Improved 3D effects and Adobe Substance materials
We have introduced new and improved '3D and Materials' effects in 26.0 this year. These effects have been fully rebuilt using modern rendering technology and apart from being much more stable than classic 3D effects, they also allow you to:
* Apply and edit 3D effects conveniently through a non-blocking panel with real time preview.
* Texture artwork using Adobe Substance 3D materials that are highly adjustable. Choose from built-in materials in the panel or upload your own.
* Light up artwork with environment and directional light along with shadows.
* Create smooth and curvy extrusions using the new Inflate option.
* Rotate artwork more easily using the new on-canvas controls.
* Once you've setup your 3D object, render it using Ray tracing with adjustable quality options.
There are more features we're actively working on bringing to these effects. Please share your feedback and suggestions from your experience of using these new effects.

There are now several separate requests made, based on the feedback in this thread:
1. Regarding adjustable color and opacity for 3D shadows:
https://illustrator.uservoice.com/forums/333657/suggestions/47054086
2. Regarding presets for each tab in 3D and Materials panels: Object, Materials, Lighting:
http://illustrator.uservoice.com/forums/333657/suggestions/47350001
All those who commented on the topic until October 16, 2023, are already added as voters there. If this is something you want to have for 3D and Materials in Illustrator — please upvote it. If possible — create new requests and bug reports about 3D, rather than commenting here inside. This will help the team to better prioritize efforts on making the feature better. As always — thanks for the feedback! It helps.
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Nihar Apte commented
When i select an object, the center toggle circle which helps me free rotate my 3D object should also allow me to change the vanishing point of the 3D object once i apply perspective to it.
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Fab commented
Anything I use 3D effects on now instantly becomes pixelated...
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권다현 commented
i need 'shadow opacity'. please update it please. thanks.
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Chrissy D commented
I'd like a point of reference when adjusting "lighting" for 3D materials and objects.
Please consider "drag-and-click" options for beveling for easier use -
Jeremiah Bach commented
I'd like to be able to customize a material...then save those customizations as a new material for use on other items.
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Herbie Hollar commented
New 3D is carp. So slow and does nothing.
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Anonymous commented
Still need to add 'perspective' option. Very important!
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Manasi Nair commented
Initially, my 3D material properties were showing and I could change the colour of my materials and edit its appearance. But I don't know if I did something but now that panel of options isn't showing up at all and I don't know how to get it back.
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Beate de Vries commented
Liebes Entwickler-Team,
an sich ein tolles Tool. Leider werden 1 farbig schwarze/graue Flächen im Export in 4c umgewandelt. Das ist wirklich blöd. Wenn ich 1c einstelle möchte ich auch 1c haben. Auch das Rendering als Graustufe bringt so gar nichts. Schade, also baue ich den 3D-Effekt jetzt per Hand damit ich meine 1 farbig graue Darstellung bekomme. Aber für alles andere wo es nicht auf die Farbzusammensetzung ankommt, ist es wirklich prima. -
Aaron Robinson commented
this looks great it would be great to be able to export an .obj or .stl from the software to use in other workflows.
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Maria Carlos Cardeiro commented
nice feature, well done! But...in this new update i can't change 3d color materials in illustrator, may update 2022
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Aaron commented
I need my wireframe render back
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Matthew Johnson commented
Needs a lot of optimization for lower end graphics cards
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Mille commented
How do I remove an added effect? I applied "inflate", but it's not the effect i wanted, but I can figure out how to remove it
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Ray Sheun commented
don't know is it my pc's problem or not , when i input 750mm * 320mm , the 3d model splits into two pieces. Still don't know how to fix it.
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Michael Murdoch commented
I think this is a really great tool, but I think having the ability to copy properties or things like that would really help when using multiple shapes that you want to have the same texture. This is a really nice tool though and helping me with a design for a conference!
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Emma Jackson commented
I used to use this feature alot to create 3D letterforms which I could then expand and edit as vectors. Now when I expand I can no longer edit the individual lines and fills on my shapes. It's removed functionaility and I have certain jobs that I cannot work out how to achieve now. Please fix.
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Jesse Birch commented
why can I no longer expand the final 3D text in order to edit it as a flat vector? Very annoying that this has been changed... and cant find any expalnation on how to do this now.
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Akshay Varshney commented
@兔寶寶 :
You cannot apply 3D revolve on two different objects that functionality is not supported. However, you can able to rotate more than one 3D object irrespective of its 3D properties. -
Akshay Varshney commented
@Ies Chan: Could you please share a short video of the issue also please share ai file as well.
Thanks!