Viewport navigation in Blender relies on a combination of mouse controls and keyboard shortcuts.

Rotating the screen in Blender

To rotate the view around the scene, press and hold the Middle Mouse Button (MMB) and move the mouse. This allows you to orbit around objects and inspect them from different angles.

To switch to the active camera view and see exactly what will be rendered, press Numpad 0. This toggles between the standard viewport perspective and the camera’s perspective.

If using a laptop without a middle mouse button:

1. Go to Edit → Preferences
2. Select the Input tab
3. Enable Emulate 3 Button Mouse

This allows Alt + Left Click to rotate the viewport, replacing the middle mouse button.

You can also orbit by clicking and dragging the grey circular navigation gizmo located in the upper-right corner of the 3D Viewport. This visual control represents the world axes and allows interactive rotation without using the middle mouse button.

Panning the Viewport

In Blender, panning moves your view horizontally or vertically without rotating the scene. It allows you to shift your viewpoint to focus on a different area of the workspace.

To pan the view horizontally or vertically, hold Shift while pressing the Middle Mouse Button, then move the mouse. This shifts your viewpoint without rotating it.

In addition to using the shortcut Shift + Middle Mouse Button, Blender provides a visual navigation tool for panning. This tool is represented by a hand icon located in the upper-right corner of the 3D Viewport.

To pan using the hand tool, click and hold the left mouse button on the hand icon, then drag the mouse. The viewport will move in the direction you drag.

Zooming in and out

Zooming in and out is done using the mouse scroll wheel. Scrolling forward zooms in, and scrolling backward zooms out.

In addition to using the mouse scroll wheel, Blender provides a visual zoom tool located in the upper-right corner of the 3D Viewport. This tool is represented by a magnifying glass icon.

To zoom using this method, click and hold the left mouse button on the magnifying glass icon, then drag the mouse upward to zoom in or downward to zoom out. This allows controlled zooming without using the scroll wheel.

Blender also allows smooth and controlled zooming using a keyboard and mouse combination. To activate this method, hold down the Ctrl key while pressing the Middle Mouse Button (MMB).

While holding both, move the mouse forward to zoom in and backward to zoom out. This produces a gradual, continuous zoom effect that is smoother than using the scroll wheel.

To quickly focus on a specific object, select it and press the period key on the numeric keypad (Numpad .). This frames the selected object in the center of the viewport, making it easier to work on.

Blender Modes

Blender operates using different working modes. Modes determine how an object can be interacted with and edited. The active mode is displayed in the upper-left corner of the 3D Viewport.

The most commonly used modes in beginner workflows are Object Mode and Edit Mode. Switching between modes is done by pressing the Tab key.

Object Mode

Object Mode allows you to manipulate entire objects as single units. In this mode, you can move, rotate, scale, duplicate, or delete objects. Transformations affect the whole object rather than its individual geometry.

Object Mode is typically used for scene layout, positioning models, adjusting camera placement, and applying materials or modifiers.

Edit Mode

Edit Mode allows modification of an object's internal geometry. Instead of affecting the entire object, you can edit its components, which include vertices, edges, and faces.

In Edit Mode, you can select individual vertices to reshape the model, adjust edges to refine structure, or manipulate faces to alter surfaces. This mode is used for detailed modeling and geometry refinement.

Sculpt Mode

Sculpt Mode is used primarily for organic modeling. Instead of manually moving vertices, this mode allows you to shape the surface using brush-based tools, similar to sculpting clay. Brushes can inflate, smooth, crease, grab, or flatten areas of a mesh. Sculpt Mode is commonly used for character modeling, detailed surface work, and high-resolution forms.

Vertex Paint Mode

Vertex Paint Mode allows color information to be painted directly onto the vertices of a mesh. This is useful for stylized models, game assets, or when color variation is needed without complex texture maps.

Weight Paint Mode

Weight Paint Mode is used when working with armatures for animation. It defines how strongly different parts of a mesh are influenced by bones. Areas painted with higher weight values move more when the corresponding bone is transformed.

Texture Paint Mode

Texture Paint Mode allows painting directly onto texture maps applied to an object. This mode is used to create or modify image textures such as color maps, roughness maps, or bump maps directly inside Blender.

Pose Mode

Pose Mode becomes available when an armature is selected. It allows manipulation of bones to create character poses and animations. Transforming bones in Pose Mode affects the connected mesh based on weight painting.

Shortcut:
Press Z for shading pie menu.

Adding Mesh Primitives

In Blender, new objects are added to the scene using the Shift + A shortcut. This opens the Add Menu, which contains different categories of objects that can be inserted into the scene.

To add a basic 3D shape, press Shift + A, then select Mesh. The Mesh submenu contains primitive geometry types. Primitives are simple base shapes that serve as the foundation for more complex models.

The most commonly used mesh primitives include Cube, UV Sphere, Icosphere, Cylinder, Cone, Torus, Plane, and Grid. Each primitive has adjustable parameters that appear in the bottom-left corner of the viewport immediately after creation.

These parameters allow control over properties such as size, radius, depth, and segment count. If the parameter panel disappears, press F9 to reopen the last operation settings.

All primitives are created at the location of the 3D Cursor. If a new object appears in an unexpected position, check the location of the 3D Cursor before adding it.

Primitives form the starting point of most 3D models. Complex objects are typically built by modifying and combining these simple base shapes.

Viewport

The 3D Viewport is the main working area in Blender. It is the large central section of the screen where you create, edit, and view 3D objects.

Viewport controls how objects are displayed inside the 3D Viewport. It does not change the actual object. It only changes how you see the object while working.

As a beginner, it is important to understand that Viewport Shading is only a visual preview system. It helps you inspect geometry, materials, and lighting while modeling.

The shading options are located in the upper-right corner of the 3D Viewport. You will see four small sphere icons. Each sphere represents a different way of displaying the scene.

Wireframe

Wireframe mode shows only the edges of objects. You can see through objects because only their structural lines are visible. This is useful when you want to examine geometry or see objects hidden behind others.

Solid

Solid mode is the default display mode when Blender opens. Objects appear shaded but without realistic materials or lighting. This mode is best for modeling because it is fast and clean.

Material Preview

Material Preview mode shows objects with their assigned materials. You can see colors, surface roughness, and basic lighting. This mode is helpful when adjusting materials without performing a full render.

Rendered

Rendered mode displays the scene using the active render engine. This includes lighting, shadows, reflections, and material effects. It gives a near-final preview of what the image will look like when rendered.

How to Switch Between Shading Modes

You can switch shading modes by clicking one of the four sphere icons in the top-right corner of the viewport.

A faster method is pressing the Z key, which opens a shading selection menu.

Changing viewport shading does not modify the object itself. It only changes how the object is displayed on your screen. Your model remains the same regardless of which shading mode is active.

As a beginner, you will mostly use Solid mode for modeling, Material Preview for checking colors, and Rendered mode for checking lighting before final rendering.

Rendering an Image in Blender (F12)

In Blender, creating a final image of your scene is called rendering. Rendering uses your materials, lights, camera, and scene setup to produce a realistic or stylized image. This is different from simply taking a screenshot of the viewport.

Using the F12 Key

The fastest way to render your scene is by pressing the F12 key. Blender will calculate lighting, shadows, materials, and effects, and then open a new window showing the rendered image.

Render Engine

Blender has different render engines that determine how the image is calculated:

• Eevee: Real-time renderer, fast, good for previewing and animations.
• Cycles: Physically accurate renderer, slower but produces more realistic lighting and materials.

You can select the render engine in the Render Properties tab in the Properties Editor.

After the render completes, go to the Image menu at the top-left of the render window and choose Save As. Choose the file format (PNG, JPEG, etc.) and the location on your computer where you want to save it.

Rendering shows what your scene will look like in its final form. It can take longer than working in the viewport, especially with complex lighting or high-resolution images. Start with smaller resolution or Eevee for practice.