---
title: "AI prompts for glass and metal products: a word list"
canonical: https://withicarus.com/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products
site: Icarus
description: "Words to put in an AI prompt so glass looks clear and metal looks like metal, plus how to keep your real bottle and label exact and check the result."
---

# AI prompts for glass and metal products: a word list

Words to put in an AI prompt so glass looks clear and metal looks like metal, plus how to keep your real bottle and label exact and check the result.

_October 19, 2026. Written with AI from the sources listed below, and checked automatically before it went live._

![Woman holding up a clear glass perfume bottle with a polished metal cap](https://icarus.b-cdn.net/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products/woman-holding-glass-perfume-bottle.png)

_Made with Icarus_

For glass and metal, name four things in your prompt: the material, its finish, the light and what the surface reflects. "Clear thick-walled glass, polished chrome cap, soft side light, thin white highlights down each edge" gets you glass that reads as glass and metal that reads as metal.

This post gives you a short word list for each of those four. It also covers the part most prompt guides skip. When the bottle in the picture has to be *your* bottle, with your label still readable, a prompt alone won't do it. You'll see how to keep the real product in the shot, and what to check before you publish.

## Why glass and metal come out wrong

An AI image tool fills in whatever you leave out. Write "a perfume bottle" and it guesses the glass thickness, the cap, the light and the room the metal reflects. That's how you end up with milky glass, steel that looks like grey plastic, and chrome showing a window that isn't in the scene.

Google's own image guide says that [the more specific your description, the more control you get](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/image-generation). For shiny products, being specific means four kinds of words, in this order:

- **Material:** what it's made of.
- **Finish:** how the surface feels and shines.
- **Light:** where it comes from and how soft it is.
- **Reflection:** what the surface shows back.

Skip any one and the tool picks for you. "Shiny" alone is the most common gap. It tells the tool nothing about whether you mean a mirror, a satin sheen or wet glass.

## A word list for material and finish

Pick one material phrase and one finish phrase for each surface of the product. A bottle with a cap has two surfaces, so it gets two pairs.

![Clear glass bottle of pale gold oil with a brushed steel cap on a plain white background](https://icarus.b-cdn.net/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products/glass-bottle-brushed-steel-cap.png)

_Made with Icarus_

**Glass**
- clear glass, thick-walled clear glass, heavy glass base
- frosted glass, acid-etched glass
- amber glass, cobalt blue glass, smoked grey glass
- light bending through the base, a soft caustic glow on the surface below

**Metal**
- polished chrome, mirror-polished steel
- brushed stainless steel, fine vertical brushed grain
- satin aluminium, anodized aluminium in matte black
- brushed brass, hammered copper, gunmetal

**Finish and gloss**
- high gloss, wet look
- satin, soft sheen
- matte, soft-touch

**Liquid inside**
- filled to the shoulder, flat clean liquid line
- pale gold liquid, clear liquid, tiny bubbles near the top

Keep the words concrete. "Brushed stainless steel with a fine vertical grain" gives the tool something to draw. "Premium metal" doesn't.

## Words for light and reflection

Light is where glass and metal are won or lost, and the words photographers use work in prompts too.

![Glass bottle and chrome tin on dark slate, lit from the side with bright highlights on their edges](https://icarus.b-cdn.net/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products/glass-and-chrome-side-light.png)

_Made with Icarus_

Shopify's guide to reflective products says [side lighting suits metal and clear or colored glass](https://www.shopify.com/blog/76702789-shoot-reflective-products-like-a-pro-with-these-diy-lighting-setups), since reflections show less along the edges. The same guide lists [soft boxes, sheer fabric and umbrellas as diffusers that soften light and cut glare](https://www.shopify.com/blog/76702789-shoot-reflective-products-like-a-pro-with-these-diy-lighting-setups), and [white foam boards set opposite the light](https://www.shopify.com/blog/76702789-shoot-reflective-products-like-a-pro-with-these-diy-lighting-setups) to push light into the shadows. Google's sample product prompt names its light the same way: a [three-point softbox setup and a slightly raised 45-degree camera angle](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/image-generation).

So write the setup, not a mood:

**Light**
- soft side light from the left, large softbox
- diffused light, no hard shadows
- backlight through the glass so the liquid glows
- white bounce card on the right filling the shadow side

**Reflection**
- thin white highlight strips down each edge of the glass
- black card reflections to define the edges of clear glass
- the metal cap reflects a plain white studio
- no visible lamps or windows in the reflections, no glare on the label

**Background and angle**
- plain white, light grey gradient, dark slate
- eye level, or slightly above at 45 degrees

Put it together and you get something like this:

> A clear thick-walled glass bottle of pale gold oil with a brushed stainless steel cap, on a light grey gradient background. Soft side light from a large softbox on the left, a white bounce card on the right, thin white highlight strips down each edge of the glass, no glare on the label. Shot slightly from above at 45 degrees.

Try this prompt in Icarus: https://withicarus.com/dashboard?prompt=A%20clear%20thick-walled%20glass%20bottle%20of%20pale%20gold%20oil%20with%20a%20brushed%20stainless%20steel%20cap%2C%20on%20a%20light%20grey%20gradient%20background.%20Soft%20side%20light%20from%20a%20large%20softbox%20on%20the%20left%2C%20a%20white%20bounce%20card%20on%20the%20right%2C%20thin%20white%20highlight%20strips%20down%20each%20edge%20of%20the%20glass%2C%20no%20glare%20on%20the%20label.%20Shot%20slightly%20from%20above%20at%2045%20degrees.

## How to keep your real bottle and label exact

Here's the catch. Every word above describes *a* bottle. None of them makes it *yours*. A tool working from words alone will invent the curve of the shoulder, the cap's knurling and the label text. On a catalog page, that's a different product.

In Icarus, the fix is [product pinning](https://withicarus.com/features/exact-product). You upload one clear photo of your product, from one angle, and save it. Then you tag it in any shot, and Icarus keeps your real colour, logo and stitching in every image. Several angles of the same product make it less consistent, so give it your single best front shot.

Once the product is pinned, change how you write the prompt:

1. Stop describing the product's shape. The photo already says it, and new words can fight it.
2. Spend your words on the scene, the light and the reflections.
3. Add one line asking to keep the label and cap as they are.

> My saved bottle on a wet black slate surface, soft backlight through the glass so the liquid glows, a white bounce card on the right, clean highlight strips along both edges. Keep the label and cap exactly as they are.

Try this prompt in Icarus: https://withicarus.com/dashboard?prompt=My%20saved%20bottle%20on%20a%20wet%20black%20slate%20surface%2C%20soft%20backlight%20through%20the%20glass%20so%20the%20liquid%20glows%2C%20a%20white%20bounce%20card%20on%20the%20right%2C%20clean%20highlight%20strips%20along%20both%20edges.%20Keep%20the%20label%20and%20cap%20exactly%20as%20they%20are.

If the label carries a lot of small text, pick a model made for it. Qwen Image 3 is for text on packaging and signs. Nano Banana Pro is for studio scenes with your product held true. Wings is for lifelike shots with your own product held exactly, shot for shot.

Test a few before you shoot the range. On the AI Icarus starts you on, a 1K image is $0.02, or $0.04 when it holds a saved product, so ten pinned test shots at $0.04 come to $0.40. When you find light you like, save it as a [studio](https://withicarus.com/features/brand-studios) and use it on every bottle and tin after, so the range looks like one shoot.

## Check the label, the edges and the liquid line

Glass and metal hide small mistakes well. Hold each result up against the real product before you publish it.

![Woman comparing a real amber glass bottle with a printed photo of it at a wooden desk](https://icarus.b-cdn.net/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products/comparing-bottle-to-printed-photo.png)

_Made with Icarus_

- [ ] Read the label word by word, including the small print
- [ ] Check the cap: same colour, same finish, same grooves
- [ ] Look at the edges of the glass for warping or double outlines
- [ ] Check the liquid line is flat and level with the table
- [ ] Look for a room, window or lamp reflected where none should be
- [ ] Make sure the shadow falls on the same side as the light

This matters for listings, not only for looks. Google Merchant Center says your [primary image must clearly show the exact item you sell](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/6324350), and it [doesn't allow promotional elements or overlays](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/6324350). Its [minimum product image size rises to 500 x 500 pixels on January 31, 2027](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-merchant-center-product-images-update-41924.html). Check every image against the rules of each place you sell before it goes live.

If one detail is off, you don't have to start over. Open the shot, write the change in one sentence, like "remove the window reflection from the cap", and Icarus makes the [edit](https://withicarus.com/features/ai-photo-editor). An image edit costs $0.05, or $0.07 at 4K.

## Questions

### How do I make glass look clear in an AI image?

Name the glass type and the light together, for example "clear thick-walled glass, soft side light, thin white highlights down each edge". Add a dark or white card reflection to define the edges, so the glass doesn't fade into the background.

### What words make metal look real in AI product photos?

Use a specific metal plus a finish, like "brushed stainless steel with a fine vertical grain" or "mirror-polished chrome". Then say what it reflects, such as a plain white studio, so the tool doesn't invent a room in the metal.

### Why does AI change the text on my label?

When the tool only has words, it draws a label from scratch and guesses the letters. Start from a photo of your real product instead, and in Icarus pin it as a saved product so your real colour and logo stay in the shot. Always read the label on the result before you publish.

### Should I describe my bottle's shape if I upload a photo of it?

No. Once the product photo is in the shot, use your prompt for the scene, the light and the reflections. Describing the shape again can pull the result away from your real product.

## Sources

- [Shoot reflective products like a pro with these DIY lighting setups (Shopify)](https://www.shopify.com/blog/76702789-shoot-reflective-products-like-a-pro-with-these-diy-lighting-setups)
- [Image generation with Gemini (Google AI for Developers)](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/image-generation)
- [Google Merchant Center Product Images Minimum Size Will Be 500x500 Pixels](https://www.seroundtable.com/google-merchant-center-product-images-update-41924.html)
- [Image requirements (Google Merchant Center Help)](https://support.google.com/merchants/answer/6324350)

---

Site: Icarus (https://withicarus.com)
Canonical: https://withicarus.com/blog/ai-prompts-for-glass-and-metal-products
Contact: tanmay@hooked.design