AI 80s and 90s photo generator: see yourself in a retro portrait
Upload one selfie and get a 1986-style studio portrait with big permed hair and a laser backdrop, a 90s yearbook photo, a Polaroid or a 90s horror-movie still. There is also a template that repairs and colorizes an old family photo. Every prompt was tested on several models.
6 templatestested on 4 modelsfrom $0.018 per image
Turn the person in the reference image into a 1980s studio portrait: big voluminous permed hair, a bright shoulder-padded blazer, large hoop earrings, a pink-to-purple laser-pattern studio backdrop, soft-focus filter glow, film grain and a slight color cast, like a 1986 mall photo studio print. Keep the face and expression.
Retro photo prompts
The portrait templates use your selfie, the restore template uses a scan of an old print, and the film portrait is text only.
Nano Banana 2
90s yearbook photo
$0.055/image
Uses your photo
Turn the person in the reference image into a 1990s school yearbook portrait: mottled blue-grey studio backdrop, slight soft focus, 90s-style clothes and hair, head-and-shoulders framing, smiling. Light film grain and fading, like a scanned old print. Keep the facial features.Prompt
Turn the person in the reference image into a 1990s school yearbook portrait: mottled blue-grey studio backdrop, slight soft focus, 90s-style clothes and hair, head-and-shoulders framing, smiling. Light film grain and fading, like a scanned old print. Keep the facial features.
Turn the person in the reference image into a Polaroid photo: white instant-film border, the picture shows her making a peace sign in front of a Ferris wheel at an amusement park, shot with direct flash, slight overexposure and vignetting, warm colors and a little grain. The photo lies on a wooden table with a few scattered instant photos and a marker; "summer '26" is handwritten on the bottom border. Keep the features and hairstyle.Prompt
Turn the person in the reference image into a Polaroid photo: white instant-film border, the picture shows her making a peace sign in front of a Ferris wheel at an amusement park, shot with direct flash, slight overexposure and vignetting, warm colors and a little grain. The photo lies on a wooden table with a few scattered instant photos and a marker; "summer '26" is handwritten on the bottom border. Keep the features and hairstyle.
A young woman in a cream knit sweater on an autumn plane-tree street, glancing back at the camera, hair lifted by the wind. Afternoon backlight, warm tones, Kodak Portra 400 film look with fine grain, shallow depth of field, natural skin, half-body framing.Prompt
A young woman in a cream knit sweater on an autumn plane-tree street, glancing back at the camera, hair lifted by the wind. Afternoon backlight, warm tones, Kodak Portra 400 film look with fine grain, shallow depth of field, natural skin, half-body framing.
Put the person in the reference image into a still from a 1990s teen horror movie: a suburban living room late at night, he turns around in fear holding an old cordless phone, while at the end of the hallway behind him a tall figure in a black hooded robe stands in a doorway; under the hood there is only darkness, no visible face and no mask of any kind. Cold blue moonlight plus one warm table lamp, 35mm film grain, slight motion blur, like a frame from a 1996 film. Keep the face, hairstyle and glasses.Prompt
Put the person in the reference image into a still from a 1990s teen horror movie: a suburban living room late at night, he turns around in fear holding an old cordless phone, while at the end of the hallway behind him a tall figure in a black hooded robe stands in a doorway; under the hood there is only darkness, no visible face and no mask of any kind. Cold blue moonlight plus one warm table lamp, 35mm film grain, slight motion blur, like a frame from a 1996 film. Keep the face, hairstyle and glasses.
Restore this old photo: remove scratches, creases, mold spots and noise, fill in missing areas, sharpen it, then colorize it naturally with period-accurate skin, clothing and background colors. Keep every face, expression, pose and the composition exactly the same, no beautifying, so it looks like it was shot on color film at the time.Prompt
Restore this old photo: remove scratches, creases, mold spots and noise, fill in missing areas, sharpen it, then colorize it naturally with period-accurate skin, clothing and background colors. Keep every face, expression, pose and the composition exactly the same, no beautifying, so it looks like it was shot on color film at the time.
1Pick a decade and a look80s mall studio, 90s yearbook, Polaroid, 35mm film or a 90s horror-movie still.
2Upload a selfieClick “Use this” and add a clear, front-facing photo under Reference images. For an old family photo, upload a flat, glare-free scan instead.
3Tune the era detailsChange the hair, clothes, backdrop color or the year in the prompt, like “1984” or “1992”, then generate.
Tips for a convincing retro photo
Name the details that date a photo: permed hair, shoulder pads, a laser backdrop and soft-focus glow for the 80s; a mottled blue backdrop and faded color for a 90s yearbook.
Keep “keep the face and expression” in the prompt. The retro look should come from hair, clothes and film grain, not from a different face.
Want the 70s? Change the year and describe the era: feathered hair, wide collars, warm faded color.
For old family photos, scan or photograph the print flat and without glare. The restore template repairs and colorizes but keeps every face and pose.
The Polaroid template writes a caption on the border; put your own words in quotes, like “summer ’26”. Both models wrote it correctly in our sample.
FAQ
How do I do the AI 80s photo trend?
Use the “80s studio photo” template: click “Use this”, upload a selfie and generate. The prompt already asks for big permed hair, a shoulder-padded blazer, hoop earrings and a laser backdrop, and keeps your face.
Which model makes the best 80s photo?
All three kept the face recognizable. Nano Banana Pro went furthest with the styling (teal blazer, chain necklace, a wide smile); GPT Image 2 VIP gave the print worn, rounded edges like an old photo; Seedream 5.0 Flash came out cleanest and costs $0.018. GPT Image 2 VIP and Seedream kept the closed-lip smile of the sample selfie.
Can I make a 90s yearbook photo?
Yes. The “90s yearbook photo” template gives you a mottled blue-grey backdrop, soft focus, 90s hair and clothes and light fading, like a scanned school print.
Can AI restore and colorize an old photo?
Yes. “Restore & colorize old photos” removes scratches, creases and spots and adds period colors while keeping every face and pose. In our sample all three models cleaned up the cracks; Nano Banana Pro kept the white print border and chose a blue floral dress, while GPT Image 2 VIP and Seedream 5.0 Flash filled the frame edge to edge in softer cream tones.
What is the 90s horror movie photo?
A still from a 90s teen horror film with you in it: a dark living room, an old cordless phone and a hooded figure in the doorway. All three models kept your face and glasses and left the hooded figure faceless in the dark; Nano Banana Pro also added a camcorder date stamp, OCT 31 '96.
Can I use these prompts in ChatGPT or Gemini?
Yes. Copy the prompt and add your photo. Each tool runs its own model, so the result will differ from the samples here.
How much does it cost?
Per image: $0.018 on Seedream 5.0 Flash, $0.03 on GPT Image 2 VIP, $0.055 on Nano Banana 2 and $0.09 on Nano Banana Pro. New users get $0.1 of free credit after signing in with Gmail.
Nano Banana 2
