Solanasis Docs

Image_Style_Guide_v2

5 min read

Solanasis Image Style Guide v2 — Clean Comic Book Sketch

Version 2.0 — March 2026 Style: Clean Comic Book Pencil Sketch Supersedes: v1 “Documentary Sketch” (deprecated)

1. Style Identity

Our visual identity is a clean pencil sketch with a comic book / graphic novel aesthetic. Think: a skilled professional illustrator’s portfolio work on clean white paper. Not a photo, not a stock image, not a grungy sketchbook.

What It Communicates

  • Professional and polished (not scrappy or DIY)
  • Human and approachable (not cold corporate stock)
  • Distinctive in social feeds (stands out against glossy AI images and stock photos)
  • Aligned with our brand: Grounded. Sharp. Human.

Reference Image

solanasis-site/public/images/stock/blog-claude-chatgpt-double-check.jpg — two robots on a clean white background with crisp, well-defined line work. This is the gold standard for our style.

2. Core Style Prompt (Copy-Paste Ready)

Clean pencil sketch illustration on a pure white background.
Professional illustrator quality with well-defined line work,
clean consistent strokes, and subtle crosshatching for shading.
Comic book / graphic novel aesthetic: clear compositions,
bold outlines, clean negative space.

Negative Prompts (Always Include)

No paper texture, no grunge, no smudges, no photographic elements.
No logos, no brand names, no readable text, no UI elements,
no futuristic neon, no hoodies, no masks, no 'hacker' tropes,
no cartoon style, no glossy CGI, no photorealistic rendering.

Full Prompt Template

[STYLE BLOCK]

Subject: [SUBJECT DESCRIPTION]

[NEGATIVE PROMPTS]

3. Style Do’s and Don’ts

DO

  • Clean white background (pure, no texture)
  • Well-defined line work with consistent stroke weight
  • Subtle crosshatching for shading (not heavy or messy)
  • Bold outlines around main subjects
  • Clean negative space (let the drawing breathe)
  • Professional office/business settings
  • Natural, engaged poses (not stock photo stiffness)
  • Warm, collaborative scenes
  • Clear compositions with a focal point

DON’T

  • Paper texture, crumpled paper, coffee stains, dirty desktops
  • Grunge, smudges, eraser marks, or “aged” effects
  • Film grain, lens effects, or photographic elements
  • Dark/moody lighting or dramatic shadows
  • Readable text, logos, or brand names
  • UI elements, screens with detailed content
  • Hoodies, masks, or “hacker” tropes
  • Cartoon exaggeration or chibi proportions
  • Glossy, CGI-rendered, or photorealistic appearance
  • Overcrowded compositions

4. Subject Templates by Category

4.1 Blog — Security & Compliance

Subjects:

  • Two professionals at a conference table reviewing assessment documents, one with a laptop showing a shield icon
  • A cybersecurity professional at a desk analyzing findings on a monitor with organized documents nearby
  • A consultant handing a bound assessment report to a business owner across a clean desk

4.2 Blog — Disaster Recovery & Operations

Subjects:

  • A team testing recovery procedures in a clean server room, one at a terminal, another reviewing a checklist
  • IT professionals running backup verification checks with server racks in the background
  • A business continuity planning session around a table with printed recovery procedures

4.3 Blog — CRM & Data Systems

Subjects:

  • A professional at a modern desk reviewing a CRM dashboard showing warning indicators
  • A consultant helping a team transition to a new system, both looking at a laptop together
  • A sales professional organizing customer data in a structured digital system

4.4 Blog — AI & Technology

Subjects:

  • A professional analyzing network data on a laptop with floating connection nodes above the screen
  • A thoughtful leader reviewing AI governance documents at a conference table
  • Two professionals collaborating on system integration, diagramming on a whiteboard

4.5 Blog — Partnerships & Business

Subjects:

  • Two professionals shaking hands across a clean desk with coffee cups and a document between them
  • A consultant and client in a warm meeting discussing findings collaboratively
  • A professional at a clean desk composing outreach correspondence with organized notes nearby

4.6 Homepage & Marketing

Subjects:

  • A consultant reviewing a compliance assessment report at a desk, pointing out findings to a client
  • A consultant delivering a bound document to a business owner at a meeting table
  • A professional team collaborating around a clean conference table with natural light

4.7 LinkedIn & Social Media

Same style rules apply. For LinkedIn posts, consider:

  • Single-subject compositions (one person, one scene) for better mobile visibility
  • Slightly more dynamic poses or conceptual elements (floating icons, connection lines)
  • Keep the background clean and uncluttered

5. Quality Checklist

Before using any generated image, verify ALL of the following:

  • White background — Pure white, no paper texture or colored wash
  • Clean line work — Consistent strokes, well-defined outlines, no messy scribbles
  • No text — No legible words, brand names, or UI text anywhere
  • No logos — No recognizable symbols or brand marks
  • No hacker tropes — No hoodies, masks, green matrix text, dark rooms
  • Professional tone — Subjects look like real professionals, not caricatures
  • Clean composition — Clear focal point, adequate negative space
  • No distortion — Proportions are natural, no stretched or warped elements
  • Correct aspect ratio — 3:2 for blog headers (will be resized to 1200x800)
  • On-brand feel — Would look natural on solanasis.com alongside existing content

6. Technical Specifications

PropertyValue
Production dimensions1200 x 800 px (3:2 aspect ratio)
JPG quality85
WebP quality80
Generation aspect ratio3:2 (set in API or web UI)
ModelNano Banana (gemini-2.5-flash-image)
Generation scriptsolanasis-scripts/generate_all_sketch_images.py
Production pathsolanasis-site/public/images/stock/
Raw archivesolanasis-docs/content-creation/post-images/

Post-Processing Pipeline

Generate PNG (3:2) → Resize to 1200x800 (Lanczos) → Save JPG (q85) + WebP (q80)

The generation script handles this automatically. For manual web UI downloads:

python generate_all_sketch_images.py --process-raw ~/Downloads/image.png blog-topic-name

7. Style History

v1 — “Documentary Sketch” (2026-03-05 to 2026-03-19)

Emphasized documentary feel, film grain, paper texture, and slight imperfections. Produced images that sometimes looked like photos on dirty desktops. Deprecated because:

  • Paper texture and grunge made images feel unpolished
  • Inconsistent results (some clean, some grimy)
  • Didn’t match the professional, polished brand identity

v2 — “Clean Comic Book Sketch” (2026-03-20 onward)

Current style. Clean white backgrounds, comic book aesthetic, bold outlines, professional illustrator quality. Addresses all v1 issues while maintaining the distinctive hand-drawn feel.

8. Brand Color Alignment

While sketches are primarily grayscale, they integrate well with our palette:

  • Sketch gray tones complement Parchment (#FEF9F1) page backgrounds
  • Dark line work maps to Ink Navy (#020532) and Charcoal (#111827)
  • The clean white of the sketch background provides contrast against the warm parchment
  • If adding subtle color accents, use tones from Copper (#C47A3D)

Graph View