The 3D section of Clip Studio Paint's Material palette contains 3D materials that can be loaded and used on the canvas. 3D materials can be used as backgrounds and accessories for illustrations and comics as they are, or they can be used as rough sketches as a guide for drawing.
In this article, we will explain the basic usage of 3D materials.

(1) Importing 3D materials to a canvas

In the 3D section of the Material palette, you can find 3D materials such as drawing figures, primitive shapes, accessories, and backgrounds. To load a material, you just need to drag and drop from the Material palette to the canvas.

3D materials will be placed in the middle of the canvas upon first import. But once you paste in a 3D material the tool will automatically become the [Object] sub tool.

(2) Adjusting how the image looks on the canvas

Adjust the imported 3D material so that it appears at just the right angle. You can adjust the camera by moving the Movement Manipulator above the 3D material, or by dragging an area on the canvas that does not have a 3D material.

● Moving back and forth

Select the icon for moving the camera forwards and backwards from the Movement manipulator to turn it on, and then drag up and down on an empty area of the canvas. If you are using a mouse, you can perform the same operation by holding down the right button and dragging up or down the empty space on the canvas.

● Rotating

Select the icon for rotating the camera from the Movement manipulator to turn it on, and then drag up and down on an empty area of the canvas. If you are using a mouse, you can perform the same operation by holding down the left button and dragging up, down, left, or right across the empty space on the canvas.

(3) Moving the 3D material itself: Root manipulator

3D materials can be moved, rotated, and scaled using the Root manipulator that appears when you tap on a material. If you want to enter exact angles or values, you can do so from the Tool Property palette.

● Moving the position

The arrows extending from the center circle of the Root manipulator can only move in the X, Y, and Z directions. By dragging the center circle, you can move it anywhere, up, down, left, or right, but it may be difficult to find its position on the canvas.

● Changing the angle

Drag the horizontal (X), vertical (Y), and depth (Z) rings around the Root Manipulator in the direction you want to tilt it.

● Changing the size

If you drag the grey ring around the root manipulator you can control the object’s total scale.
By changing the axis-specific scaling handles you can alter different dimensions independent of each other.

Note: The manipulator will be in the direction of the object.

If you want to have the manipulator facing the direction of a rotated object then go to the [Sub Tool Detail] palette > [Operation] category > and change [Movement axis] and [Rotation axis] to [Object axis].

Note: Switching the root manipulator display (Ver. 2.0)

If manipulators are overlapped and difficult to operate, you can set the [On-screen manipulator] in the [Tool Property] palette to show only the manipulators you want to operate.

If manipulators are not shown when a 3D material is selected, checking this setting may remedy the situation.

(4) Placing multiple materials

The first imported material will be placed in the center of the canvas but any material placed after that will be wherever it was dropped on the canvas. Make sure you pay attention to where you drop them!

If it doesn't appear where you expected, adjust the camera so that you can see the floor's surface, and then drop it to make it easier to see where it is.

Note: Using the All Sides View palette (EX only)

If you want to place multiple 3D materials on the same layer, it is convenient to use the All Sides View palette.
The image is shown from the top and side views, allowing you to specify and adjust the position of the material without changing the position of the camera.

● Move multiple materials at once

If you press the [Shift] key on your keyboard/edge keyboard while selecting a 3D material you can select multiple 3D objects on the same layer.

● Rotating/scaling multiple materials at once

If you have several materials selected and they are not rotating or scaling as you’d like with the root manipulator, go to the [Sub Tool Detail] palette > [Operation] and change it to [Pivot point for multiple objects].

(5) Changing the shadows and light source of a 3D material

You can change the settings of the shadows and light source by selecting the 3D material you want to change and using the Tool Property palette.

● Changing the shadows

You can show/hide the shading by checking/unchecking the following checkboxes.

(1) Apply light source
Shadows will be displayed on the 3D object according to the direction of the light source.

(2) Cast shadows on horizontal planes
A shadow will appear on the horizontal plane on the vertical line of the 3D material.

● Changing the light source

You can adjust the direction of the light falling on the 3D material. Light Source is a standard setting for all 3D materials on the same layer.

(1) Adjust the direction of the light source by dragging the displayed ball.

(2) Directional light color/Directional light intensity
Sets the color and intensity of the light coming from the light source set in (1).

(3) Ambient light color, Ambient light intensity
You can set the color and intensity of the light to adjust the overall brightness. If you want to prevent areas without light from becoming too black, increase the Ambient Light Intensity value.

Note: If you don’t want shadows displayed on the 3D layer go to the [File] menu ([CLIP STUDIO PAINT] menu) > [Preferences] > [3D] > [New 3D layer] > [Shadow appearance] > [Don't cast shadows]. Additionally, if you don’t want shadows displayed on the 3D layer you are editing, go to the [Sub Tool Detail] palette > [Preferences] > [Rendering settings] > [Lighting] > and set it to [Don't cast shadows].

(6) Object Launcher functions

The Object Launcher, which appears below the 3D material, allows you to specify the camera angle from a preset, and to reset its size and rotation. The items displayed will vary depending on the type of 3D material.
In this section, only the standard options are explained.

(1) Select previous 3D object

(2) Select next 3D object
Allows you to switch between 3D materials on the same layer. This is useful when it is difficult to select a 3D material by tapping, such as when 3D materials are placed on top of each other.

(3) Display object list (PRO/EX)
Tap the icon to display the [Sub tool Detail] palette and check the 3D material on the layer in the Object List. This is useful when you want to select multiple materials efficiently.

(4) Specifying the camera angle from presets
Tap the icon to display the camera angle presets. Use this when it is difficult to operate the Move manipulator, or when you want to adjust the position to the front or right side.

(5) Placing the model on the floor
Places the 3D material at the base (floor). This is used when you move a 3D material or change its scale when its center point is not at the bottom, causing it to float from or sink to the floor.

*The icons (1), (2), (3), and (4) are not displayed in the smartphone version.

(7) Save Multiple Camera Angles

By default you can only use one camera but you can save multiple camera angles to make a more convenient workflow.

・You want to change the pose of the 3D drawing figure for your sketch while keeping the current angle.
・You want to use several specific angles in the same scene (background set).

Note: .clip files with a 3D layer with multiple camera angles saved in it will not be able to be opened in versions below ver. 1.12.6.

● Duplicate cameras

[Tool Property] palette > [Object list] > [Camera] and select [Duplicate] to get more camera angles. If you double-tap the camera name you can rename it as you like.

You can go between camera angles freely through the [Object list].
You can see the thumbnail list of saved camera angles by going to the [Sub Tool Detail] palette > [Camera] > [Switch camera] > [Current camera].

● Lock camera settings

Be sure to lock your camera settings in so you don’t accidentally change anything if you plan to reference a camera angle multiple times.
From the [Object list], tap the box on the left side of the camera to lock it.

For more information on how to use 3D drawing figures, please see the following article.

For more information on how to use 3D materials from the [Material] palette > [3D] > [Background] tap here.