Introduction

Custom Elements are a unique way to bring your own content to the Text to Image tool. By inputting 15 - 30 images of your choice, you can develop a custom-trained model tailored to your specific needs. 

Runway offers three variations of Custom Elements:

• Custom Character elements influence the facial features of characters or subjects
• Custom Style elements influence the style, aesthetics, and mood
• Custom Object elements help recreate inanimate, unchanging objects in different styles and contexts

This article outlines the best practices for each element type, training the Custom Element, and using the model in Text to Image.

 

Spec Information

 

Step 1 – Preparing the Training Images

Creating a strong dataset of images to train your Custom Element is key to receiving desirable results. 

Your dataset should follow the best practices below, regardless of the element type you choose:

• At minimum, 15 distinct images (more is better)
• Use a square (1:1) aspect ratio
• Each image is clear, focused, and in good quality
• Follow our acceptable content policy

In addition to the broader best practices, the Custom Character and Object element training images should also:

• Not contain more than one character or object in a single image
• Feature the same character or object in a variety of context, lighting, and backgrounds
• Be framed from the shoulders up (Custom Character only)

Using distinct images will give you the highest quality training as the model will have more unique data to learn from. 

Adversely, uploading a duplicate or 15 of the same image to meet the minimum requirements would not provide adequate data to sufficiently train the model. This would result in the model being over-trained on a specific image and may contribute to undesirable results.

 

Step 2 – Uploading the Training Images

Begin by navigating to Custom Elements in the left-hand navigation bar of your Runway Dashboard.

On the Custom Elements page, select the type of model you want to train towards the top of the page. Select the purple Create Generator button to proceed.

Upload your training images, or select them from your Assets if you’ve already uploaded them to Runway. You can hold SHIFT while you click to select multiple images, then drag them to the Upload area to input them into the training data.

The Next button will turn purple once you’ve selected the minimum of 15 images. Click Next to proceed to naming your custom element.

 

Step 3 – Naming the Custom Element

Custom Elements can not be renamed or edited once the training begins. Please read these best practices in full to ensure your model is set up for success:

• Use a unique name for your model
• Use only non-special Latin Alphabet characters

The Importance of a Unique Custom Element Name

Choose a unique name for your Custom Element to avoid model confusion when you later use the element with Text to Image. Model confusion occurs when a simple name for the Custom Element is regarded as part of the text prompt, rather than a reference to the model in the text prompt.

We recommend the following naming convention, without the brackets:

custom[Unique_Identifier]model

For example, one might name their Custom Element customUnderwaterExplorerModel to ensure it has a unique name. If they instead named it Underwater, the Text to Image tool might misunderstand and create an underwater scene.

The Importance of using Supported Characters

In addition to being unique, ensure that the name includes only non-special Latin alphabet characters. Using non-Latin characters, symbols, and/or punctuation may cause the training session to fail.

 

Step 4 – Starting the Custom Element Training

Once you’ve named your model, click Next to continue. You’ll then be prompted to agree to the credit cost and Terms of Use. 

Again, please note that models cannot be edited or retrained once proceeding, and later deleting a Custom Element will not return the credits used to train it.

Clicking Train custom character will charge the indicated credits and begin the Custom Element training session. The training session will generally take between 30 minutes to an hour to complete.

You can confirm that the training is complete by visiting the Custom Elements page in your dashboard: 

• A progress bar indicates that your model is still training.
• An error symbol indicates that the training failed.
• No progress bar or error message indicates that it is ready to use.

 

Step 5 – Using the Custom Element with Text to Image

Once your Custom Element is ready, navigate to the Text to Image tool.

Under the Prompt section on the right-hand side, change the Default dropdown menu selection to your Custom Element:

With the model selected, you can now configure your text prompt and any additional settings.

 

Prompting with the Element

For Custom Characters and Objects, be sure to reference the model name in your text prompt. In example, you might prompt the following:

customRunwayCharacterModel in the style of an abstract painting

Custom Styles do not need to be referenced in the prompt. Focus on describing the scene you’d like without referencing the model name. In example:

• ❌ a peaceful park at sunset in the style of customRunwayStyleModel
• ✅ a peaceful park at sunset

Only one Custom Element can be used per Text to Image generation. This means you cannot train multiple models to generate a single image.