How to Create 3D Typography in Procreate

3D typography is a great way to add dimension to your drawings and designs. In this tutorial, we will go over the steps for how to create 3D typography in Procreate.

Note: This tutorial will only show how to create 3D typography with a single letter, but this technique can also be used on whole words or phrases.

Pick a serif font or any of the modern sans serif fonts available on Font Bundles. We'll be using the Wild Mango font for this tutorial along with the Monoline brush and the Soft Brush.

As you can see in the first image of this tutorial, you can use any colors you would like.

But the color palette we'll be using today consists of four shades of blue, white, black, yellow, and pink.

The shades of blue will be used to create the 3D typography, white will be used for highlighting, black for the shadow, and yellow is only used in tutorial images to help give you a better understanding of a few steps.

Pink is the color of the canvas background, which you could leave white if you'd like.

Step 1 - Create Basic 3D Text

We will first add the font to Procreate. Select the second lightest blue from the color palette. Tap the Actions button that looks like a wrench. Then tap Add and choose Add text. Type out your letter. We have a tutorial on how to edit text in Procreate if needed. You could also draw your letter instead.

Tap the layer thumbnail in the Layers panel and choose Rasterize.

In the Layers panel, swipe the layer left, and duplicate the layer. Select the bottom layer, and enable Gaussian Blur. Slide your pen to the right on the canvas, and set Gaussian Blur to about 5%.

Duplicate the bottom layer multiple times, and mergethe layers by pinching the layers together. Continue duplicating and merging the layers until the letter has a solid edge. Make sure you don't merge the top layer.

To make the letter look 3D, we need to make the letter appear as if it has depth.

Duplicate the bottom layer. Then select the last layer. Choose the darkest blue from the color palette. You won't be able to see the change in color, but drag and drop the darkest blue color onto the letter.

Make sure the ColorDrop Threshold is at 100%. Our tutorial on how to fill a shape in Procreate can help you better understand the process of filling shapes by using ColorDrop.

Tap the Transform button that looks like a cursor. Shift the letter diagonally to the lower right. The further away the letter is, the thicker the letter will appear.

Add a new layer above the last layer. Using the Monoline brush draw lines to connect the letters. To help create smoother lines when drawing, you may want to turn on Streamline.

In the following image, the lines are shown in yellow, so you can see them better, but you'll actually want to draw them with the darkest blue color.

Staying within the lines and the letters, fill in the areas between the letters. Again, the areas you want to fill in are yellow in the following image, but you'll want to use the darkest blue.

Merge the last two layers together. You should now only have three layers.

Step 2 - Add a Shadow to the 3D Text

Duplicate the second layer and the darkest blue letter layer. Merge the duplicate layers together to create the shadow layer. Make sure the shadow layer is at the bottom of the layer list.

Enable Alpha Lock on the shadow layer. Tap the shadow layer's thumbnail and choose Fill Layer. Again, you won't be able to see the color change. Turn off Alpha Lock.

Decide where your light source is located. Our light source is in the upper right corner.

With the light source in the upper right corner, we will shift the shadow layer in the opposite direction towards the lower left. Enable Gaussian Blur for the shadow layer, and set it to about 10%.

In the Layers panel, lower the opacity of the shadow layer to about 20%.

Step 3 - Add Highlights to the Sides of the 3D Text

Keeping in mind where the light source is coming from, we will add highlights to the sides of the 3D letter.

Add a new layer above the darkest blue letter layer, and enable Clipping Mask.

Select the second darkest blue. Using the Soft Brush, add highlights where light would be hitting the sides of the 3D letter. The highlights should fade out as they get closer to the darker areas. In the following image, the highlighted areas are shown in yellow.

Note: You could add shadows to the sides instead of highlights. Remember to think about where your light source is located.

The results are pretty subtle as shown below. You can use a lighter blue if you'd like.

Step 4 - Create a Beveled Edge on the 3D Text

This step isn't necessary, but we will be adding highlights and shading to the letter's edges to make the edges look beveled.

Add a new layer above the second layer, and enable clipping mask.

Select the color white. Using the soft brush again, add highlights to the edges. Think about where the light is coming from. Again, you want the highlights to fade away as they get closer to the darker areas.

Add a new layer below the edge highlights layer. Select the second darkest blue. Using the soft brush again, add shading to the edges. The shading will also fade away as it gets closer to the highlight.

You can create all sorts of different 3D typography looks. How and where you place highlights and shading can affect the 3D look.

If you enjoyed this tutorial, maybe you'll enjoy learning how to create a marble effect in Procreate, how to draw ribbon lettering in Procreate, or how to make a floral wreath in Procreate.