nano-banana

CLI and Claude Code plugin for AI image generation, editing, and video generation with Google Gemini and Veo.

Examples

Installation

# Run directly with npx (auto-downloads dependencies)
npx @the-focus-ai/nano-banana --help

# Or install globally
npm install -g @the-focus-ai/nano-banana

Quick Start

# Set your API key
export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-key-here"

# Generate an image
nano-banana "a cat wearing a hat"

# Edit an existing image
nano-banana "make it cartoon" --file photo.jpg

# Save to specific path
nano-banana "a sunset" --output sunset.png

Usage

nano-banana <prompt> [options]

Options:
  --file <image>       Input image to edit (optional, omit for text-to-image)
  --output <file>      Output file path (default: output/generated-<timestamp>.png)
  --model <name>       Gemini model to use (default: nano-banana-pro-preview)
  --flash              Use gemini-2.0-flash model (faster)
  --prompt-file <path> Read prompt from file instead of argument
  --list-models        List all available Gemini models
  --help, -h           Show this help message

Prompting Tips

For best results, include these elements in your prompts:

1. Subject: Be specific ("fluffy orange tabby cat" not just "cat")
2. Style: Reference a style ("watercolor", "photorealistic", "minimalist")
3. Lighting: Describe the mood ("soft afternoon sunlight", "dramatic chiaroscuro")
4. Composition: Guide the layout ("close-up", "wide 16:9", "centered")
5. Exclusions: Say what you DON'T want ("NO dark backgrounds, NO neon")

Weak prompt:

a mountain

Strong prompt:

A dramatic mountain landscape with snow-capped peaks reflected in a still
alpine lake at sunset. Golden hour lighting, wide panoramic composition,
professional landscape photography style. NO people, NO text.

See skills/nano-banana-imagegen/prompting-guide.md for comprehensive guidance.

Image Editing

Edit existing images by providing an input file:

# Add elements
nano-banana "add a hot air balloon in the sky" --file landscape.jpg

# Style transfer
nano-banana "transform into a watercolor painting" --file photo.jpg

# Remove/modify
nano-banana "remove the background, replace with gradient" --file portrait.jpg

Claude Code Plugin

This package includes a Claude Code plugin with the nano-banana-imagegen skill. When installed, Claude can generate and edit images for you automatically.

Install the Plugin

# Add the Focus marketplace (if not already added)
/plugin marketplace add The-Focus-AI/claude-marketplace

# Install the plugin
/plugin install nano-banana@focus-marketplace

Then restart Claude Code.

Use with Claude

Just ask Claude to create images:

• "Generate a hero image for my blog post about AI"
• "Create a minimalist logo for a fitness app"
• "Edit this photo to look like a vintage film photograph"

Claude will use the skill to craft effective prompts and run the CLI.

Getting Your API Key

1. Go to Google AI Studio
2. Sign in with your Google account
3. Click "Create API Key"
4. Set it: export GEMINI_API_KEY="your-key"

Or use a .env file:

echo "GEMINI_API_KEY=your_api_key_here" > .env

Batch Processing

Process multiple images with the included Makefile:

# Place images in input/ directory
make process PROMPT=slide-extractor

# Or with a custom prompt
make process PROMPT="extract the slide content cleanly"

Example: Slide Extraction

Transform photos of presentation slides into clean images:

Project Structure

.claude-plugin/          # Claude Code plugin manifest
  plugin.json
skills/                  # Claude Code skills
  nano-banana-imagegen/
    SKILL.md             # Main skill instructions
    prompting-guide.md   # Comprehensive prompting guide
    examples/            # Categorized prompt examples
cli.ts                   # TypeScript CLI (runs

...