Render settings in Nomad Sculpt are what separate a grey 3D model from a finished piece. I spend almost as much time on rendering as I do on the actual modeling. Here's the setup I use.
Post-processing panel
This is where most of the magic happens. Open it from the top menu.
Ambient Occlusion (AO): Adds shadows where surfaces meet. Letters sitting on a base, gaps between elements, creases in the surface. AO makes everything feel grounded and physical. I keep it on for every render.
Bloom: Glow effect on bright areas. On metallic and glossy materials, bloom adds that soft light bleed that makes highlights pop. Use it subtly. Too much bloom looks like a phone camera filter.
Depth of Field: Blurs the background, focuses the foreground. Great for drawing attention to specific elements. I use this a lot for close-up typography shots where I want the front letters sharp and the back letters soft.
Tone Mapping: Controls the overall contrast and color response. I usually leave it on the default ACES setting. It gives a cinematic look without manual tweaking.
Resolution
The viewport shows a lower resolution than your export. When you're ready to save, set the render resolution to 2x or 4x for clean results.
For Instagram (1080x1350), I render at 2x and downscale. For prints or portfolio pieces, 4x. Higher resolution means longer export time but much cleaner edges and material detail.
Lighting setup
Rendering and lighting are inseparable. Bad lighting makes good materials look flat.
Start with an HDRI environment. This gives you ambient light and reflections on metallic surfaces. Pick an HDRI with distinct bright spots. Even lighting HDRIs look boring on reflective materials.
Add a directional light for shadows. Position it off to the side and above. Shadows create depth, especially between letters or overlapping elements.
Optional: rim light from behind. Separates the object from the background. Makes edges glow slightly. Subtle but effective.
Background
A white or light grey background works for clean product shots. A dark or colored background creates mood. I match the background to the material: dark backgrounds for metallic and glossy pieces, lighter backgrounds for matte and organic materials.
Gradient backgrounds (dark at top, lighter at bottom) add depth without distracting from the subject.
My typical render setup
For a 3D typography piece: HDRI environment on, one directional light from upper-left, AO on, bloom at 20-30%, depth of field focused on the front letters. Background matched to the mood. Render at 2x resolution. Export as PNG.
This setup handles 90% of what I post. The Techniques Course covers more advanced setups for different material and lighting combinations.
About the Creator
nebenzu is run by Ben, a Munich-based designer and 3D artist with a community of 128,000+ followers across Instagram, TikTok, Threads, YouTube, and X, focused on Nomad Sculpt workflows. The courses come from years of daily work in Nomad Sculpt, creating 3D typography, materials, and visual experiments.
You can find free tutorials and behind-the-scenes content on the nebenzu YouTube channel and Instagram.
