Visualization

Visualization lets you create custom, real-time renders of your models. With over 100 materials, several environment options, and a customizable camera and depth of field settings, you can give your 3D model a realistic look and finish that allows you to share stunning projects with anyone.

Access the Visualization space

To use Visualization:

1. Make sure that you have a 3D model in your modeling space.
2. From the main menu, select Modeling to open the Project Sidebar.
   You can also access this tool by selecting Tools > Visualize or by making selections and using the adaptive menu. For more information and additional methods, see Accessing tools.
3. From the Project Sidebar, select Visualization.
4. Select to show properties, and choose between the Material, Environment, and Camera tabs to start modifying the visualization of your model.

Material

You can assign and change the material of your model from the Material tab. Depending on the material, you can also adjust the color, transparency settings, and material scaling.

Add a material

To add a material to your whole model:

1. Scroll through the Material tab to choose a material to add, or use the drop-down for All Materials to choose a category.
2. Drag and drop your chosen material on the whole body of your model.
3. Select an empty space to finish or select Modeling from the menu to go back to the modeling space.

To add material to parts of your model:

1. Select a face or body to open Properties.
2. Under Material, select Change.
3. Drag and drop your chosen material to your selected face or body.
   Note: You can also click or tap on the material to automatically apply it to your selected face or body.
4. Select an empty space to finish or select Modeling from the menu to go back to the modeling space.

At the top part of the Material tab, you can find the Used Materials section to view the materials you previously chose for your model.

Change a material

You can change the material of your body from Properties in the Material tab.

To change a material:

1. In the Used Materials section, select the material you want to change (iPadOS/macOS) or click Edit (Windows) beside the material to open Properties.
2. Under Material, select Change.
3. Scroll to choose a new material to add, or use the drop-down for All Materials to find your desired material.
4. Drag and drop your chosen material on your model.
   Note: You can also click or tap on the material to automatically apply it to your model.
5. Select an empty space to finish or select Modeling from the menu to go back to the modeling.

To reset a material to default:

• Windows/macOS: Secondary click (right-click) on a material in the Used Materials section, then select Reset to default material.
• Touch and pen: Swipe the material to the left in the Used Materials section.

Search for a material

Quickly find and apply the appearance you need by searching for materials directly in the Material tab.

• Use the search bar at the top to type in a material name or finish (e.g. “Aluminum,” “Oak,” “Matte”).
• As you type, matching materials will be filtered instantly.
• Select a material to apply it to your selected body or face.

Adjust material settings

You can adjust the visual characteristics of applied materials to achieve specific aesthetic or technical requirements from Properties in the Material tab.

To access Properties, select a material (iPadOS/macOS) or select Edit (Windows) beside the material under Used Materials. Learn about the different fields available in Properties below.

Note: Depending on the material, some properties may not be applicable.

• Transmission – Drag the slider to adjust how much light passes through the material. Higher values create a more glass-like effect.
• IOR (Index of Refraction) – Adjust how much light bends as it passes through the material. Higher values simulate denser materials like glass or plastic.
• Scale – Drag the slider to change the scale of your material.
• Roughness – Drag the slider to adjust the roughness of your material.
• Auto Match to Body – Turn on to find the best material mapping based on the orientation of the body. Turn off to fix material mapping to the XYZ axes.
• Rotate X – Rotate the material texture about the relative X (main) axes of all the bodies that this material is assigned to.
• Rotate Y – Rotate the material texture about the relative Y (secondary) axes of all the bodies that this material is assigned to.
• Rotate Z – Rotate the material texture about the relative Z (normal) axes of all the bodies that this material is assigned to.
• Color Field – Adjust the brightness and saturation level of the selected color. 
• Hue Slider – You can pick the color you want to apply to faces and bodies.
• Opacity – If applicable, move the handle down on the slider to change the opacity or transparency of a body or face. This setting allows you to show the interior of bodies.
  Note: To make a material transparent in the modeling space, apply the Default Material or Simple Transparent Material from the Utility material category.

• Color – Available for materials that support color customization. Use this section to define or adjust the color of a material.

  • Hexadecimal – Enter a six-digit hex code (for example, #F2F2F2) to apply an exact color.

  • Pick Face Color – Samples the color from any face in your model and applies it to the selected material.

  • Color Swatches – Store and reuse colors you often apply. Choose or sample a color, then select an empty swatch to save it. To delete a saved color, secondary click (right-click) the swatch and select Delete.

  • Default Body Color – Sets the color applied to all new bodies that don’t have a custom color or material assigned.

In the example below, we change the orientation of the Y-axis to better match the orientation of the material to the overall body of the model.

Decals

Shapr3D Visualization supports importing decals, making it easy to apply custom graphics, logos, or labels directly onto your model surfaces for realistic rendering and presentation.

Decals are imported as image files. Once imported, they become available in Visualization and can be placed directly onto any surface by dragging them onto the model.

To import and apply a decal:

1. Open the Material tab.
2. Scroll to the Decals section.
3. Select Import... and then choose the image file to add.
4. Once imported, drag the decal onto the surface of your model to place it.
   
   
    

Custom materials

Shapr3D Visualization supports importing custom materials, making it easy to bring an existing material library from other tools into your projects.

Custom materials are imported using the .GLB file format, which is commonly supported by third-party material and rendering applications such as Blender or KeyShot. Once imported, the materials become available in Visualization for realistic rendering and presentation.

When importing a custom material file:

• Only the material definitions are imported. Any geometry included in the file is ignored. 
• If the file contains multiple materials, all of them are imported and added to the Material tab.
• Imported materials are saved within the current project and sync across all devices, but aren’t automatically available in other projects. To reuse them elsewhere, import the material file again.

To import a custom material:

1. Create or manage your materials in an external tool (for example, Blender or KeyShot).
2. Open the Material tab.
3. Scroll to the Custom section.
4. Select Import... and then choose the .GLB file to add.
5. Once the custom material is imported, you can apply and adjust the material settings like how you would with any other material.

Environment

You can change the environment of your model from the Environment tab. 

Select an environment

To add an environment, go to the Environment tab and select an environment.

Adjust environment settings

Fine-tune the lighting and background of your workspace to better present your model. To adjust your environment settings:

1. Select the settings icon at the bottom-right corner of the environment to open.
2. You can adjust the following properties:
   • Light Rotation – Drag the slider to change the orientation of the shadows.
   • Sun Elevation – Drag the slider to adjust the vertical angle of the light source above the horizon. A lower value simulates early morning or late afternoon lighting, while a higher value creates overhead sunlight.
   • Light Intensity – Drag the slider to adjust the light intensity of your environment.
   • Ground Plane – This adds an infinite plane to the scene that receives shadows from your models. When enabled, you can choose between Snap to Model or XY Plane.
3. Select Done to finish.

Camera and Depth of Field

You can select a surface point on a body to add a realistic depth of field effect to your visualizations.

Add Depth of Field

When you apply a depth of field effect, parts of the screen at a similar distance from the camera will remain sharp, while areas closer or further away will become increasingly blurred.

To add a depth of field effect to your model:

• Keyboard and mouse/trackpad: Secondary click (right-click) on a part of a body to bring up the context menu. Use Set as Focus Point to bring it into focus. Use the visual indicator that pops up to help you bring a part into focus. Use Remove Focus Point to switch off depth of field.
• Touch and pen: Tap on a part of a body to bring it into focus. Use the visual indicator that pops up to help you bring a part into focus. To turn off Depth of Field, select a focus point anywhere outside a body.

Adjust Camera and Depth of Field properties

You can adjust the following Depth of Field properties in the Camera tab:

• Field of View – Adjust the field of view angle of the camera.
• Aperture – Define the depth range where the image remains sharp in the depth of field effect.
• Blur Intensity – Adjust the overall intensity of the depth of field effect.

Sharing your projects

Share your visualizations in the following ways:

• Capture your projects using the Capture tool
  • You can capture screenshots in Visualization to share with anyone. To learn how, visit Capture your projects via Visualization.
• Export your projects
  • iPadOS and macOS users: you can export your workspace contents to a textured USDZ file via the export menu. To learn how, visit Export files.
• Augmented Reality
  • iPadOS users: If you want to see your model represented in a physical environment via augmented reality, select AR at the top left corner of the screen to export your model in USDZ format. For more details on using augmented reality with Shapr3D, visit Augmented Reality.