How to create an inflatable text effect using Illustrator

• March 18th, 2024
• Illustrator

In this tutorial, we will guide you through the process of creating an inflatable text effect in Adobe Illustrator. This effect is not only visually appealing but can also be used in various design projects. Let’s get started!

Preview

Step 1: Writing the Text

• Begin by writing the desired text in the middle of the canvas.
• It is recommended to use a thick and chunky font to enhance the effect.
• For this effect, select a light pastel color for the text, such as light pink.

Step 2: Accessing the 3D Menu

• To access the necessary tools for creating the inflatable effect, go to Window > 3D and Materials.
• A dialog box will appear with various options.

Step 3: Applying the Inflate Option

• In the dialog box, select Object as your target and choose the Inflate option from the 3D type menu.
• Drag the depth slider upwards to increase the inflation. A depth value between 0 and 500 works well for this effect. For example, you can set it to 346.
• Make sure to check the Inflate both sides checkbox.

Step 4: Adjusting the Lighting

• Scroll down in the dialog box and keep all other settings at default (0).
• Select the Lighting option.
• Choose a lighting preset from the available options, such as Top Left or Standard Lighting.
• Increase the softness by dragging the softness slider to around 70%.

Step 5: Finalizing the Effect

• Congratulations! You have created an inflated 3D text effect.
• This effect can be easily modified by changing the text while keeping the same style.
• Feel free to experiment with different settings and fonts to achieve your desired result.

Thank you for following this Illustrator tutorial. We hope you find this quick tip useful and can incorporate it into your future design projects. Stay tuned to Creative Nerds for more Illustrator quick tips.

Video Transcript:

Creative Nerds, in this short Illustrator tutorial, we’ll be sharing with you how you can create an inflatable text effect in Illustrator in a matter of seconds. It’s a great technique and one that you can use throughout your design projects. So firstly we’re going to start off by writing out some text in the middle of our canvas. Once that’s written out, we’re going to change the text color to be like a light pink. Any light pastel-y color works really well with this effect. And just always ensure also that you’re using quite a thick, chunky font, similar to the one that we’re using here. We’re then going to head over to Window, 3D and Materials. That will bring up this dialog box and we’re going to select Object and then the 3D type option we want to choose is Inflate. We’re then going to drag up the depth, just a little bit more, anywhere under 500 is quite a good depth to go with. So we’ll stick with that, 346, perfect. And then we’re just going to ensure that we select the checkbox Inflate both sides, perfect. And then we’re just going to scroll down, keep all of the other settings the same so everything else is zero. And then we’re going to select Lighting and there’s different presets that we can go with. So Top Left, Top Right, ones I’d probably recommend is either Top Left or go with the Standard Lighting. Standard Lighting is quite good to be fair and then all we’re going to do is just increase the softness. I’m just going to pull that up to about 70%. And there you go, we’ve created a quick, inflated 3D text effect. It’s a nice effect that you can use as a style throughout your design projects so you can even change the text and put something else and it will still keep the same sort of style. I hope this is a useful Illustrator quick tip and one that you can incorporate into your design projects in the future. Thanks for watching and stay tuned to Creative Nerds for further quick tips on how to use Illustrator.