Elevate Your 3D Designs: Lighting and Materials in Blender

Let your inner 3D design pro shine by learning how to use lighting and materials to level up any 3D project.

When 3D designer and animator, Derek Elliott began exploring Blender he didn’t realize it would transform his entire career. Originally a product designer, Derek soon discovered that learning to model and animate within Blender opened up a world of new opportunities—including creating product animations and investment-seeking presentations for companies around the world. Now with a community of over 220K across YouTube and Instagram, Derek loves sharing the power of Blender to create dynamic 3D renders. 

Derek has spent his entire career refining his Blender skills. Now, he’s revealing how adding lighting and materials to your scene can bring them to life and give you professional-level results. From HDRI lighting to building transmissive materials like glass, learning to utilize high-quality lighting and materials within your 3D work is key to getting noticed online—and getting freelance opportunities.  

With Derek as your teacher, you’ll:

• Explore the theory of lighting and how it can affect the mood of your scene
• Create realistic textures using settings  like roughness and metal
• Use image textures and UV maps for more life-like 3D objects
• Adjust camera framing and focus to finalize your scene 

Plus, you’ll get a behind-the-scenes look into Derek’s workflow and the techniques he uses to render a life-like scene. 

Whether you’re looking to have access to more business opportunities in 3D design or explore your creativity and design skills within the 3D world, learning about more advanced lighting and materials can help take your career or hobby to the next level. 

Understanding the basics of lighting and materials, 3D modeling and Blender’s interface will be helpful for this class. With a computer, mouse, and Blender, you’ll have everything you need to learn the basics of 3D lighting and materials. To continue learning more about 3D design in Blender, explore Derek’s full 3D Modeling and Animation Learning Path.