In this article, I’ll give you a quick rundown of the latest updates from MidJourney for August 2024. There are some exciting new features, including a brand-new image editor, updates to the website, and hints about upcoming releases like V6.2 and V7.
Let’s dive into each of these in detail.
MidJourney’s New Image Editor
The big news this month is the release of MidJourney’s new image editor. This editor combines two powerful tools—reframing and repainting—into a single, easy-to-use interface.
Here’s a detailed breakdown of its key features:
Key Features of the Image Editor
1. Repaint Tool:
Previously known as “vary region,” the repaint tool now uses a brush with adjustable sizing, replacing the older lasso tool.
You can easily erase parts of your image that you want to modify, or restore them if you make a mistake.
2. Zoom:
You can now zoom out up to 10x by dragging the scale slider or clicking and dragging the corners of your image. This gives you more control over how you frame your images.
3. Repositioning:
You can click and drag the middle of the image to reposition it within the frame. This allows for finer control over the composition.
4. Aspect Ratio Customization:
In the top-right corner, you can select a new aspect ratio for your image or use the gray bars to customize the ratio to your preference.
5. Prompt Editing:
You can now directly edit your prompt text from within the editor and even drag and drop images into the prompt for reference.
Availability and My Thoughts
This new image editor is available exclusively on the website, and I think it’s a fantastic addition.
It simplifies the process of combining multiple actions into one submission, making it much more convenient compared to Discord, where you’d have to submit separate jobs for repainting and reframing.
The editor also gives us a glimpse of what the future might hold—perhaps soon, we’ll be able to edit external images using MidJourney.
MidJourney Alpha Website Updates: No Discord Required
There’s even more exciting news regarding the MidJourney website.
As of this update, the MidJourney website is now open to everyone.
That means you no longer need a Discord account to use it, and there’s no image count threshold restricting you from creating images directly on the site.
Two Login Methods (And Possibly More in the Future)
Currently, there are two login methods available on the website, and it’s possible that more will be added in the future.
Room Syncing Between Website and Discord
Another cool feature is room syncing between the website and Discord.
Messages in certain channels are now mirrored across both platforms, offering a smoother experience for users who prefer one platform over the other.
I think this is an excellent addition, as it enhances the sense of community between Discord and website users.
New Tasks and Surveys
In addition to these updates, MidJourney has introduced some new tasks, including a way to rank image pairs.
You can now:
- Rank on prompt accuracy.
- Rank image aesthetics for newly created images.
Also, keep an eye out for a new personality survey. MidJourney is collaborating with Moury, an independent research lab, on a project exploring potential connections between personality traits and aesthetics.
The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete, and you’ll get two free fast GPU hours for participating.
Plus, you’ll get to see your results at the end.
Upcoming Releases: V6.2, V7, Video Models, and More
Looking ahead, there’s been some debate about whether MidJourney should release V6.2 soon or focus more on V7.
If V6.2 does release, it’ll likely come with minor improvements to image quality and overall coherence.
V7, on the other hand, is still a couple of months away but promises significant upgrades, including better prompt accuracy, text rendering, language understanding, and even more coherence and quality improvements.
Character Reference Update
If you’ve been waiting for an update on character references, don’t worry—it’s coming. The update will be released after V7.
Video Model Development
There’s some exciting news about video model development as well. Originally, it was thought that 3D models would come first, but it now looks like video models might be released before 3D.
In fact, there’s even a small chance that a V6 video model could be launched before V7 is out.
The first version of the video model will likely focus on short image-to-video animations rather than full text-to-video creations.
This is a promising development for anyone eager to experiment with video generation.
Model Personalization System Updates
Another significant upcoming feature is a new model personalization system. While we just got an update to this system with the V6.1 release in July, the next version will allow for:
- Multiple personalization profiles.
- More granular control over your custom aesthetics.
This means you could have one aesthetic code for general use and a completely different one for a specific project you’re working on.
It’s clear that MidJourney is building more flexibility into this system, and I can’t wait to see how it evolves.
Depth Control Net and Storytelling Tool
Finally, the team is still working on a depth control net feature, and we might see something from that very soon.
As for the storytelling tool, while progress is being made, it’s unlikely that we’ll see any new developments on that front in the immediate future.
Conclusion
MidJourney’s August 2024 update brings a lot of exciting changes, from the intuitive new image editor to the expanded website features and upcoming releases like V6.2 and V7. If you’re a long-time user or just getting started, there’s something for everyone in this latest update.
