How to Make a 3D Effect in Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is a powerful program for creating stunning images, but it also has tons of cool tricks up its sleeve. While Photoshop is geared toward professional designers, the options it offers are simple enough that anyone can learn to use them. One of the most useful is 3D text. 

More About the 3D Effect in Photoshop

Photoshop is more than just a photo editor. It’s a versatile program that has hundreds of brushes, filters, and effects and thousands of tutorials on YouTube to help walk you through how to use it. Best of all, Photoshop is available for free on Adobe’s Creative Cloud. But what else can Photoshop do? Of course, we have the 3D effect.

3D effects are all the rage right now, and it’s easy to see why. They can fully immerse the viewer in a scene, making them feel as though they’re there. They’re also great for adding depth to a photo or for adding interest to otherwise flat images, making fake 3D effects a popular method to create visual interest.

What else can you do with the 3D effect in photoshop? Textures, text, and colors are easily achieved with this effect, and you can customize it to get the exact effect you want. A lot of the things you want to do with the 3D effect in Photoshop (or Illustrator, or InDesign, etc.) involve copying and pasting or recreating existing elements, so even though you can easily fly through an article like this one, you are unlikely to need anything outside of what we describe here to do the task at hand.

Making the 3D Effect in Photoshop With These Steps!

Have you ever been impressed by a photo or video and thought, “I wish I could do that?” Learning how to make a 3D effect in photoshop can let you create those great images yourself. You’ll learn how to combine photos, select different parts of a photo, make a 3D effect, and much more.

Learn how to make a 3D effect in text in Photoshop using the following simple steps:

1. Use the Type tool. With the Type tool (T) selected, type out your words. On the left side, you will find all the Type controls. Select the Italics effect to turn your text into italic. You can adjust the Italics effect by adjusting the Weight, Size, and Spacing. To change your text to bold, highlight the text (A) and press the Type tool (T) again. Select Bold and adjust the Weight, Size, and Spacing.
2. Open the Text Layer. To make a 3D text effect in Photoshop, first, visit the 3D Warp Effect drop-down menu at the bottom of the Layers palette and look up ‘Repousse.’ Select Text Layer and click OK. You can also browse different options to change the text’s perspective to whatever you prefer.
3. Decide on the texture to be used in the text.  You will need to select two materials; one for the texture to be used on the text, and the other one will be used on the background. In Photoshop, you can create 3D text effects by adding a background image and using basic layers. Photoshop’s 3D (materials) tab is where you can load textures onto a text object; the Load Texture command is where you select the texture you want to use.
4. Smooth the edges through the 3D SCENE tab. Navigate to WINDOW > 3D and then choose 3D (MATERIALS) tab. Select the LOAD TEXTURE and choose your preferred texture or MATERIAL. Insert this on both EXTRUSION MATERIAL and FRONT INFLATION MATERIAL.
5. Add some texture by placing the MATERIAL 2.  3D text is an excellent way to draw attention to the important details within your graphic. And when we combine 3D text with a 3D background, the effect can be stunning.

Creating a 3D effect in Photoshop is easy once you know how. Photoshop CS3 and CS4, as well as CS5 and CS6, have basic 3D tools. These limitations have since been removed in Photoshop CS7, so you’re all set if your version is included. If not, you’ll have to download an older version of Photoshop, but don’t worry; it’s rather inexpensive.

Before You Proceed Applying 3D Effects…

Sometimes creating a 3D effect in Photoshop is a time-consuming task. This task can be much easier and faster if you keep in mind some important points.

• The 3D effect should be as realistic as possible.
• The 3D effect should be as simple as possible.
• The 3D effect should be created on only one image.
• The 3D effect should fit the background.
• Avoid using layer masks.
• Avoid using blending modes.

The secret to a good 3D effect in Photoshop is to think about how you want your object to look in the final image. For example, if you want a 3D coffee cup, you’ll need to make some adjustments to get the shading correct. You should also think about how the object would look from multiple angles. If you have a complex interior with furniture, consider constructing a 3D mockup of it, using the same techniques you would use for a real home shoot.