Layers

Paint on 3D models without affecting the original textures using Layers. Move, edit, recolor and delete elements with total creative freedom. Break each layer down into its individual materials to work exclusively on color, metallics and roughness.

Layers in 3D Painting look similar to 2D, but they work differently. Each 3D model comes with at least one Texture Set containing a Mesh, a Base Layer and a set of Materials broken down into color, metallic and roughness.

Interface

A 3D model contains Texture Sets, Meshes, Base Layers and Materials. Use all of these when 3D Painting in Procreate to create incredible 3D art.

Existing Layer interface terminology is explained in the Interface section under Layers in this handbook. Having a basic understanding of how Layers work in Procreate will help you understand the differences in Layers when 3D Painting.

Select

Select all the contents of a material contained within a mesh.

In the Layers panel, tap a layer and then the Materials Icon to reveal the layer’s materials. Then tap the Color, Roughness or Metallic material you wish to work on to select it, and tap it again to bring up Material Options, then tap Select.

Copy

Copy the active material to the clipboard.

In the Layers panel, tap a layer and then the Materials Icon to reveal the layer’s materials. The tap the Color, Roughness or Metallic material you wish to work on to select it, and tap it again to bring up Material Options, then tap Copy.

Once you copy image data to the clipboard, you can paste it into another material layer or a different Procreate canvas. You can also paste into an email, or into another app.

Fill Layer

Fill an active material with flat color.

In the Layers panel, tap a layer and then the Materials Icon to reveal the layer’s materials. Tap the Color, Roughness or Metallic material you wish to work on to select it, and tap it again to bring up Material Options, then tap Fill Layer.

This will fill your entire material layer with the currently selected color. The flat color will override all other layer contents.

Clear

Clear an active material’s entire layer in an instant.

In the Layers panel, tap a layer and then the Materials Icon to reveal the layer’s materials. The tap the Color, Roughness or Metallic material you wish to work on to select it, and tap it again to bring up Material Options, then tap Clear.

This will clear the contents of the entire material layer, and reset the opacity to 100%.

Invert

Invert the colors in your active material’s layer.

In the Layers panel, tap a layer and then the Materials Icon to reveal the layer’s materials. The tap the Color, Roughness or Metallic material you wish to work on to select it, and tap it again to bring up Material Options, then tap Invert.

Repeat the process above to invert the colors back to their original shades.