Select Window > 3D and Materials.
Last updated on
Oct 27, 2025
Learn how to render 3D vector artworks to apply depth and materials for a polished final look.
After you apply 3D effects in Illustrator, use ray tracing to render your artwork with realistic lighting, shadows, and materials. This is especially useful for exporting high-quality product mockups, 3D icons, and packaging designs.
Render with Ray Tracing
Apply the required 3D Type and adjust the object’s Depth, Twist, and Taper as needed.
Select Render with Ray Tracing in 3D and Materials dialog box to generate a high-quality preview with smooth lighting and shadows.
Ray Tracing settings
Customize rendering quality and export settings for the final output.
Select the Render Settings dropdown in the 3D and Materials panel.
Toggle on Ray Tracing.
Select Raster Settings to change the Resolution, Color, and Background for the raster image.
Select Quality as High, and select Render to generate a polished, high-fidelity output of your 3D artwork.
Tip
Rendering at high quality uses more CPU power. For faster previews, use lower quality settings or pause background apps while rendering.
Know the best practices on how to optimize CPU usage while you render the artwork.
Render or expand 3D as wireframes
Use wireframe view to fine-tune 3D properties or convert objects for detailed editing.
After applying 3D effects to your artwork, select Wireframe in the Render Settings dropdown to edit the 3D properties of the object such as Depth, Taper, and Twist in a mesh view.
Select Expand as wireframes from Quick Actions of the Object tab to convert the wireframe into editable paths.
Tip
Use expanded wireframes if you want to export the shape or manually adjust anchor points.
Design with precision in Illustrator
Bring your ideas to life with vector graphics tools built for creative freedom and accuracy.
