Create a relief model or engraving image in a few steps. All image conversion takes place in your browser.
1. Choose your image
Upload or drag in a JPG, BMP, or PNG under 25 MB. Start with the sample landscape if you want to explore the controls first. Clear artwork, textures, and images with strong light and dark areas usually give the most useful brightness-based reliefs.
Transparent PNG areas are composited against black before conversion. Inverting depth also inverts these areas.
2. Shape the surface
- Model width: sets the physical width in millimeters. Height in the image plane follows its aspect ratio.
- Relief height: controls the difference between the lowest and highest possible surface points.
- Base thickness: adds a solid backing beneath the surface.
- Surface smoothing: softens changes between neighboring pixels.
- Mesh detail: chooses draft, standard, or fine sampling. Fine creates larger files and takes more processing time.
- Invert depth: raises dark areas instead of light areas.
3. Check the previews
Drag the 3D relief to rotate it; scroll to zoom on a desktop. Use the reset-camera button to return to the starting view. The depth map shows white as high and black as low. Bas relief displays the same surface with warm shading and light from the upper left. Original displays the input image.
4. Choose your export
| Export | Use |
|---|---|
| STL | A closed relief mesh for 3D-print slicers or CNC/CAM software that supports STL import. Import using millimeters. |
| Depth map PNG | A grayscale height map for software that supports image-based reliefs or grayscale engraving. Resolution follows the mesh detail setting. |
| Bas relief PNG | A shaded image for artwork and compatible laser engraving software. Its shading is baked into the image; use the depth map when you need height values. The longest side is 1,024 pixels. |
STL and PNG exports do not contain machine toolpaths. Generate CNC toolpaths in your CAM software and configure engraving settings in your laser software.
What kind of depth does this create?
Relief Lab 3D maps image brightness to height. It does not infer the real shape or distance of objects in a photograph. A bright sky, for example, may become higher than a dark foreground.
Troubleshooting
If your phone slows down, select Draft or Standard detail and try a smaller source image. If an image fails to open, export it as a standard PNG, JPG, or uncompressed BMP. Downloaded files normally appear in your browser’s download area; the location varies by device.