Weâre now used to generative AI being able to create images from text prompts. These tools continue to get more sophisticated and versatileâeven though plenty of questions remain around energy use, copyright infringement, and long-term impacts.
The latest major upgrade to roll out in this category of AI is for Googleâs Gemini app. Itâs known as Nano Banana after the codename it had while still in testingâofficially, itâs called Gemini 2.5 Flash Image.
In addition to general improvements, it really excels in image editing, which is where generative AI has previously struggled. Edits wouldnât be consistent, or would change the wrong parts of pictures, or wouldnât follow instructions properly.
âThis update enables you to blend multiple images into a single image, maintain character consistency for rich storytelling, make targeted transformations using natural language, and use Geminiâs world knowledge to generate and edit images,â says Google.
With Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, you can be much more specific and precise in your modifications, so itâs almost like having instant access to a Photoshop expert. Weâve collected some of the best ways to use it in the Gemini app on the web. To get started, click the tools slider icon in the input box, then Create images, and then click the + (plus) button to pick your source image.
As always, anything you input into Gemini can be used to further train Googleâs AI models and may on occasion be seen by human reviewersâso avoid sharing anything sensitive or confidential. To stop this from happening, you can tell Google not to save any of your chats or images in Gemini by clicking Activity in the left-hand navigation pane.
Make precise edits
Sometimes youâre just going to want to change one specific part of a photo: Maybe you want the color of a car to be blue rather than red, or you need a lamp removed from a shotâor you want a lamp added. This is where Gemini can get you fast and effective results without the need for a full image editor.
Letâs say youâve got a picture of someone doing something but youâre not fully happy with the way they look, although you want to keep most of the scene intact. Once your image is loaded, use a prompt like âchange her jumper color to redâ or âgive him curly blonde hairâ and Gemini will produce an output for you.
The AI doesnât always give you perfect results, but works well most of the time. You should see your requested edit carried out, and the rest of the picture left unchanged. If you donât get exactly what you were looking for to begin with, you can try again with a slightly different prompt (although watch out for the usage limits)âtry and be as precise as you can in your requests.
Think about some of the other edits you might turn to a proper image editing tool for, and Gemini will usually be able to pull them off if you describe them well enough. For example, you could ask to blur the background behind the main subject of an image, or tidy up some imperfections in a shot (maybe dust or scratches somewhere).
Combine and manipulate images consistently
Something else that the Gemini 2.5 Flash Image model excels at is taking an image or several images and transforming them in multiple ways. If youâve got a self portrait, you can put yourself in an entirely new location or give yourself an entirely new outfit (or both)âthe AI should be smart enough to make sure the picture still looks like you.
Try uploading a photo of yourself, then asking Gemini to change the backdrop behind you: Maybe you want to be at the beach, in a field, or to be lit differently. You can also keep everything the same in a picture, but adjust the time of day, or the weather, without it looking like an entirely new AI-generated scene.
Combining images works really well tooâjust select two or more pictures when you click the + (plus) button inside the prompt box. Give Gemini a picture of you and a picture of an outfit youâve found online, and you can request an image of you wearing those clothes. Or, if youâve got separate pictures of your dog and your cat, you can put them together.
Combining images like this can require a bit more in the way of trial and error and careful prompting, so you might need to be more exact about how the images are put together. However, you should see Gemini keeping consistency across multiple imagesâso your dog and cat (for example) will always look like your pets.
Add to or remove from a scene
As you get more confident with the sort of edits you can get Gemini to do, you can get more ambitious in your requests. Of course one of the most common tasks done in an image editor is removing objects from a scene, whether itâs a random stranger getting in the way of your group selfie, or a stray item of clothing making your room look messy.
To get rid of something in your picture, be specific about what you want taken out: Tell Gemini to âremove the person on the right and fill in the backgroundâ or âerase the red jumper thatâs on the floorâ. As long as thereâs enough information in the image for Gemini to be able to fill in the gaps, you should see the tweak made successfully.
Of course Gemini can still create AI-generated people or objects as well as making edits, but you donât have to create an entire image from scratchâyou can add to something youâve already got. Maybe youâd like to see what a bookshelf would look like in your study, or you want to fill out a street scene with more cars or people.
Gemini will accept prompts like âput a cream couch along the back wallâ or âadd a yellow bus driving by in the backgroundâ if youâre making additions. This is more reliant on Geminiâs AI training, so you may need several goes and it, but bear in mind that you can always request additional edits or go back to the original image and start again.
