Using Stamps

Last updated on 16 May 2021

Learn the basics of using stamps in Medium.

In Medium, stamps are previously saved sculpts that can be used as the shape through which you add clay to your current sculpt, or you can:

Choose from Medium’s default library of stamps.
Create, save, and reuse your own stamps.
Organize your stamps into meaningful collections.

Building up a stamp library of the shapes you use the most can make your work more productive and is useful for:

Repetitive detail (bolts along a metal seam).
Surface textures (bumps or warts on skin).
Repeating forms at different scales (rocks in an environment).

Select a Stamp

You can select a stamp to use from the Clay Settings menu.

With the Clay tool selected, tap on the Gear button on your Tool hand. The three shapes at the top of the Clay settings menu (the sphere, cube, and capsule) are stamps, see Image 1.
Select Stamps to see the collections of available stamps, see Image 2.
The Clay settings menu expands, revealing Medium’s default collections of stamps.

Image 1: Tap the Gear button on your Tool hand.

Image 2: Accessing Stamps via the Clay settings menu.
Select a collection to see the stamps it contains (or select [All] to preview all available stamps). Stamps you created previously appear in the [Custom] collection, see Image 3.
If needed, scroll up and down through the list by dragging the handle on the elevator bar on the right of the menu, or select the arrow on the left of the menu to return to the collection list, see Image 4.

Image 4: Navigate the Stamp collections.

Image 3: Access stamp collections.
Point at the stamp you want to use and squeeze the Tool hand trigger to select it. After you select the stamp, the tool preview changes to the shape of that stamp.

Select the stamp you would like to use

The tool preview changes to the shape of that stamp.

Once you have selected a stamp, you can add or remove clay using that shape. For example, you might use stamps to:

Add repetitive detail on the surface of an object (such as rivets on the surface of a tank, or boulders in an environment).
Make the Clay tool behave more like traditional modeling tools used for cutting, scraping, shaping, and smoothing your sculpt.

Change the Orientation of the Current Stamp

If the orientation of the stamp is awkward for the sculpt you’re doing, you can reposition it according to the Clay tool:

Select the stamp you want to use.
Click and hold the Tool hand thumbstick in (like a button). A banner appears in your scene, see Image 1:
The preview object temporarily ‘detaches’ from the tool; reposition the tool so its orientation to the stamp preview is more comfortable, see Image 2.
Release the Tool hand trigger to set the new orientation, see Image 3.

Press and hold the Tool hand thumbstick.

The preview object temporarily detaches from the tool.

Reposition your tool hand to the desired position and release the thumbstick.

Create your Own Stamps

You can create your own stamp based on the contents of a single layer. In preparation, you might add a layer, then sculpt a shape that you would want to use across multiple sessions. You can use stamps, for example, to create teeth, rivets, nuts and bolts, surface textures, and so forth, things that you might use over and over in different sculpt. To create a stamp from a layer:

Sculpt the shape you want to make into a stamp; make sure it’s on its own layer.
Pull the Support hand thumbstick backward.
Open the Scene Graph and select the layer that contains the clay you want to convert to a stamp.

Create the sculpt you would like to turn into a stamp.

Select the layer you would like to convert to a Stamp.
On the Actions menu, select Stamp.
The layer is automatically converted to a stamp and added as the current shape for the Clay tool.

Select Stamp on the Action menu.

The selected layer is converted into a stamp.
You can immediately begin sculpting using the stamp.

Using the stamp in single mode.

Using the stamp in continuous mode.

You can immediately begin sculpting using the stamp. The stamp is also automatically added to the Custom stamp collection, using the name of the layer. Stamps you create on your own are no different from those that come with Medium.

Where Stamps are Saved

The actual files for stamps are saved in the following directory:

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Medium\Stamps\<username>\Custom\<timestamp>\layer-name

Once saved, you can reuse the stamp in any session. Stamps are stored as a high-resolu on versions of the selected layer. (This ensures that the shape retains its fidelity the next time you load the stamp.) The stamp remains in that location even if you change the collection to which it belongs.

Note:

When a stamp is made from importing a mesh, the new stamp is saved in the following directory:

C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Medium\Stamps\<username>\Custom\<name-of-mesh>

Color Information with Stamps

Unlike in earlier versions of Medium, clay color is now saved with each stamp. So, when you are creating a stamp, think about how you are going to use it:

If you want to use the stamp to create duplicates of a colored object, then sculpt with colored clay or paint your layers before saving. You might use this option, for example, if you created a detailed palm tree that you wanted to place over and over along a beach.
When you save a colored stamp, using that stamp in the future will use the saved colors regardless of the currently selected clay color.
If you want to be able to use different color clays when sculpting with your stamp, such as a shape you might use as a sculpting tool, then use white clay when creating the stamp.
When viewing your stamps in either stamp browser or asset browser, none of the mesh previews of colored stamps that are made with vertex colors will have color. Colored stamps with texture will have colored mesh previews.
You can also toggle stamp color by pressing the button on the top of the Stamps menu “Stamp Color Toggle.” It defaults to “On” when you first start Medium.

Organize your Stamps

Your stamp collections contain any stamps that you have previously saved (in addition to the default collection of stamps that came with Medium). Stamps are organized into collections; when you press the Settings button with the Clay tool selected, you can select [Stamps] to see the most recently used stamps, the available collections, or import .fbx or .obj files as stamps:

Import a Mesh as a Stamp

You can import meshes that you’ve created in other applications and use them as stamps in Medium. Shapes for import must be in either .fbx or .obj format.

To import a stamp (or stamps):

Select the Clay tool and press the Gear button on your Tool hand, see Image 1.
Select Stamps and select Import Stamps below the list of stamp collections on the Clay settings menu, see Image 2.

Image 1: Press the Gear button on your Tool hand.

Image 2: Select Import Stamps.
Using the file selector, navigate to the directory containing the mesh you want to load as a stamp, then select it with the Tool hand, see Image 3.
After selecting the stamp, select Import at the lower right of the dialog, see Image 4.

Image 3: Locate and select the mesh you would like to import.

Image 4: Select import.

The stamp appears, and is added to your Custom collection. It can be moved from there into any other collection (as described in the Moving a Stamp to a New or Different Collection section).

Moving a Stamp to a New or Different Collection

When you save a stamp, it’s saved by default to the Custom collection. However, you may want to move the stamps you’ve created into other collections. To move a stamp:

Select the Clay tool and press the Settings button on the Tool hand, see Image 1.
Select Stamps and select the edit icon to the right of the collection that contains the stamp, see Image 2.

Image 1: Press the Settings button on the Tool hand.

Image 2: Select the Edit icon.
A dialog opens, showing the stamps in the collection. With the Tool hand, select the stamp you want to move to a new collection. Choose Change Collection from the stamp dialog.

Select the stamp you want to move.

Choose "Change Collection".
Use the keyboard to enter the name of the destination collection:
- If you enter the name of an existing collection, the stamp is moved there.
- If you enter a new collection name, the collection is created and the stamp is moved into it.
Note:

If you move the last stamp out of a collection, that collection is automatically removed from your library.

Renaming a Stamp

To rename a stamp:

With the Clay Tool selected, press the Settings button on the Tool hand.
Select Stamps and select the edit icon to the right of the collection that contains the stamp.
Select the stamp with your Tool hand and select ... next to the name of your stamp. Enter a new name on the keyboard.

Select the ...

Enter a new name on the keyboard.

Deleting a Stamp

To delete a stamp:

With the Clay Tool selected, press the Settings button on the Tool hand.
Select Stamps.
Select the edit icon to the right of the collection that contains the stamp.
Select the stamp with your Tool hand.
Select Delete Stamp. When prompted, confirm that you want to delete the stamp, or cancel if you change your mind.

Select Delete Stamp.

Confirm you want to delete the stamp.

Note:

If you delete the last stamp from a collection, that collection is automatically removed from your library.