# 3D printing a miniature city skyline with the Skyline Map 3D preset > a figure-ground map where every building rises to its real-world height for printable miniature skylines This preset turns a neighborhood into a miniature skyline. It starts from the same architectural figure-ground look as the Figure Ground Map - building footprints over a clean light plate - but with one twist: the 3D preview and the STL/3MF exports raise every single building to its real-world height pulled from map data. Skyscrapers become towers, brownstones stay low, and the result reads instantly as the city you know. ## What you need ### 3D printing - Any FDM printer; PLA in a dark gray + light gray pairing prints closest to the on-screen look (multi-material or manual filament swap), or one color - Slicer that accepts 3MF (Bambu Studio, PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer) ### UV print / sublimation - High-res PNG export of the flat figure-ground artwork onto a square blank - the height data only shows in the 3D outputs ## Step 1 - Start from the preset Open [the Skyline Map 3D preset](/map-designer?preset=skyline-map-3d). It loads over Lower Manhattan's Financial District at zoom ~14.5 - One World Trade Center spiking out of a dense cluster of towers. Search your own city and aim for somewhere with real height variety - a downtown core, a waterfront with towers behind it, a university campus with one landmark high-rise. The buildings layer has "3D building heights" switched on (you'll find the toggle when editing the Buildings feature); flip it off and the preset behaves exactly like a flat figure-ground map. ## Step 2 - Tune the layers Two layers, pared down from the Figure Ground Map so the skyline is the whole story: - **Buildings** - dark blue-gray `#37474F` footprints with per-building extrusion enabled. Each building exports as its own shape carrying its height, so don't worry if the 2D preview looks identical to a flat map - the 3D preview is where it pays off. - **Backplate** - light `#ECEFF1` plate the skyline stands on. Swap to match your base filament. Heights come from the map's building data (`render_height`, or floor counts where that's all that exists). Areas without surveyed heights fall back to a low default, so dense city centers with good data make the most striking prints. ## Step 3 - Export - **3D printing:** open the export dialog and check the 3D preview - buildings rise at true relative scale. Export 3MF for a two-color file (plate + buildings) or STL for single color. - **UV print:** export the high-res PNG for the flat figure-ground artwork; the heights only apply to the 3D outputs. - Keep the export area tight: the closer the zoom, the larger each building prints and the better small footprints survive slicing. ## 3D Printing ### 3D printing 1. Open the 3MF in your slicer - the backplate and the building skyline arrive stacked with colors assigned. Single-extruder printers: slice the STL and add a filament change just above the plate for the two-tone look. 2. Print flat, no supports - every building is a straight vertical extrusion. 0.2 mm layers; a 0.4 mm nozzle resolves individual rowhouses at 150 mm+ plate sizes. 3. Scale advice: 150–250 mm plates make the heights readable. Below 120 mm, pick a zoomed-in downtown crop so each footprint stays printable. 4. Tall slender towers print fine in PLA at this scale, but slow your outer-wall speed if the slicer flags short layer times at the spire tips. ## UV & Sublimation Printing ### UV print / sublimation 1. Export the high-res PNG - you get the classic flat figure-ground artwork (heights don't apply to 2D output). 2. UV-print onto acrylic or wood, or sublimate onto a white hardboard panel; pair it with the 3D printed version of the same crop for a striking two-piece set. ## Make it yours - Best subjects have height drama: Manhattan, Chicago's Loop, Hong Kong, Toronto's waterfront, or your city's downtown against a low-rise old town. - Two-tone filament ideas: charcoal skyline on a white plate is architectural; brass-look gold buildings on matte black is a statement piece. - Turn the "3D building heights" toggle off in the Buildings feature editor to fall back to a uniform-height block model - good for cities with patchy height data. - Switch `exportShape` to hexagon or circle for a skyline medallion. - Print the same crop at two zooms - a wide flat context plate and a tight tall downtown - and display them side by side. - Commemorate an address: center the frame on a friend's apartment tower so their building is the tallest thing on the plate. --- Open the tool: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/skyline-map-3d Read online: https://www.mylasertools.com/learn/guides/skyline-map-3d