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Alfra_dravid0580
Participant
September 4, 2025
Open for Voting

Using Substance 3D Stager for Realistic Product Mockups in E-Commerce

  • September 4, 2025
  • 2 replies
  • 345 views

Hi everyone,

I’ve been exploring Substance 3D Stager for creating product mockups and wanted to ask how others here are using it for e-commerce presentations. I run a small dropshipping business and often work with suppliers like PB Fulfill in China. Since I don’t always have the products in hand for photography, I’ve started using Stager to create realistic 3D product renders that I can showcase in my store and marketing campaigns.

Has anyone else here integrated Stager into their product design or e-commerce workflow? Do you have tips on optimizing textures, lighting, or exporting for online shops?

Would love to hear your experiences!

2 replies

Ares Hovhannesyan
Community Expert
Ares HovhannesyanCommunity Expert
Community Expert
September 5, 2025

Integration Insights

Stager is often integrated into workflows that involve:

  • Adobe Substance ecosystem: Designers use Substance 3D Painter and Designer to craft detailed textures, then bring them into Stager for scene composition.

  • E-commerce platforms: Assets are exported from Stager as high-quality renders or interactive 3D files (like glTF or USDZ) for Shopify, WooCommerce, or custom storefronts.

  • Marketing visuals: Stager’s lighting and camera tools help generate lifestyle shots and product hero images for ads and social media.

For embedding Stager shops into websites, widget-based integrations are preferred over legacy iframe methods—they offer better UX and compatibility with marketing tools.

 Texture Optimization Tips

  • Use resolution wisely: For web, 2K textures often strike the right balance between quality and performance. Reserve 4K for zoomable product views.

  • Compress smartly: Export textures in formats like JPEG or WebP for web use, and use Substance tools to bake maps efficiently.

  • Material realism: Leverage roughness and normal maps to add tactile realism—especially for products like fabrics, metals, or plastics.

 Lighting for E-Commerce

  • HDRI environments: Use neutral studio HDRIs for consistent lighting across product lines. You can tweak exposure and rotation to highlight key features.

  • Three-point lighting: Classic setup—key, fill, and rim lights—works wonders for product definition.

  • Shadow control: Soft shadows help ground the product without overpowering it. Use area lights and adjust softness for natural falloff.

 Exporting for Online Shops

  • Static renders: Export as PNGs with transparent backgrounds for layering in web layouts.

  • Interactive 3D: Use glTF for web-based viewers (like Shopify’s 3D model viewer) or USDZ for Apple AR Quick Look.

  • Naming conventions: Keep filenames clean and descriptive—especially useful when batch exporting variants.

For sharing 3d files you can use new Adobe Substance 3D Review for free.Substance 3D Reviewer

    Paul Gresty
    Community Manager
    Paul GrestyCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    September 5, 2025

    Hi! If it's any help, I can point you towards a couple of examples from the Adobe blog of companies using Stager in a similar way to this:

     

    Veepee (mostly for product visualization): https://www.adobe.com/products/substance3d/magazine/veepee-scales-product-visualization-for-e-commerce-with-stager.html 

     

    Moose Toys (more of a focus on Stager for product design, but some mention of visualization): https://blog.adobe.com/en/publish/2025/05/15/how-moose-toys-used-substance-3d-stager-transform-their-packaging-design 

     

    And a webinar that goes through the process in some detail, that might provide some technical insight: https://substance3devents.com/product-design-webinar 

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