3D Relief Studio

Depth map, photo, SVG shape, STL, or OBJ in — production-ready relief out.

3D Relief Studio turns greyscale depth maps, photos, SVG shapes, and STL/OBJ models into engrave-ready 2.5D relief, entirely locally. You control depth, banding (anti-banding), edge and ridge protection, assign the result to a material strategy, optionally calibrate against a real test strip, and finish with a production package containing the depth image, a settings JSON, a job plan, and optionally a LightBurn or EZCAD folder. Custom material presets, relief profiles, and projects can all be saved, exported, and re-imported.

Open tool See the feature

Load a source

Determines how a loaded image is interpreted before you even pick a file.

Raster interpretation: read as depth map: Treats a loaded greyscale image directly as a depth map — brightness equals depth.
Raster interpretation: photo to relief, locally: Estimates a plausible depth map from a regular photo locally (no upload, no API) using luminance, midtones, and edges.
Photo Relief strength: Only visible with "photo to relief, locally" — controls how strongly the local depth estimate from the photo is applied.
Choose PNG / JPG / WebP / SVG / STL / OBJ: Opens the file picker. Raster images load as a depth map or photo relief, SVG loads as a shape relief, STL/OBJ load as a top-view heightmap derived from the 3D model.
Source info (file name, type, pixel size): Once loaded, shows the file name, detected source type (depth map, SVG relief shape, STL/OBJ heightmap, photo relief), and width × height in pixels.

SVG relief shape (only with a loaded SVG file)

Appears only when the source is an SVG shape — these controls act live on the shape's depth map.

Bevel: Controls how strongly the shape's edges are chamfered instead of rising sharply.
Shape Height: Sets the relative height/depth of the shape above the base plane.
Recessed instead of raised: Flips the shape direction — it sinks into the material instead of rising out of it.

Relief control: shape the depth

Material strategy: Picks a material profile from the built-in database or a custom preset; applies its default values to the controls below.
Invert depth: Flips the black/white mapping of the depth map — for workflows that interpret brightness in reverse.
Anti-banding mode: Sets the strategy against staircase artefacts: Smooth Gradient, Ridge Preserve, Stepped Intentional, or Material Safe.
Maximum depth: Sets the maximum engraving depth in mm that the whole depth map is scaled to.
Gamma: Warps the depth tone curve non-linearly — higher values emphasize bright areas more, lower values emphasize dark areas more.
Depth contrast: Increases or decreases the contrast between shallow and deep areas of the map.
Smooth depth: Smooths abrupt depth jumps in the map to create softer transitions.
Reduce stepping: Reduces visible steps (banding) between depth levels according to the selected anti-banding mode.
Edge protection: Protects fine edges in the depth map from being blurred away by smoothing or anti-banding.
Ridge protection: Protects narrow, raised ridges in the depth map from being flattened by other corrections.
Layer preview: Enables a virtual depth-layer view in the preview without changing the actual export.
Layer count: Sets the number of virtual depth layers used for the layer preview.

Production parameters

These values don't change the depth map itself — they drive the time/pass calculation and the machine values carried into the export package.

Width / Height: Target physical relief dimensions in mm — feed into the job plan and export manifest.
Line interval: Spacing between scan lines in mm; a finer spacing increases detail fidelity and processing time.
Speed: Feed rate in mm/s used for the production calculation.
Max power: Maximum laser power in % used for the deepest areas.
Min power: Minimum laser power in % used for the shallowest engraved areas.
Second power: A second power level for machines/workflows that use a secondary power value.
Frequency: Pulse frequency in kHz, for devices that support it.
Passes: Number of production passes used for the time calculation.
LightBurn dither: Sets the dither mode for the LightBurn export: Stucki, Jarvis, Newsprint, Ordered, or Threshold.
Air assist: Toggles air assist on/off; carried into the JSON, notes, and the LBRN2 project.
Scan strategy: Sets the scan pattern: Horizontal, Crosshatch, or Contour Finish.
Cleanup strategy: Determines when cleanup passes are scheduled: off, after roughing + final, every N passes, or final only.
Cleanup interval: Only relevant for "every N passes" — sets how many passes occur between scheduled cleanup passes.

Material database — custom relief presets

Expandable section; saves the current relief controls (depth, gamma, contrast, smoothing, anti-banding, edge/ridge protection) as a reusable material preset.

Preset name: Name the preset is saved under and shown as in the material strategy list.
Material family: Assigns the preset to a family: wood, leather, metal, acrylic/glass, stamp/die, or topography.
Roughing / Finishing / Cleanup (number fields): Number of each pass type this preset suggests for the job plan.
Scan angle: Rotation of the scan pattern in degrees that this preset suggests.
Notes: Free-text notes field saved together with the preset.
Save preset: Saves the current control values as a new or updated preset and activates it immediately.
Export current: Downloads the currently configured preset as a single JSON file.
Export all: Downloads all of your custom material presets bundled into one JSON file.
Import: Loads a previously exported preset or preset bundle file and adds it to your material database.
Custom presets — delete: Removes a saved custom preset from the list; if it was active, the material strategy falls back to the first built-in material.

Pro setup: calibrate material

A four-step workflow to match the depth map to the real engraving results of a machine-material combination: generate test strip, engrave material, enter result, apply correction.

Apply correction: Toggles the calibration curve on or off for both preview and export.
Measurement point 25% / 50% / 75%: Enter the actual depth (in %) the machine really produced at this input value — Vextrify builds the correction curve from these points.
Load test strip: Generates a test-image depth map with multiple grey steps as a new source, ready to engrave and measure.
Export curve: Downloads the current calibration curve as a JSON file.
Import curve: Loads a previously exported calibration curve and applies it.

Make relief repeatable (save panel)

Profile name: Name the current relief settings are saved under as a profile.
Save profile: Saves all current controls as a named, reusable profile and activates it.
Import: Loads a previously exported profile file and adds it to the profile list.
Profile selector (dropdown): Selects one of the saved profiles as the target for load, export, or export-all.
Load: Applies the selected profile's settings to the current relief controls.
Export: Downloads the selected profile as a single file.
All: Downloads all saved profiles bundled into one file.
Project name: Name the current relief project (source info, settings, job plan) is saved under.
Save project: Saves source info, all relief settings, and the current job plan as a standalone project.

Relief view (preview)

3D Relief: Interactive 3D preview of the relief with real-time WebGL rendering.
Depth Preview: Shaded 2D preview of the simulated depth with a light direction — shows transitions and banding.
Layer Check: Shows the virtual depth-layer boundaries according to the configured layer count.
Depth Map: Shows the raw processed depth map as a greyscale image, as it would be exported.
Layer active: Quick-access button that jumps straight into Layer Check mode when layer preview is enabled.
View presets (Top / Low Angle / Coin Light / Wood Relief): Sets the preview's zoom, light angle, and relief height to a predefined viewing angle.
Reset view: Resets zoom, pan offset, relief height, and light angle to their starting values.
Relief height: Scales the displayed height of the relief in the preview — purely visual, does not change the exported depth map.
Light angle: Rotates the simulated light source around the relief to check shadowing and detail visibility.
Zoom (mouse wheel) / drag: Zooms and pans the 2D preview views (Depth Preview, Layer Check, Depth Map) via mouse wheel and drag — with Depth Preview active, dragging instead controls light angle and relief height.

Send

Send to laser: Hands the processed depth image off to Laser Control as a new image object with the current production values.
Apply & back to laser: Shown instead when Relief Studio was opened from Laser Control — replaces the original image there directly with the edited depth image.

Prepare laser job (production plan)

Read-only display — summarizes the job plan calculated from the material and settings.

Total passes / max depth / line interval / speed: Core job-plan figures at a glance.
Estimated duration: Highlighted time estimate for the whole job.
Pass and machine values (roughing, finishing, cleanup, cleanup after, max/min/second power, frequency, air assist, dither): Detailed breakdown of the calculated pass distribution and the machine values carried through.
Strategy: Lists the planned production steps with a title and explanation.
Schedule cleanup (note): Shows after which pass numbers a cleanup pass is scheduled, when the cleanup strategy calls for it.
Technical details (expandable): Shows scan rotation, scan line count, and the calculated travel distance in meters.
Production checklist (expandable): Lists checkpoints to verify before the actual production run.
Export notes: Additional notes about the chosen configuration, e.g. regarding material or export format.

Production package (export)

Invert depth on export: Flips depth direction only in the exported image — useful for software that interprets black/white the opposite way for depth.
Package type: Chooses the target format for the ZIP export: Generic Depth Map, LightBurn Folder, or EZCAD Notes Package.
Depth PNG 8-bit only: Exports only the 8-bit depth map as PNG.
Depth PGM 16-bit only: Exports only the high-resolution 16-bit depth map as PGM — for software that can use more depth levels than 8-bit allows.
Settings JSON: Exports all current relief settings and the job plan as a JSON file.
Job plan TXT: Exports the production plan as a readable text file.
Production ZIP export: Bundles the depth image (PNG + PGM), settings JSON, job plan, and — depending on package type — a LightBurn LBRN2 project or EZCAD notes into one ZIP file.

Common mistakes & fixes

Noticeable staircase effect in the engraved result.

Fix: Increase "reduce stepping" and "smooth depth", and consider switching the anti-banding mode (e.g. to Smooth Gradient). Then engrave a small test area — banding depends on material and speed.

Depth map looks flat — little depth impression in the engraved result.

Fix: Increase maximum depth and depth contrast, or check whether the source file has a genuinely wide tonal range. A material calibration via the test-strip workflow shows how much depth your own machine actually produces.

Fine edges or narrow ridges disappear after smoothing.

Fix: Increase edge protection or ridge protection before applying heavy smoothing — both controls specifically preserve fine structures from the smoothing effect.

STL or OBJ import fails or comes out empty.

Fix: The file must contain readable triangles or faces. Check the model for valid geometry in a 3D application first and re-export if needed.

Exported ZIP doesn't contain a LightBurn project.

Fix: Set package type in the export section to "LightBurn Folder" — only that package type also generates the LBRN2 project file.

Material removal on wood or acrylic looks uneven.

Fix: Switch the material strategy or create a custom preset in the material database for this specific material — hard materials respond differently to tonal distributions than soft wood.

Not obvious

The best depth maps come from a real height source (3D model, terrain data, coin profile, sculpture scan, STL/OBJ) — "photo to relief, locally" only produces a plausible approximation from a regular photo.
Material calibration via the test strip is optional, but worthwhile once you reuse the same machine-material combination repeatedly — it then corrects preview and export automatically.
Layer preview never changes the export — it only helps you check, before production, how the virtual depth layers interact during multi-stage engraving.
Relief profiles only save the control values, not the source file — when you reload a profile you still need the matching depth map, SVG shape, or STL/OBJ file.
With SVG sources, bevel, shape height, and inversion act live on the preview — a quick way to compare raised versus recessed relief of the same shape.
For real production, always use the ZIP export instead of single PNG/PGM files — only the ZIP bundles settings, job plan, and (optionally) the LightBurn project together.