3D Design: Fade Relief

Carveco Tutorial: Fade Relief Tool

The Fade Relief Tool allows you to gradually fade a relief's height across a defined direction or boundary. This is useful when blending two reliefs, adding depth transitions, or shaping your model with subtle gradients.

🔹 Important Note

• The Fade Relief tool only works on reliefs (yellow areas). It will not affect floating clipart (blue areas).

🔹 Linear Fade

1. Click the Fade Relief tool on the top toolbar.
2. Two white circles appear—one marks the start of the fade, the other marks the end.
3. Drag these circles to define your fade direction.
4. Adjust the Strength slider to control how much of the relief is faded.
5. Use Reverse Fade Direction to invert the fade.
6. Click Apply to lock in the fade.

🔹 Radial Fade

• Set the strength to 0% to create a soft fade outward from a central point.
• Gradually increase the strength to preview the effect.
• Reverse to fade inward to a central point.

🔹 Fading Between Boundaries

1. Draw two boundary vectors (e.g., circles or closed shapes).
2. Select Between Boundaries in the Fade Relief panel.
3. Select the outer vector first, then the inner vector.
4. Adjust fade strength as needed.
5. Click Apply once or multiple times for stronger fade.

🔹 Blending Two Reliefs

• Paste one relief down onto another.
• Use Fade Relief to soften edges or transitions.
• Use directional fade or boundary fade to control how they merge.
• Apply multiple times for stronger blends.

🔹 Tip

Use Fade Relief for combining clipart, layering textures, or creating smooth bas-relief transitions. Press Apply multiple times to gradually increase fade effect.

This tool is essential for clean merges and advanced shaping—add it to your modeling workflow for more natural, polished results.