3D workspaces
Real geometry, materials, lights and a camera — on the same document and timeline.
Switching to a 3D workspace swaps the canvas for a viewport. It is the same document and the same timeline — 3D objects sit alongside 2D layers and share the keyframe system.
Two engines are available. The three.js workspace is the default. The Mixavis C++ engine is an additional workspace that renders the same scene through the in-house WebGL2 renderer; when both are enabled they coexist rather than replacing one another.
When to reach for it#
- Real perspective, where Corner Pin and 3D Extrude stop being convincing.
- Objects that need to rotate through depth.
- Lighting and material behaviour you cannot fake in 2D.
Parameters#
Primitives, extrusions, lathes, imported meshes, and 2D layers promoted to textured planes.
Physically-based: base colour, metalness, roughness, plus emission and transmission for glass. Texture slots accept procedural specs as well as images.
Point, directional and area, plus image-based lighting from an environment. Most of what makes a render look good is the environment, not the lights.
Focal length, depth of field, and a keyframable transform. Focal length changes the feel far more than moving the camera does.
Things that catch people out#
They can be painted onto the 2D canvas, but 2D effects apply to the composited result rather than to the geometry. Material and lighting work belongs in 3D.
See also#
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