How to turn a photo into anime with AI (free, in 60 seconds)

Step 1 — Upload your photo

Open Imagino on your phone or browser and tap the upload tile. Selfies with even lighting and a clear face work best — Imagino's image-to-image AI uses your photo as the base, so blurry inputs produce blurry anime. Pets, friends group shots, and landscapes also work.

Step 2 — Pick an anime or Ghibli style

Browse the trending templates and tap "Ghibli portrait", "Anime hero", or "Chibi". Want something custom? Write a prompt like:

studio ghibli style portrait, soft watercolor, warm sunset light,
cinematic, hand-drawn, gentle pastel palette

Imagino's AI (Google Gemini "Nano Banana" image model) restyles the photo while keeping your facial structure, pose, and outfit recognizable.

Step 3 — Generate, download, share

Tap Generate. The first preview lands in a few seconds; the HD version follows. Download it, post it to Instagram or X, or share it to the Imagino community feed for reactions.

Tips to get the best anime results

• Use a portrait-orientation photo with the face filling 30–60% of the frame.
• Avoid heavy filters on the input — the AI works best on natural photos.
• Name the artist or studio in your prompt ("studio ghibli", "makoto shinkai").
• Add lighting cues ("golden hour", "soft watercolor", "rim light").
• Regenerate 2–3 times — each run produces a slightly different interpretation.

Frequently asked questions