5 simple ChatGPT prompts to turn your photos into realistic 1800s-style portraits

After the 1980s trend went viral, users turned to ChatGPT to transform their photos into portraits inspired by the 1800s.

The ChatGPT 1980s photo trend has taken over Instagram feeds and Stories, with users transforming their modern-day pictures into retro portraits complete with vintage hairstyles, clothes and old-school backgrounds. But if the 1980s are not far enough back for you, there is another era you can explore.

ChatGPT's viral 1980s photo trend inspired users to recreate their pictures as realistic portraits from the 1800s. (Representational image generated using AI)

With the right instructions, ChatGPT can also reimagine your photographs as portraits inspired by the 1800s. Think formal Victorian-era clothing, period hairstyles, antique studio backdrops, hand-painted portrait aesthetics and the muted tones associated with early photography.

The key is to tell ChatGPT to preserve your facial identity while changing the clothing, hairstyle, surroundings and photographic style to match the period.

Here are five prompts you can try with your own photograph.

Turn yourself into an 1800s aristocrat

"Transform my uploaded photograph into a realistic portrait of an aristocrat from the 1800s. Keep my face, facial features and identity recognisable. Dress me in elegant period-appropriate clothing with detailed fabrics and accessories. Use a grand interior inspired by the 19th century, with soft dramatic lighting and the appearance of an antique painted portrait."

Create a Victorian studio portrait

"Reimagine my uploaded photo as an authentic Victorian-era studio portrait from the 1800s. Keep my facial identity unchanged. Give me historically appropriate clothing, hairstyle and grooming. Use a simple photography studio backdrop and make the image resemble an early photograph with muted colours, subtle grain, soft focus and natural imperfections."

Try a royal portrait

"Turn my uploaded photograph into a royal portrait from the 1800s. Preserve my face and recognisable features while giving me elaborate royal clothing, traditional accessories and period-appropriate styling. Place me inside an ornate palace setting and use dramatic portrait lighting with the look of a historical oil painting."

Go for a 19th-century street photograph

"Recreate my uploaded photo as a believable photograph taken on a city street in the late 1800s. Keep my face recognisable, but change my clothing and hairstyle to match the period. Add horse-drawn carriages, old buildings, gas lamps and historically appropriate surroundings. Use an aged photographic texture and faded monochrome tones."

Create an old family-album portrait

"Transform my photograph into an old family portrait from the 1800s. Keep my identity and natural facial structure intact. Use modest period clothing, traditional hairstyling and a simple indoor setting. Make the result look like a genuine photograph preserved for more than a century, with faded tones, light scratches, grain and slightly worn edges."

You can further customise these prompts by specifying a country, profession, social class or particular decade of the 1800s for a more personalised result.