To Work With Render Materials

You use a render material to add a realistic look to an object. The material you select for visualization must exist in the current drawing. If, at rendering time, the material specified as the render material cannot be found in the drawing, the AutoCAD GLOBAL material is used

To add materials to the current drawing

To use a material in a rendering, the material must exist in the current drawing. A Material Library is installed with AutoCAD Civil 3D by default. You can open the Tools Palette and either drag a render material into a drawing or insert the material by using the Add To Current Drawing command.

1. Click Home tabPalettes panelTool Palettes Find.
2. In the Tool Palettes window, click the Properties button, and choose Civil Materials from the list.
3. In the Civil Materials palette, do one of the following:
   • Right-click the swatch representing the chosen render material and select Add To Current Drawing.
   • Drag and drop a render material swatch into the drawing.

Note: You can use the MATERIALS command to create new materials. For more information, see the AutoCAD Help.

To apply a render material to an object

1. Click Home tabPalettes panelTool Palettes Find.
2. In the Tool Palettes window, click the Properties button, and choose Civil Materials from the list.
3. Do one of the following:
   • Right-click on the swatch representing the chosen material and select Apply Material To Objects.
   • Drag and drop a render material swatch onto the object in the drawing.