is the fastest way to work with editing/inpainting. Because Nano Banana Pro uses advanced semantic segmentation, it actually analyzes and understands the objects in your image. It knows which pixels are flowers, which are sand, where the statue’s eyes and ears are located, etc. The prompt: “Make the statue’s hair bright pink, like #FF0066” Why it’s great: It’s low friction. If you just want to see “what if the hair was bright pink,” you type it in and it happens. The Downside: You have less granular control. Sometimes the AI’s idea of “pink” isn’t yours. Sometimes, the first prompt just works!...

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How to Edit an Image in Midjourney (inpainting): A Creative Pro’s Guide

Chase — Sat, 24 Jan 2026 12:59:31 +0000

Midjourney is arguably the most aesthetic tool in our kit right now, but let’s be honest: it can be a nightmare to control. It’s like working with a world-class painter who refuses to listen to your feedback. And specifically, editing in Midjourney has historically been unpredictable – but it IS possible, as long as you don’t expect it to work miracles. Ideally you want to one-shot your Midjourney images with the right style and image references (see my guide here). That said, if you DO need to edit (aka inpainting) here’s 4 options I like to use: Option 1: The Edit Button (surgical fix) This is your go-to for inpainting small details. Maybe you love a portrait but the iris of the eye has a distracting, sparkly artifact (like in the eyeball example below). Or maybe there’s a weird bird in the background of your landscape that’s ruining the focus. The Workflow: Select your upscaled image and click the “Edit” button (or “Vary Region” in Discord). Use the brush to erase the specific area that’s bugging you. Submit the edit with your original prompt. By doing this, you’re telling Midjourney: “Don’t touch the rest of the canvas, just re-roll this...

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How to Control Midjourney: Style References, Image References, and Moodboards

Finn Mckenty — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 16:15:11 +0000

Midjourney is incredible: it creates aesthetically polished images that nothing else can really touch. But let’s be real: it’s a temperamental artist. It’s inherently chaotic… it requires you to direct rather than control. Your job is to have a creative vision and execute against it. If you can’t control the output, you can’t do the job. Clients don’t want happy accidents; they want repeatable systems. They need assets that match a specific brand identity, a pre-existing campaign, or the specific mood of a deck you sent them last week. I ran a series of tests in Midjourney v7 to show you exactly how to tame this chaos using Image References, Style References, and Moodboards. The Baseline: A simple prompt I started with a barebone, open-ended prompt as a baseline: “Woman, editorial photo.” I’m using this as the baseline to let the image/style references do the bulk of the work in terms of aesthetic. As you can see they’re nice enough images, but a little all over the place: from super bright and high contrast to moody and dark. So here’s how we’ll give Midjourney more direction: Image References: Controlling the “What” Think of Image References as your way of anchoring...

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You Are Your Habits

Chase — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 14:00:56 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and practical — and it centers on a simple idea that tends to hit a little deeper once you really sit with it: you are not your goals. You are not your intentions. You are what you do repeatedly. Around this time of year — or anytime you feel the urge for a reset — it’s easy to assume the problem is motivation. That you just need to want it more. In my experience, that’s almost never true. Most people aren’t stuck because they lack drive. They’re stuck because their daily habits aren’t aligned with what they actually want. Goals matter. Vision matters. But goals don’t run your life — habits do. How you move your body. How you eat. How you focus. How you rest. How you show up for your work and your relationships. Those small, repeatable behaviors quietly shape everything. Here’s the core idea: You don’t rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your habits. This episode is framed as a mid-January check-in, but it’s not really about the calendar. It’s about pausing long enough to look honestly at the patterns running your...

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How to Upscale An Image in Nano Banana Pro (4K, no watermark)

Finn Mckenty — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 13:58:42 +0000

Nano Banana Pro (the engine behind Google’s Gemini 3 Pro Image) is rarely discussed as a dedicated upscaler, but it’s actually a powerhouse that delivers incredible results with zero friction. While most tools require fiddling with complex sliders, this one is radically simple: just prompt “Upscale to 4K” and the model understands exactly what to do. However, using the native web or mobile apps often adds a professional dealbreaker: a visible watermark or SynthID embedding. So what’s the solution? Easy: just use Nano Banana Pro through a third-party implementation like Higgsfield AI, Freepik, or Weavy, etc. Step by step upscaling process I used Higgsfield AI, here but it should be essentially the same in any AI creation platform like Freepik, Weavy, Flora, or Leonardo, etc. 1. Select the Model First, make sure you are using the right engine. In Higgsfield (or your platform of choice), look for Nano Banana Pro. As you can see in the menu, it’s often flagged as a “Top” model for 4K images. 2. The Prompt You don’t need a paragraph of text. I uploaded a low-res image and simply typed: Upscale to 4K 3. Dial in the Settings In the quality/resolution dropdown, ensure you have...

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How to Extend an Image with Nano Banana Pro (outpainting)

Finn Mckenty — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 13:39:06 +0000

If you’ve ever had a perfect vertical shot that needs to be a horizontal hero image, you know the pain of manually painting in edges. Today, you can skip the grunt work and use generative “outpainting” tools like Nano Banana Pro. You can use the Gemini web or mobile app and simply prompt “Extend the image to fill 16:9,” which usually yields great results. However, the native app applies a watermark, which is a dealbreaker for most professional work. The Pro Workflow: Using 3rd Party Implementations To get the power of Nano Banana Pro without the watermark, you want to use a third-party implementation. For this walkthrough, I used Higgsfield AI, but the workflow is virtually identical if you’re using other popular AI creation platforms like Freepik, Weavy, Flora, or Leonardo. Here is the dead-simple process: Find the Model: Go to your platform of choice (like Higgsfield) and ensure you are selecting the Nano Banana Pro model. Upload & Prompt: Upload your source image. In the prompt box, keep it simple. Prompt: “Extend the image to fit 4:3” Generate & Download: Select your resolution, hit generate, and download the finished clean image. The Example: The Crying Statue I tested this...

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How to Build Consistent Characters From A Sketch with Nano Banana & Weavy

Finn Mckenty — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 05:16:19 +0000

You’re about to see how to take a messy napkin sketch and turn it into a consistent, studio-quality character using a workflow that actually respects your creative intent, using Nano Banana (Google’s amazing image model) and Weavy (node-based canvas app). And importantly, the character will stay consistent across scenes, poses and even styles (want to render it as a B&W cartoon? Not a problem). I’ll show you the step-by-step breakdown of how we built the “Fish Sheriff” and the “Yeti Wizard,” in the style of everybody’s favorite 90s show Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, but this approach will work with any character in any style. The whole workflow at a glance – it’s not as complex as it looks Setup: The Modular Approach When you try to generate a complex character in one shot – “a fish-sheriff monster fighting a wizard in a desert” – you’ll probably end up disappointed. You’re asking the AI to guess dozens of little details correctly all at once. And if one of them is off, you have to redo the whole thing. Maybe it forgets the cowboy hat, it makes the trout look like a catfish, etc. So instead, we’ll build the characters in parts,...

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How to Create Video from an Image with Grok AI Video

Finn Mckenty — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 17:02:23 +0000

We talk a lot about the big players in AI video—Runway, Kling, Sora, Veo—but there’s one tool that is quietly crushing it right now, and almost nobody is talking about it: Grok Imagine. Grok is developed by xAI, and while it’s often buried in headlines about tweets and tech politics, for creative pros, it’s a sleeper hit. Specifically, its image-to-video capability is arguably the best “quick fix” animation tool on the market. It’s fast, it’s fluid, and it just works. The Workflow: From Image to Video Here is the exact step-by-step process to get this running. It’s deceptively simple. 1. Get the App Either head to grok.com and sign in, or download the standalone Grok app. I like the mobile app for because it fits perfectly into that “in-between moments” workflow where you’re mocking up ideas on the go. 2. Upload Your Image Once you’re in, tap the image icon at the bottom of the screen. You can also give it access to your photo library, and your recent shots will appear at the top under “Animate your photos.” 3. Animate Select the image you want to bring to life. For this test, I used a goofy image of an...

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Midjourney v7 Niji Is Here: My Honest Review for Creative Pros

Finn Mckenty — Thu, 15 Jan 2026 17:14:23 +0000

Midjourney v7 Niji is here – a much-anticipated update to the aesthetic-focused AI image generation app. For the uninitiated, you might be asking: What exactly is Niji? In their own words, “this is our version of our image models specifically tuned for Asia and Anime.” It’s a collaboration between Midjourney and Spellbrush, designed to understand the specific aesthetics, line work, and composition of anime and illustrative styles better than the base model. You can read their official breakdown here. So how does it stack up? I ran two tests, based on the same core prompt: “Illustration of a young man in his room studying at night, rainy outside, cozy vibe.” Test 1: The “Cozy Study” Vibe First, I tested it with a simple prompt that could go in a few different aesthetic directions. I also wanted to see how it would interact with a SREF. 1. Midjourney v7 (Standard) First, I ran the prompt through the standard v7 model. No style references, no Niji mode. The result was solid – classic Midjourney quality. It gave me a moody, painterly look. The lighting was dramatic, leaning towards a semi-realistic digital art style. It’s a good image, but it feels a bit...

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Important, Not Urgent

Chase — Wed, 14 Jan 2026 14:00:52 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it centers on an idea that quietly changes everything once you really see it: most people aren’t stuck because they’re lazy or unmotivated. They’re stuck because they confuse urgency with importance. We’ve been trained to react. To answer what’s loud, immediate, and demanding. Emails. Notifications. Small fires that feel productive simply because they need attention right now. But being busy isn’t the same thing as making progress — and activity is not the same as effectiveness. What I’ve learned over time is that the best work of your life rarely feels urgent in the moment. It’s the work you could put off. The work that doesn’t break anything if you ignore it today — but quietly shapes everything if you commit to it consistently. Here’s the core idea: Real progress lives in the important, not the urgent. When you prioritize what actually matters — even if it doesn’t scream for your attention — chaos starts to fall away. You still work hard. You still show up. But you stop letting urgency dictate your life and start choosing your direction instead. This episode is about stepping off the hamster...

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How To Create New Angles From Any Photo: Nano Banana Pro vs. Qwen Image Edit

Finn Mckenty — Sat, 10 Jan 2026 22:49:37 +0000

We’ve all been there: you wrap a shoot, you get into the edit, and you realize the perfect shot is the one you didn’t take. You need a bird’s eye view, or just a slight rotation to make the composition sing, but the moment is gone. Until recently, that was it. You lived with the shot you had. But we are living in a wild time for creative professionals. The new wave of AI tools isn’t just about generating images from scratch; it’s about remixing and refining the reality we’ve already captured. Today, I want to talk about a specific workflow I’ve been testing that feels like magic: creating new camera angles from a single flat image. I pitted two of the most popular models against each other: Nano Banana Pro and Qwen Image Edit. The Setup: Weavy Nodes For this test, I used a node-based workflow in Weavy (aka Figma Weave). If you haven’t played with node-based editing yet, it’s like building a visual recipe for your image pipeline. I set up two parallel paths: Nano Banana Pro: Google’s latest multimodal powerhouse. Qwen Image Edit: A popular model based on Stable Diffusion. I threw two challenging portraits at them...

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MidJourney vs. ComfyUI: Which is better for creative pros?

Finn Mckenty — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 23:10:15 +0000

The debate between MidJourney and ComfyUI is still a defining conversation for AI artists. Both tools can create industry-standard imagery, but they serve fundamentally different roles in a production pipeline. The choice is not about image quality, as both generate high-fidelity results. The choice is about process. Do you need an “Artist” that generates beautiful ideas instantly, or a “Technician” that executes precise instructions without deviation? This guide breaks down the pros and cons of each platform and explains why the most powerful workflow involves using them together. Midjourney is amazing for slightly weird, artistic images like these (and doing it pretty quickly) MidJourney: Unmatched aesthetics and vibes MidJourney remains the leader in pure aesthetics – there’s just nothing else that can create the kind of images that, for lack of a better word, feel like art. However, it prioritizes “beauty” and “vibe” over strict adherence to spatial instructions. The Pros Aesthetic Superiority: MidJourney V7 currently holds the edge in “stylistic coherence.” It understands complex artistic concepts (e.g., “90s dreamcore,” “cinematic melancholy”) and applies a unified color grade and texture that often feels more “finished” than raw local model outputs. Speed: It is the fastest way to get from a...

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Rest Is a Skill

Chase — Wed, 07 Jan 2026 14:00:02 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it centers on an idea that’s easy to overlook: rest isn’t something you earn after the work is done. It’s a skill you have to learn while you’re doing the work. Most of us don’t struggle because we lack motivation. We struggle because we don’t know how to manage our energy over time. We push past the point where the work is actually getting better and mistake exhaustion for progress. What I’ve learned is that rest isn’t about quitting or losing momentum. It’s about staying in the game long enough to do meaningful work without burning yourself out. Here’s the core idea: Rest isn’t a break from discipline — it’s part of it. Learning when to pause, step back, or reset isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s awareness. And like any skill, it gets better with practice. This episode is about recognizing those signals earlier, respecting them, and building a pace you can actually sustain. In today’s episode I cover: Why rest is a skill, not a reward How to avoid burning out without losing momentum What sustainable effort really looks like If you’ve been feeling run down...

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How to Create Halftone Effects with Nano Banana Pro (The Right Way)

Finn Mckenty — Thu, 01 Jan 2026 21:48:15 +0000

Many of us in the creative community, miss the grit of the darkroom, the unpredictability of a letterpress, the happy accidents of a photocopier running out of toner. We want that analog warmth, not digital perfection. The problem? Most “distressed typography / bad photocopy” filters and presets look fake and cheap – especially in AI. So today, we’re going to look at how to create authentic, grungy ink bleed and halftone effects using AI – specifically Nano Banana Pro inside of Weavy.ai and rebuilding the IRL analog process, step by step. Why Weavy instead of the Gemini app? Our goal is to take a crisp, vector-style logo and ruin it – beautifully. Why not just use the Gemini web app? You could, in theory. But for this specific workflow, I’m using Weavy because I want total control. When you’re trying to replicate a physical process – like ink bleeding into paper – you need to control the steps. If you try to do it all in one-shot it with a “mega-prompt,” you’re rolling the dice. If it doesn’t look right, you have to start over from scratch. And importantly, we’re working with exactly the same base logo asset the whole time...

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What Actually Makes a Great Friend

Chase — Wed, 31 Dec 2025 14:00:52 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it’s built around a question I think most of us care about more than we admit: what actually makes a great friend? Friendship is often treated as something casual. Easy. Automatic. But as life gets fuller — work, family, responsibility, distraction — the quality of our friendships can quietly slip into something surface-level. Not because we don’t care, but because we stop being intentional about how we show up. What I’ve learned is that great friendships aren’t defined by history or proximity. They’re defined by behavior. Being a great friend isn’t about always having the right words or fixing someone’s problems. It’s about presence. Courage. And a willingness to show up in ways that actually matter — even when it’s uncomfortable. Here’s the core idea: Great friendships aren’t built on convenience — they’re built on intention. That intention shows up in a few specific ways. In the courage to be vulnerable instead of polished. In choosing shared growth over staying comfortable. And in offering real, actionable support instead of vague good intentions. One of the biggest differences between casual friends and lifelong ones is the kinds of conversations...

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How to add texture to a logo with Nano Banana Pro (style transfer)

Finn Mckenty — Mon, 29 Dec 2025 04:52:29 +0000

Today, I want to zero in on a specific technique that’s been blowing my mind recently: applying complex textures to logos using Nano Banana Pro for style transfer. But more importantly, I want to talk about how we do it. Because as creative pros, we don’t just need “magic buttons.” We need control. We need replicable workflows. We need to understand the variables. Here’s how: The Toolset: Weavy + Nano Banana For this workflow, I’m using Nano Banana Pro inside of Weavy.ai (This same logic applies if you’re using similar tools like Flora or Freepik, by the way). Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Chase, can’t I just do this in the Gemini web app?” In theory? Sure. You could try to “one-shot” the whole thing—upload a logo, upload a texture, and ask the bot to mash them together. But I don’t recommend it. Why? Because you’re guessing. It’s hard to track your variables, and if you get a result you love, good luck replicating it exactly for a different client 10 minutes later. And it will have a watermark – not ideal. The Setup: Base image + style reference (for style transfer) The goal here is simple: Take a flat...

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How to Create a VHS Effect with Nano Banana and Flux 2 Flex

Finn Mckenty — Sun, 28 Dec 2025 04:44:24 +0000

Replicating analog imperfections in a digital space has always been the holy grail. And let’s be honest: most “VHS effects” out there are bad. You know the ones—they just slap a scanline overlay and some chromatic aberration on a perfectly sharp image. It looks like a filter. It doesn’t look real. Today, I’m going to walk you through a workflow that nailed this effect so perfectly it actually surprised me, The goal here isn’t just to make a cool image; it’s to give you control over the process so you aren’t just gambling with a random seed. Setting up the workflow I’m using Nano Banana Pro for the base generation and Flux 2 Flex for the texture, all inside a node-based canvas called Weavy.ai (though you could use Flora, Freepik, or similar tools). Why do it in steps in Weavy? Control – you can’t reliably oneshot a great image. AI is probabilistic. You never really know what you’re going to get. If the AI nails the surfer but misspells the text, you have to re-roll the whole thing and you might lose that perfect wave. Step 1: The Base Image Tool: Nano Banana Pro First, we generate our raw material. I...

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The Most Important Creative Tools Are Free

Chase — Wed, 24 Dec 2025 14:00:15 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct — and it’s built around a simple idea I’ve come to believe deeply: the most important creative tools are free. Most creators assume they’re stuck because they don’t have the right gear, the right resources, or the right opportunity. But after decades of making work, interviewing hundreds of top creators, and studying the lives of artists across disciplines, I’ve noticed a different pattern. What actually holds people back isn’t a lack of tools — it’s a lack of the right conditions. Creativity doesn’t break down because you don’t have enough. It breaks down because you don’t give yourself what the work requires. Here’s the core idea: The foundations of great creative work aren’t things you buy — they’re things you practice. Experience. Space. Reflection. Discipline. Rest. These aren’t nice-to-haves. They’re the infrastructure that makes creative work possible. And most of them don’t cost a thing — but they do require intention. One of the biggest mistakes I see is creators waiting. Waiting for inspiration. Waiting for clarity. Waiting for permission. But creative momentum doesn’t come from waiting — it comes from engaging. From living. From making room to think. From...

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How to Use Nano Banana Pro for Free (Without a Watermark)

Finn Mckenty — Sun, 21 Dec 2025 18:19:17 +0000

You’ve probably heard about how amazing Google’s Nano Banana Pro image generator is. I’ve talked about it, other people have, and it’s the real deal: it’s legitimately one of the most powerful creative tools I’ve used since Photoshop. It’s fast, the reasoning capabilities are wild, and the image fidelity is finally hitting that “studio-quality” mark we’ve been waiting for. And best of all, you can use it for free via the official app. But there’s a catch- and for us creative pros, it’s a dealbreaker. What’s wrong with the native Google apps? If you go to the official app to use Nano Banana Pro/Gemini 3, you’re going to hit a wall. Sure, you can use it for free, but Google slaps a visible watermark on the images (not to mention the invisible SynthID embedded in the pixels). For a hobbyist? Fine. For a professional trying to mock up a storyboard, pitch a client, or integrate assets into a final comp? That watermark is a non-starter. It screams “amateur,” and it distracts from your vision. On top of that, the official free tier is throttled. You get a few generations, and then you’re bumped down to the lower-quality model or hit...

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How to Use Midjourney and Nano Banana Pro for perfect images

Finn Mckenty — Sat, 20 Dec 2025 18:46:02 +0000

If you’ve been following the explosion of generative AI, you’ve probably hit the same wall I have. You spend an hour tweaking a prompt in Midjourney, rolling the dice over and over. You finally get the perfect lighting, the perfect film grain, and that intangible vibe you were chasing—but the specific details are wrong. The text is gibberish. The branding is off. The prop in the subject’s hand looks like an alien artifact. So you switch to a more controllable model, maybe something like Nano Banana or a fine-tuned Stable Diffusion checkpoint. You get the details right, but the soul is gone. The lighting looks flat. The texture feels digital. Here’s the hard truth: No single AI tool can do it all. Today, I’m going to show you how to break out of the “prompt and pray” cycle by combining the two most powerful tools in the game right now: Midjourney for aesthetics and Nano Banana Pro for precision. Slightly weird, vibey images like this are VERY hard to make with anything besides Midjourney Treat AI models like specialized tools In traditional photography, we use different lenses for different jobs. You don’t shoot a wide landscape with a macro lens,...

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Stop Shipping at 95%

Chase — Wed, 17 Dec 2025 14:00:14 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and direct: most creators don’t struggle because they lack talent — they struggle because they quit at 95%. They get the work to “pretty good,” ship it, and move on. And for a lot of things in life, that’s fine. The 80–20 rule works. But when it comes to your core creative craft — the thing you want to be known for — good enough is the trap. The last 5% is where the details live. It’s uncomfortable, slow, and often invisible. Which is exactly why most people stop before they get there. Here’s the core idea: 80–20 works for most things — but mastery lives in the final 5%. If you keep shipping at 95%, you’re training yourself to miss the point. When I worked with Apple to help create the foundation for Today at Apple, the first draft came together fast. In less than a week, we were 95% there. But Apple doesn’t hire creators for “pretty good.” Pushing through that final 5% took nearly ten times as long — and it set the standard for creative education across hundreds of stores worldwide. Two common mistakes I see: Misusing the...

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Love Your Work or Don’t Ship It

Chase — Wed, 10 Dec 2025 14:00:28 +0000

Hey friends, Chase here This episode is short and honest: if you don’t love the work you’re making, don’t ship it — or better yet, figure out how to love the work before you ship it. I know that sounds blunt, but the market — and more importantly, your audience — can smell half-hearted work a mile away. You can’t fake the stuff that matters. Loving the work isn’t about perfection. It’s about clarity, curiosity, and being willing to do the uncomfortable thing: choose a direction, commit to it, and then grind the craft until you actually love the result. That’s the difference between noise and meaning. Here’s the core idea: If you’re not excited to promote what you made, you probably didn’t make what you love. Shipping is great — but shipping love is better. Two common traps I see: Approval chasing: You try to design for everyone and end up designing for no one. Activity without affection: You’re busy making lots of stuff, but it never lights you up. That work will struggle to find real fans. So what do you do about it? Make the work you can’t not make — and build a tiny system to...

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How To Fix Veo 3’s “Sensitive Content” Warning

Finn Mckenty — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 21:00:09 +0000

If you’ve spent any time with the latest wave of AI video generators – specifically Veo 3– you’ve likely hit the wall. You know the one. You type in a prompt for something totally benign, like “a person walking down the sidewalk in late afternoon sun,” and bam: “Sensitive Content” warning. It’s frustrating. It kills your creative flow. And frankly, it’s confusing. You aren’t trying to make anything controversial; you’re just trying to get a shot for your project. I hear this from our community constantly. The tools are getting more powerful, but the guardrails are getting tighter. Let’s break down why this is happening and, more importantly, give you the tactical workarounds to get your video made. What causes the sensitive content warning? First, take a breath. You didn’t do anything wrong. Platforms like Veo 3 (and its competitors) are under immense pressure to prevent deepfakes and unsafe content. To do this, they use automated safety layers that scan your text prompt and the generated pixels. The problem is these filters are often “over-tuned.” They are designed to flag anything that even remotely resembles a policy violation. When you ask for “a person,” the AI sometimes hallucinates a celebrity...

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The Best AI Artists: Who To Watch To Improve Your Own Workflow