1. Decide what the photo needs to show

Choose the modification before choosing the photograph. For wheels, make sure the wheel faces are visible and large enough to inspect. For paint or wrap colours, show uninterrupted areas of the bonnet and doors. For upholstery, use an interior view with the seat surfaces clearly in frame.

One image does not have to answer every question. A side view may help you compare wheel patterns, while a front three-quarter view gives more context for a body colour. Keep those as separate comparisons rather than expecting a single close-up to explain the whole project.

2. Look for even, readable light

Soft daylight is a practical starting point because the bright and dark areas can remain readable together. Before taking the photo, check that the wheels are not lost in shadow and that a bright reflection has not turned an entire panel into a white patch. Move the viewpoint if a reflection covers the exact area you want to change.

For an interior, look at the seats and dashboard on the screen before taking the shot. If the windows appear bright but the cabin is almost black, try another position or another time of day. The aim is visible material detail, not a particular photographic style.

3. Leave room around the subject

Keep the full vehicle in frame for a whole-car comparison, including the wheels and a little space above the roof and below the tyres. Avoid cutting through the bumper or photographing so close that the nearest corner looks much larger than the rest of the car.

A normal camera view is a useful place to start. If a wide-angle view stretches the body or wheels near the edges, step back and reframe. For cabin photos, choose a position that shows the target area clearly without making a nearby seat dominate the entire image.

4. Keep the source image simple

Use the original camera image when possible. Strong colour filters, artificial blur, stickers and screenshots with interface elements add information that does not help describe the car. A simple background also makes the silhouette easier to read, especially when you compare darker wheels or body colours.

Check the photograph at a larger size before using it. Look for motion blur, a smudged lens and objects covering part of the car. Retaking a soft photo is usually more useful than increasing sharpness on an image that never captured the detail.

5. Keep one unchanged comparison photo

Use the same source photo for your first set of ideas. If you change the angle, lighting and proposed modification together, it becomes harder to tell what caused the difference you prefer. Save the original and write a short brief before generating: what should change, what should stay and what visual question you are testing.

  • Wheels: compare five-spoke and mesh designs while keeping the body colour.
  • Paint: compare green and graphite while keeping the current wheels.
  • Interior: explore warmer upholstery while retaining the existing dark dashboard.

6. Judge the concept against the source

After generating, check the full car first, then the modified area. Notice whether the AI also changed a body line, background object or interior detail that you wanted to keep. Refine the brief when necessary. The image is a visual concept, not a measurement or confirmation of part fitment. CarTuning.ai for iOS is coming soon; preparing a clear source photo is a useful first step.