GLB Product Shots

Why I built it

I kept leaving Figma to take a photo of something that only existed in 3D.

I was designing a suitcase customiser using 3D models, but every time I needed the product in a layout, I had to leave Figma, set up the model somewhere else, render an angle, export it, then bring it back in.

And then repeat the whole thing for the next angle.

I wanted a simpler workflow: load the model, find the shot and place it on the canvas.

So I built a plugin.

How it works

03 Place

Drop it straight into Figma.

Insert the current shot at up to 4× resolution, or turn multiple angles into a ready-to-use Figma component set.

Four angles. One component set.

Three principles that shaped it

1. 01

   Controls over presets

   I initially created six one-click styles, but they hid what was actually changing. I replaced them with manual controls so every adjustment is visible, tunable and repeatable.

2. 02

   Work with Figma, not against it

   Figma doesn't support live 3D layers, and animated exports came with limits I couldn't control. Rather than fighting the platform, I focused the plugin on what it could do reliably: high-quality stills and reusable angle sets.

3. 03

   Keep the important actions close

   Insert, reset and load another model stay pinned to the bottom of the plugin, however far you've moved through the controls.

From broken viewer to working plugin, in a week

1. 01

   Get a model on screen 13 Jul

   Started with Google's model-viewer. It failed silently inside Figma.

2. 02

   Rebuild the renderer

   Moved to Three.js, loaded in one script with proper error handling.

3. 03

   Name the outcome

   GLB Viewer → GLB Product Shots. The old name was already taken.

4. 04

   Design the actual tool

   Viewer beside the controls, plus light and dark themes.

5. 05

   Try presets

   Added six one-click product-shot styles.

6. 06

   Simplify

   Removed video export and pinned the primary actions.

7. 07

   Give control back 19 Jul

   Replaced the presets with manual lighting, camera, background and shadow controls.

Built from the same colour tokens, and follows Figma's theme.

People started using it

I originally built GLB Product Shots to solve my own workflow problem. Then I shared it.

It's now live on Figma Community and has started finding its way into other designers' workflows.

One small plugin changed how I work.

GLB Product Shots started as a way to solve an annoying problem in my own workflow.

But building it showed me I could take an idea further than a prototype. I could actually make the tool I wanted to use.

That gave me the confidence to build Aora.