Prompting ChatGPT to create contra-brand ads for food.

I tried creating contra-ad images for Subway, McDonald's, KFC, Taco bell and Dunkin Donuts.

My goal was to create zero-shot images with just ChatGPT use no other additional workflows.

While creating them, I learnt about meta-prompting, limitations of photo-realism and ways to overcome the limitations.

Meta-Prompts:

A good prompt needs to be super tight with the right inputs. Writing a good prompt is hard.

Whenever I watch OpenAI or any other AI demo's, I see a tight prompt input. I got curious to learn how they writing so well.

Introducing Meta-Prompts: Meta-Prompt is a prompt which helps you generate good prompts!

Meta-prompt helps you create a prompt by providing a structured framework, defining the AI's:

• Role (ex: You're a artist, VFX director),
• Goal(proofread blog, make a marketing decision),
• Reasoning style(think creative, structured),
• Tone(concise, friendly, direct)
• Rules(under 100 words, no opinion, factcheck and provide reference)
• Output format(json, text)

When we add the meta-prompt to the system instructions, it gets input on the aforementioned parameters and gives a response thats more consistent and effective!

I used OpenAI's meta-prompt to create a robust prompt generator for images.

ChatGPT limitations and overcoming them:

1. Corpus Limitations

I was assuming I would be able to create photorealistic images of any item without attachments. But I failed.

I failed whenever I tried dishes such as Indian fritters(onion, potato, capsicum etc), varieties of uthappam etc. May be OpenAI's corpus is not rich with such images is my assumption.

I solved the problem by attaching reference images.

2. Branding Limitations

ChatGPT was not able to add accurate brand logo's which makes sense as its generative AI.

But by attaching brand reference logo, the limitation was solved.

Here are the prompts for images for you to try:

Dunkin Donuts

A stylized photorealistic parody advertisement of a single golden-orange jalebi presented like a Dunkin’ Donut. The jalebi is a single thick circular piece (not spiral), glossy and syrup-coated, placed neatly on white parchment with subtle syrup puddles around it. The surface gleams under professional studio lighting, capturing an indulgent “sugar-drip fantasy” look. The background is a soft pastel beige-to-warm-orange gradient, clean and modern, evoking a warm morning ad feel. The official Dunkin’ Donuts logo is prominently displayed across the upper portion of the composition, clearly visible and central to the parody. Below the jalebi, the tagline “America Runs on Jalebi” appears in bold Dunkin-style typography. Shot with commercial food-photography lighting, softbox glow, tack-sharp focus on the hero, crisp vignette edges, editorial-grade gloss finish, --ar 1:1.

Taco Bell

An ultra-photorealistic Taco Bell advertisement reimagining the classic Indian samosa as a street-style taco. The samosa shell is golden-brown, crisp, and irregularly textured with bubbles and flaky edges, sliced open to form a taco-like pocket. Inside, vibrant spiced chana filling and fresh mint chutney are visible, with a hint of steam rising for warmth. 

Set against a bold Taco Bell-inspired purple-and-orange gradient background with abstract geometric shapes and faint motion streaks. The tagline “Think Outside the Triangle” appears in playful, contemporary Taco Bell typography. Lighting is vivid and contrast-rich, emphasizing texture and sheen — warm highlights on the samosa surface, soft shadows for depth. 

Composition centered on the hero product, photographed at a 45° angle with shallow depth of field for focus. Small Taco Bell logo placed subtly in a corner. Visual tone: rebellious, fusion-fun, and street-meets-global fast-food energy. Tack-sharp focus, cinematic lighting, natural imperfections retained for authenticity.

Subway

A photorealistic Indian fast-food advertisement inspired by Subway brand aesthetics, featuring a freshly made Masala Dosa styled like a Subway sandwich roll. The dosa is golden-brown, crisp, and slightly rolled open to reveal steaming spiced potato masala, fresh coriander, and a side of coconut chutney and sambar. Background uses the classic Subway-inspired green and yellow color palette with clean gradients and subtle brand-style typography reading “Eat Fresh, Eat Dosa.” 

Lighting is bright, natural, and appetizing — similar to commercial food photography, with soft shadows and tack-sharp focus on textures of the dosa and fillings. Composition is centered hero shot on a minimalist white plate, with blurred vegetables and ingredients (tomatoes, onions, curry leaves) in the background. Shot at f/4 using a 50mm lens for depth and creamy bokeh, emphasizing freshness, warmth, and modern Indian street-food appeal. Include glossy highlights and cinematic food styling.

KFC

An ultra-photorealistic vintage KFC advertisement reimagined as if set in 1970s Madurai, India. The scene features a tray of assorted South Indian bajjis — golden chili, onion, potato, and plantain fritters — styled as the hero element. The fritters sit in a retro KFC-inspired metal tray lined with aged parchment and a faint banana-leaf texture, their surfaces crispy, uneven, and richly golden with visible spice freckles and subtle steam.

The setting hints at a nostalgic South Indian eatery-meets-vintage diner: warm tungsten lighting, deep amber highlights, and gentle shadows. In the softly blurred background, faint textures of red oxide flooring, faded posters, and wooden shutters evoke the timeless charm of old Madurai streets without literal depiction. 

Subtle KFC cues — a hint of red-white tray pattern, retro enamel dipping bowls with mint and tomato chutneys — tie the brand identity into the local flavor palette. Film-grain texture, soft vignette edges, and analog color grading reinforce the 1970s aesthetic. Shot at 50mm f/2.2 with shallow depth, tack-sharp focus on the fritters, evoking warmth, nostalgia, and cultural fusion.

McDonald's

An ultra-photorealistic McDonald’s advertisement featuring a single golden Medu Vada, sliced horizontally and styled like a gourmet sandwich bun in cross-section view. Three Indian chutneys are applied as delicate, thin layers — a glossy red tomato chutney on the top half, a smooth white coconut chutney in the center, and a fresh green mint chutney on the lower half — spread lightly like butter and jam on bread. Each layer is subtle, precise, and slightly reflective, showing tactile texture without excess. The vada’s crisp golden crust and airy interior crumb are rendered in tack-sharp focus, with visible pores catching the light.  

The background is minimal and glossy — a clean McDonald’s red surface with soft yellow highlights and faint reflections, referencing brand colors without any fries, packaging, or drink visuals. The lighting is bright, controlled, and commercial-grade, emphasizing the sheen, contrast, and appetizing surface details. The composition is centered and cinematic, using shallow depth of field to isolate the vada as the hero object. The authentic McDonald’s logo and tagline “Triple Chutney Crunch — I’m Lovin’ It (Hot & Crispy)” appear below in minimalist typography.  

The tone is nostalgic yet avant-garde — a conceptual McDonald’s ad reimagined through South Indian street-food culture, balancing playfulness, precision, and premium visual polish