Slash codes like "/ghost walk" are not built-in ChatGPT commands. But you can make them work reliably by teaching ChatGPT your own code list once. Below are 20 ready-made codes to copy.
What you need
A ChatGPT account. OpenAI says ChatGPT Images is available on all tiers, including Free, on web, iOS and Android. "Images with thinking" is limited to Plus, Pro and Business (ChatGPT Images FAQ).
A clear photo. One person, a well-lit face and a simple background give the best results.
Optional but recommended: a ChatGPT Project. Projects are available on the Free plan and let you save instructions that apply to every chat inside them (Projects in ChatGPT).
Step by step
Why codes alone are hit and miss. OpenAI's editing guide says to upload a photo and describe the change in words. It lists no slash codes (Editing your images). Guides that collect these codes agree they are shorthand prompts, not official commands (Panstag, TutKit). So give ChatGPT a code key.
Create a new ChatGPT Project called "Photo Codes".
Paste the code key below into the Project's instructions. If it doesn't fit, paste it as the first message of a chat and keep using that chat.
Upload your photo in that Project and type a code, like
/ghostwalk.Add a tweak after the code (
/anime, make the background a Mumbai street at night) or combine two (/paparazzi /rain).If your face changes, reply:
Keep my face exactly as in the original photo and try again.
The code key (copy all of it):
You are my photo-effects editor. When I upload a photo and type one of the codes below, edit THAT photo with the effect described. Keep the person's face, identity, skin tone, body shape and clothes the same unless the code says otherwise. Do not add any text, logos or watermarks. If I write extra words after a code, apply them too. If I type two codes, combine both effects. If I type a code you don't know, ask me what it should do.
/ghostwalk - Long-exposure look. The person is walking, with 3 to 4 faint, see-through copies trailing behind them like motion ghosts. The background stays sharp. Moody evening light.
/paparazzi - Candid tabloid shot at night outside a venue. Harsh on-camera flash, slight motion blur, blurred photographers and camera flashes in the background, glossy magazine colour grade.
/anime - Redraw as a 2D anime frame. Clean line art, cel shading, big expressive eyes, same hairstyle and outfit colours, painted anime background.
/wormseye - Extreme low-angle worm's-eye view through a fisheye lens. Strong curved distortion, person towering over the camera, sky behind them.
/firefade - The edges of the person's body dissolve into glowing embers and soft flames against a dark background. The face stays clear and untouched.
/polaroid - Instant photo with a white border, faded colours, soft film grain and a slight warm cast.
/flash - Late-90s point-and-shoot flash photo. Bright flash on the face, dark background, red-eye removed, date-stamp style look without any text.
/film - 35mm film photo. Warm tones, visible grain, slightly lifted blacks, natural daylight.
/noir - Black-and-white film noir. Hard side light, deep shadows, venetian-blind shadow pattern on the wall.
/vhs - Frame from an old VHS tape. Scan lines, colour bleed, soft focus, slight tracking glitch.
/neon - Cyberpunk night street. Pink and blue neon rim light on the person, wet ground with reflections.
/goldenhour - Outdoor golden-hour portrait. Low warm sun behind the person, soft glow around the hair, gentle lens flare.
/clay - Turn the person into a claymation figurine on a handmade miniature set. Visible fingerprint texture.
/pixel - 16-bit pixel art game sprite of the person in a pixel art scene.
/sketch - Detailed graphite pencil sketch on off-white paper with light shading.
/watercolor - Loose watercolour painting with soft edges and paper texture.
/doubleexposure - Double exposure. The person's silhouette is filled with a city skyline at dusk, on a plain light background.
/miniature - Tilt-shift effect so the whole scene looks like a tiny model, with blurred top and bottom.
/rain - Cinematic rainy night. Visible rain streaks, wet hair and clothes, street-light reflections.
/filmposter - Hand-painted 1970s Indian film poster style. Bold painted colours, dramatic pose, empty space at the top, no text.Make your own codes. Add a line to the key in this format:
/yourcode - What the scene looks like, the lighting, the style, and what must stay the same.Specific descriptions give consistent results. Keep adding lines and you can build 200 codes of your own.
Good to know
Results vary. The same code can give a slightly different image each time.
Faces can change. Anime, clay and pixel styles redraw the face. For likeness, use /film or /goldenhour.
Edit only photos you have the right to use, and don't make realistic fake "paparazzi" shots of real people.
Label AI edits when you post. Use Instagram's AI label. India's amended IT Rules, in force from 20 February 2026, require users to declare AI-generated content before posting (Business Today).
Limits. A generation can take a few minutes, and usage limits depend on your plan.
Sources
Editing your images with ChatGPT Images (OpenAI Help Center)
Photo styles with ChatGPT: what the ten image codes really do (TutKit)
Govt tightens rules on AI-generated content (Business Today)
Found this useful? Follow @kevinsingh.me on Instagram for a new AI tool every day, and subscribe so you don't miss the next one.