Fusing AI and 3D: A Marketer's Guide to Adobe Substance 3D

If you’re a product designer, 3D artist, or anyone involved in creating product content, you’re likely already familiar with Adobe Substance 3D.

If not, get ready for a game-changer.

Many of us in the product graphics space have mastered Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. But even the latest versions of these powerhouse programs have their limits. It’s not about your skill—it’s about hitting the ceiling of what 2D tools can do.

To streamline your workflow and eliminate countless steps between idea and final render, Adobe launched its new 3D product ecosystem. It's poised to become the industry standard for visual creators in every field, from industrial design to film and game development.

And yes, we get it—diving into new software can feel daunting. You might not want to invest precious time learning a new program when the old one works "just fine." But trust us, in this case, the payoff is huge.

AI-Powered 3D Object Generation

So, what’s Substance 3D actually used for? The most compelling answer is the rapid AI-powered generation of 3D models, from simple to complex. This is all done through simple text prompts and a few clicks, using basic shapes or pulling from Adobe's massive asset library.

You have full control over everything—from noise and lighting to the background and camera position. And, of course, the objects themselves. The program offers an infinite array of textures and generation options to achieve a polished, professional outcome.

Leveraging Your 3D Models

Okay, so you’ve created a model (or models) in Adobe Substance 3D. Is that it? Of course not. You can use your creation in any visual content you can dream up.

Our favorite feature is the seamless integration with Photoshop. It’s essentially a live link between the two apps. This allows you to place your 3D model into marketing materials like brochures or product listings, then adjust the lighting and angles in Substance and watch them update in real-time in your Photoshop layout.

You set all the model parameters in one program while perfecting your brochure or poster in the other, adding text and other elements with the full power of Photoshop.

Creating and controlling 3D models has never been this easy.

Integration and AI Background Creation

But you don’t always have to leave Substance. Need a complex background with realistic lighting? Generate it with AI right inside the program.

Want to experiment with camera angles, positions, and textures to get the perfect final product shot? Substance makes it incredibly simple.

What About Blender?

Think of Substance not as a competitor to Blender, but as a powerful collaborator. They work in perfect harmony toward a single goal: a finished 3D product.

While Blender is indispensable for modeling, Substance is unmatched when it comes to creating photorealistic textures and rapidly testing 3D models without starting from scratch.

We recently tested the most popular AI video generation tools to see which ones actually deliver and can help you in your daily work.

And for those of you looking to tell your own complex story and stand out from the crowd, Lava Media can help you create video content as stunning as your vision, without a colossal budget. We also create dynamic 3D videos to bring your products to life

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