90s Yearbook Glow-Up: Then vs Now Split Card

A split-panel graphic in a retro 1990s yearbook style. Left panel: a school portrait of [your selfie] with a classic airbrushed teal-and-purple laser beam gradient background, flat studio lighting, film grain, slightly faded Kodak color grading, wearing a 90s collared shirt, year label '1995' printed in bold yearbook serif font at the bottom. Right panel: the same person in a modern glow-up editorial portrait, warm golden-hour lighting, confident expression, contemporary outfit, sharp and vibrant. A bold center divider line with the text 'THEN vs NOW' in a retro varsity font, cream and navy color palette. The overall design mimics a real printed yearbook page layout with decorative corner borders and a subtle paper texture overlay. Negative prompt Copy modern background on left panel, matching lighting on both sides, cartoon style, illustration, blurry text, wrong year labels

Why it goes viral

The 'Then vs Now' format is one of the highest-engagement Instagram formats because it invites followers to tag someone and debate the glow-up.

How to use it

Upload your selfie to Ideogram using the image-to-image or style reference input. Paste the full prompt and set the aspect ratio to 4:5 in Ideogram's settings. If the text rendering is off, use Ideogram's text prompt correction to re-lock 'THEN vs NOW' and '1995'. Download and optionally boost contrast on the left panel in Snapseed to emphasize the retro-vs-modern contrast. Post with the caption: 'The glow-up is real. What year were you stuck in?'

Pro tips

In Ideogram, use the Text Emphasis feature to lock in the 'THEN vs NOW' wording, it handles typography better than most diffusion tools. Keep your description of the 'modern' panel vague (golden-hour, editorial) so the model doesn't conflict stylistically with the retro left panel. Generate at 4:5 ratio so it fits Instagram feed natively without cropping, the split layout needs the full vertical space.

Steps and settings

1. 01Upload your selfie to Ideogram using the image-to-image or style reference input.
2. 02Paste the full prompt and set the aspect ratio to 4:5 in Ideogram's settings.
3. 03If the text rendering is off, use Ideogram's text prompt correction to re-lock 'THEN vs NOW' and '1995'.
4. 04Download and optionally boost contrast on the left panel in Snapseed to emphasize the retro-vs-modern contrast.
5. 05Post with the caption: 'The glow-up is real. What year were you stuck in?'