Let's learn how to add text to a 3D object in a React application!
We will use @react-three/fiber
to accomplish this feat.
I'll be assuming you already have a basic understanding of React and a new React application set up.
Step 1: Install Required Packages
Let's install the required packages first. Run the following command in your terminal (make sure you are in the root directory of your project):
npm install three @react-three/fiber @react-three/drei
Here, three is the base library that react-three-fiber uses to create and render the 3D scene. @react-three/drei is a helper library for react-three-fiber that provides a set of reusable components and functions.
Step 2: Setup the Canvas
Now, import the Canvas
from @react-three/fiber in your React component.
import { Canvas } from '@react-three/fiber';
Use the Canvas inside return in a functional component like so:
const CubeCanvas = () => {
return (
<Canvas
camera={{
fov: 25,
position: [5, 5, 5],
}}
>
</Canvas>
);
};
Set the fov (Field of View)
and position
of the Canvas
according to your use case. (A larger fov
will result in a wider view.)
Step 3: Add Some Lights
Add some lights inside the Canvas so the Cube isn't too dark when added later on. Let's use ambientLight
and directionalLight
(They don't need importing).
<Canvas
camera={{
fov: 25,
position: [5, 5, 5],
}}
>
<ambientLight intensity={1} />
<directionalLight position={[3, 2, 1]} />
</Canvas>
Step 4: Create a Cube
Now, let's create a separate component to render our cube.
function Cube() {
return (
<mesh>
<boxGeometry />
<meshStandardMaterial>
<RenderTexture attach="map">
<color attach={"background"} args={["#dc9dcd"]} />
</RenderTexture>
</meshStandardMaterial>
</mesh>
);
}
Here, a mesh
component is used, which is a low-level react-three-fiber component used to create and manipulate 3D objects. Inside mesh
, we use boxGeometry
for displaying a cube shaped object.
We also need a meshStandardMaterial
to define the appearance of the cube. Inside, meshStandardMaterial
, a RenderTexture
component, imported from @react-three/drei
is used to render texture on the cube. attach="map"
indicates that the rendered texture should be used as the texture map for the material of the parent mesh.
We also give a color to the cube by using a color
component.
Step 5: Add Text to Cube
Let's use the Text
component from @react-three/drei
to use text as a texture on our cube. Add the following inside the RenderTexture
component.
<Text position={[-0.2, 0, 0]} fontSize={1} color={"#555"}>
hello
</Text>
And that's all we need to add text to the cube. The positioning of the text may seem a little odd at the moment. But we can fix that using the PerspectiveCamera
from @react-three/drei
. Also, add Cube
inside the CubeCanvas
This is how both components finally look:
import {
Text,
PerspectiveCamera,
RenderTexture,
} from "@react-three/drei";
import { Canvas } from "@react-three/fiber";
function Cube() {
return (
<mesh>
<boxGeometry />
<meshStandardMaterial>
<RenderTexture attach={"map"}>
<PerspectiveCamera makeDefault position={[0, 0, 5]} />
<color attach={"background"} args={["#dc9dcd"]} />
<Text position={[-0.2, 0, 0]} fontSize={1} color={"#555"}>
hello
</Text>
</RenderTexture>
</meshStandardMaterial>
</mesh>
);
}
function CubeCanvas() {
return (
<Canvas
camera={{
fov: 25,
position: [5, 5, 5],
}}
>
<ambientLight intensity={1} />
<directionalLight position={[3, 2, 1]} />
<Cube />
</Canvas>
);
}
And the text is now fixed 👌
Final Thoughts
That's the end of this tutorial. We rendered a 3D object in our React app using threejs
, react-three-fiber
and react-three/drei
, and learned how to add text as texture to it.
You can find the official docs here and explore the vast world of 3D rendering in React using React-Three-Fiber.
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