A photographed-calibration workflow for turning images into colour FDM prints

Convert illustrations, reaction images, and photographs into slicer-ready multi-material models.

简体中文 · Download 1.x · Project Wiki · Calibration video

Lumina converts an image into a model made from multiple material layers. At a fixed layer height, those layers combine into the colour seen in the finished print. The 1.x line mainly covers 2, 4, 6, and 8-colour workflows. The 2.0 beta is exploring custom colour counts, layer counts, and layer heights.

More colours and different model structures also open up different forms. Flat artwork, standing cut-outs, pixel characters, folding fans, puzzles, perforated boards, glow-in-the-dark phone cases, and large tiled prints can all grow from the same workflow.

_{Examples labelled from 8 to 18 colours by their makers.}

_{Standing cut-outs, framed work, and different colour counts.}

_{Lumina is not limited to flat artwork; the output can become a three-dimensional or jointed object.}

_{A folding fan, perforated board, playable puzzle, and luminescent colour.}

_{Large work can be produced in sections, then assembled or framed.}

Every image above shows a physical print, not a software preview. Community photographs are shown with permission. Copyright in the depicted artwork remains with its respective creator.

Public repository: lumina-layer-studio/Lumina-Layers

• Stable packages: GitHub Releases
• Latest automatic builds: GitHub Actions
• Complete 1.x guide: Project Wiki
• Slicer setup: multi-brand slicer guide

1. Import an image.
2. Choose or import a preset that matches the materials.
3. Generate and open the 3MF.
4. Confirm the material order in the slicer, then print.

The colour printed by a filament is not fully described by its label. Light passes through several material layers, so the result changes with layer order, layer height, print settings, filament batch, and photography. Lumina records a real calibration print first, then searches those measured results for layer combinations that match the image.

Lumina Studio 1.x uses a fixed colour board with exhaustive or reduced combinations, then photographs the result to build a preset. The advantage is a direct connection to what the printer produced. The trade-off is that changing the printer, material set, or important print settings normally requires a new calibration.

Watch: Lumina Studio 1.x calibration workflow

The 2.0 beta introduces gradient colour cards and uses a calibrated result with computational simulation to predict colour mixing. This makes it easier to combine different materials and reduces repeated calibration. Photography error and optimisation can still shift the result, so real prints remain part of validation.

Gallery: prints from Lumina Studio 2.0 beta users

Lumina Studio 2.0 is not public in this repository yet. This section shows the beta direction and physical results; it does not mean that the same features are available in 1.x.

Visit the project Wiki for technical documentation, tutorials, and updates. For discussion, join QQ group 371270714 or Discord.

Lumina Studio is a non-profit open-source community project. Sponsorship supports development, testing, packaging, documentation, and community maintenance. The public 1.x code is licensed under the GNU GPL v3.0.

Thank you to everyone who contributed code, test prints, presets, translations, and documentation.