How to Generate Images in Claude Desktop with MCP

Getting Started with Claude Desktop + MCP

Claude Desktop makes it easy to add image generation capabilities directly to your workflow. Here's how.

Step 1: Get Your API Key

Visit mcpmediaengine.com, sign up, and create a new API key from your dashboard.

Step 2: Configure Claude Desktop

Open your Claude Desktop MCP configuration file and add:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mediaengine": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "mcp-media-engine"],
      "env": {
        "MEDIAENGINE_API_KEY": "me_live_your_key_here"
      }
    }
  }
}

Step 3: Ask Claude to Generate

Simply ask Claude: "Generate an image of a sunset over mountains, 16:9 aspect ratio"

Claude will use the image generation tool and show you the result.

Supported Aspect Ratios

• 1:1, 16:9, 9:16, 21:9, 9:21
• 3:2, 2:3, 5:4, 4:5, 4:3, 3:4

Troubleshooting

**Q: "Tool not found" error** A: Restart Claude Desktop after adding the MCP configuration.

**Q: Image generation is slow** A: Default images take ~7 seconds. This is normal for the first request.

**Q: "Invalid API key"** A: Verify your key starts with "me_live_" and is correctly copied into the env section.

**Q: How do I add negative prompts?** A: Include them directly: "A sunset, no text, no words, no people"

Next Steps

• Explore [available models](/models) for different styles
• Learn about [remote MCP servers](/blog/remote-mcp-vs-local-mcp-servers) for production
• Check out [automation examples](/docs) for agents