OT: Adobe Photoshop 3D Features to be discontinued..
Ghosty12
Posts: 2,065
So it seems that the 3D Features part of Adobe Photoshop is going away soon.. Most folks probably already know, but when I opened Photoshop to make a normal map texture I was greeted with a message saying that the 3D Features part of Photoshop was going away..
So on further reading I find out that the Photoshop 3D Features has now become the Substance 3D product line, with about five different software packages, and it looks like they are going all out as with who they are catering for that being gaming and and highend 3D..
Daz 3D is part of 
Connect
DAZ Productions, Inc.
7533 S Center View Ct #4664
West Jordan, UT 84084
Licensing Agreement | Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | EULA
© 2025 Daz Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Comments
The Substance applications (mostly) pre-exist Allegorithmic's selling out to Adobe, they aren't the 3D featues of Photoshop newly split out. Painter, in particular has been around for several years - I purchased a Steam license in 2014. Presumably now Adobe has full featued 3D applications they see no point in devoting resources to trying to shoe-horn them into a mainly 2D application (and, at the moment, it's a separate subscription as far as I know).
Ahh k, yeah was not sure about that and wondered how long the software had been around for.. And probably understand that too with redirecting resources, but it is a hassle though.. I just had a look at the pricing and well someone would definitely need a use for the software, as just the basic setup with Painter, Designer and Sampler is a hefty chunk of change a month..
Wait, so I use the normal map and bump map builder all the time...what would I use once they're taken away? I have to buy a whole new program?
Welcome to Adobe subscription based apps!!!
You would think that if you are purchasing photoshop thru subscription, then if it loses a feature, you should be able to get whatever the replacement app for that feature for free, just saying
maybe Affinity will fill this gasp in the future http://www.cgchannel.com/2020/04/serif-is-working-on-3d-texturing-tools-in-affinity-photo/
They've stated that when Photoshop 23.0 is released you'll be able to install two versions on your computer, so as well as latest version, you can have version 22.2, which they recomend if you want to carry on using photoshop 3D features.
That's over a year old.
And what?
So not something that has appeared quickly, in which case we have no idea how long it may take to appear (or how feature rich it will be if/when it does).
I did find a solution of sorts in The Gimp, which has a normal map plugin for it and here is a tutorial on how to use it.. :)
https://www.tutorialboneyard.com/gimp-normal-map/
They allow users to roll back providing they purchased or subscibed to the former versions. I made a request and the Adobe team did a remote on my PC (I gave them permission to take control of it-snoop around) and they did roll me back from the 22.4. 2 to 21.2.2. They also allowed me to use 2018 for finishing a project as you can see I have a few versions. So I suspect they will grandfather us in for the 3D functionality but cease to offer it to new subscribers.
I was a dedicated Photoshop junkie, having worked in the print industry. However, as soon as they went sub, I bought Affinity Photo (and Designer and Publisher) and haven't looked back since. You get a solid piece of software for 50 bucks and you can use it for as long as your OS will run it. How can ya beat that? They also update regularly and all their software works with the other pieces of their software. Never going back to PS.
Sorry, what are the "full featured 3D applications", again? I got lost somewhere around the time that DAZ 3D was listed as an "official partner" and there was a "special edition" or expansion of Photoshop that had... tools for generating a polygon mesh. I was never able to figure out where exactly this special edition/expansion or plug-in or variant was hiding.
That is sooooooooo weird.
The Substance applications. Perhaps I should have said dedicated 3D applications (well, Painter at least).
It works the way that Studio does in that they only sell subscriptions for the current version, but if you already have an older version installed it won't stop working when the new one gets added. You don't have to do a work-around to install a later version of something with the Adobe apps the way you do for Studio.
It's a safety measure for them in that if a subscriber finds that the newest version won't run on their hardware,they can roll back to an old one and re-download it if they've already dumped it. Their bet is that eventually the subsriber is going to have to replace hardware and will upgrade to the newer version then, so they make it easy for them. Since the upgrades are free with the subscription it makes sense.
Ok. Follow-up: I have multiple machines on-line "just in case" but IIRC the way Daz Studio works is that updating it removes the previous version. So without tweaking and some workarounds, I wouldn't normally have two versions of DS accessible at the same time, correct?
Yes, one version from each release channel - though you can have different 32 and 64 bit versions, but there is the potential for a clash in settings.
Does that work with all the Photoshop plug-ins?
I couldn't swear to all but it seems to work with most. There are YouTube vidoes on using those plugins in Affinity Photo. I have Photoshop brushes too (ABR files). I'm not sure about Photoshop Actions though - Affinity has Macros which are supposed to be the equivalent but I don't think you can convert actions to macros.
Unless you do a work-around before installing the new version. I have three versions of Studio installed. I don't try to run them at the same time, but I can roll back if something turns out to have broken.
Adobe just lets you install the new one as well as the old one, and it's up to you whether you want to deinstall the old one or not.
@marble Thank you :) I do have the disc Photoshop 6 so I don't have to do subscription, if I can just find it LOL. I have so many Photoshop actions I'll just stick with it.
If you registered it, check if there is a live download link in your Adobe account downloads.
My latest version of Photoshop (CS5 extended) has a live download link for an exe and a zip file for it. This could, however, be because those activation servers required for the CS versions are obsolete. I needed to grab these anyway so I have them for whenever I upgrade my computer. I was just dreading having to do the chat session with Adobe to get these so I was pretty excited to see them in my account. BTW, Installers say 32-bit but the installer also includes the 64-bit version.(I hope I haven't jinxed myself. It would be pretty deflating to find out whenever I upgrade my computer system that these aren't the activation free installers.) BTW, looks like the 7zip file contents are the same as the exe installer. I'm just putting these on an external for safe keeping for when/if I need them in the future.
If it is Photoshop 6 and not CS6, there's a good chance the link will not be live. My old versions of Elements and Album are not live and PS6 would be around the same time frame. It would be worth a try to ask if you can get an installer assuming you either registered the software or have the serial number.
EDIT: I was wrong about those activation free installers. CS4, CS5, and CS6 apparently still have a live activation server. CS2 and CS3 servers are DEAD. From what I gleem, CS3 that there are no activation free installers...you are just out of luck if you have that version. They used to have some CS2 ones but they are gone or very well hidden.
Over the years I think I have liked this sort of approach better.
I wish CS4 was still supported. AFAICT, they only support the previous two versions. My CS4 is an upgrade from Elements 6, and since my last HD crash/reinstall, it won't accept won't accept the E6 serial as legit for upgrade. I even copied the serial straight from my Adobe account information. Never trust Adobe.
I'm not sure what was the last version of Photoshop that I used but it was certainly while I was working (I've been retired since 2013). I seem to remember that it was Photoshop 5 (NOT CS5) so that would be from the last century! Anyhow, Affinity has all I need and more. I learn more about it every day and there are lots of tutorials. Best $25 I ever spent on software (yes, I got it for something like half-price because I was a long-time Serif customer).
However, I don't have any Photoshop actions and am not that much of a power user to have got into using them. I will probably look into creating Macros sometime.
I got into Photoshop early and have been upgrading about every other update ever since, until they went subscription. I know that other products have come along that do similar things, but I'm too old a dog to learn new tricks with a different product. I'll hang on to my CS5 Photoshop and CS5 Illustrator 'till it no longer works or they pry it out of my cold dead hands.
You and me both. I already have some alternative software for when/if some Windows update breaks it but I still find myself using CS5. I really should put more effort than I have into learning that software. LOL.
Edit: Double Post...so I'll post on the CS4 upgrade poster comment.
I wish CS4 was still supported. AFAICT, they only support the previous two versions. My CS4 is an upgrade from Elements 6, and since my last HD crash/reinstall, it won't accept won't accept the E6 serial as legit for upgrade. I even copied the serial straight from my Adobe account information. Never trust Adobe.
Maybe try this: https://helpx.adobe.com/creative-suite/kb/error-serial-number-valid-product.html
My bad on the activation thing...seems those servers do still exist for CS4, CS5, and CS6. Guess I downloaded those installers for no reason. Oh, well I got a badge. I haven't logged into that site for years then get a notice that I have a Spectator badge. Oh, I feel special now. LOL. Did find out CS3 is DEAD...so glad there was some reason I wanted that CS5 upgrade.
@AllenArt Do you know if Ron Deviney's brushes can be used with Affinity Photo?