Turn a Family Photo into a UV Print with the xTool O1 Omni

My son asked me to make a picture of the two of us on a tropical island with monkeys, dinosaurs, coconuts and bananas. I had no idea how to make that happen, so I worked it out. You take an ordinary family photo, turn it into a themed adventure poster with AI, then UV print it onto a cheap 3D printed blank.

It's a great project if you've got an O1 Omni and you're stuck for ideas. The image is free to make, the blank costs next to nothing, and the ink for mine came to about 26 cents. Here's the whole workflow, including the prompt I use.

Jump to: Make the image · Free blanks · Load and scan · Place the image · Print settings · Print it

Step 1: Make the image with AI

I used ChatGPT, which has a free version, but you can paste the same prompt into other AI image tools. The parts in square brackets are the bits you change. Everything else stays the same.

Create a [SQUARE / LANDSCAPE / PORTRAIT] vibrant adventure image featuring the same people from my uploaded photo. Use the photo as the identity reference and keep each person's face, age, hair color, facial features and overall appearance recognizable.

Transform us into [THEME, e.g. dinosaur island explorers / medieval fairytale adventurers / magical kingdom / pirates / space explorers].

Show us together in the foreground, looking happy and natural, dressed as [OUTFITS / CHARACTERS]. Surround us with [3 TO 6 THINGS YOU WANT IN THE SCENE].

Make the background feel huge, exciting and full of detail, like a premium family adventure movie poster. Use bright, rich, highly saturated colors, dramatic but cheerful lighting, crisp detail and a polished semi-realistic animated / cinematic illustration style.

The people should remain the main focus, with the environment telling the story around them. Keep it fun, family-friendly and visually impressive.

This image will be UV printed, so prioritize strong contrast, vibrant colors, clean detail and a balanced composition. Do not add any text.

1. Paste the prompt into ChatGPT and fill in the brackets. For the demo I chose a square image, space explorers, dressed as astronauts in space suits, surrounded by spaceships, aliens, planets, stars and satellites.
2. Click the + button and upload your photo. Any photo that shows the people clearly will do. Only use photos of people who are happy for you to.
3. Send it. Mine came back in under 30 seconds.
4. Click the image, then the download button in the top right to save it.

Step 2: Get your blanks (free)

I printed onto 3D printed blanks I designed in a few different sizes. The files are free on my Free Files page with an L3D account, so you can print as many as you like. I printed this one in black and used the smooth side, not the rough side.

No 3D printer? This should work on most other hard materials too. Follow the same process.

Step 3: Load the blank and scan

1. Press the button on top and the bed comes out. I used the large plate for this. Line its green line up with the machine, then push it down.
2. Lay the blank down and smooth it onto the sticky surface. Get it as straight as you can by eye, because it makes lining up the image easier.
3. Press the button again to take it in.
4. In xTool Studio, click New project. It connects to the last machine you used. When it says it has detected the Standard Base Plate (the large one), click Switch.
5. Click Scan. The head scans the whole bed and gives you an accurate picture of your blank.

Step 4: Place the image and mask it

1. Click the + on the left and import your AI image. It comes in absolutely massive, so shrink it down. I got a low DPI warning, but honestly it came out absolutely fine.
2. Click Smart mask on the right. It finds your blank and marks the printable area. It does a really good job, though not a perfect one, so expect a little overspray. Click Apply.
3. Anything outside the mask is now hidden. Resize the image to fill as much of the blank as you can, and use the arrow keys on your keyboard to nudge it into place.
4. If your blank isn't quite straight, rotate the image to match. Mine needed 359.5 degrees, typed into the rotation box at the top.

Step 5: Print settings

Click away from the image first and you'll see the overall settings:

• Precision (dpi): High quality, Standard or Fast. This changes the print time. I kept High quality.
• Feather: the transition between colors. I left it on the default.
• White ink choke: controls the white edge around the design. I left it as it was. (If you ever get a white outline, I explain this setting in my white outline video (or read the written guide).)
• I didn't need Image mirror printing or Relief speed up.

Now click the image to see its own settings. By default it's White + Color with one of each, and that would work really well on a 3D printed blank. UV ink sticks to it nicely. For the glossy look I changed it to White + Color + Varnish.

1. Set the varnish type. The options are Matte, Gloss and Foil stamping. I chose Gloss.
2. Set the layers. I went for 2 white, 1 color, 1 varnish. Two whites because I was printing on a black blank, so the color comes out vibrant. One would probably be okay, but two gives definite coverage.

When you pick gloss, Studio shows a warning. Gloss goes down like a layer of liquid, so any dust inside the machine can settle in it and leave small bumps. It recommends a clean machine and closed doors, and you can't close the doors with the large plate in. Either blow the inside out with compressed air first, or pick Matte if you want to avoid it. I don't mind a few bumps, so I went with gloss.

Last, the white ink type. On my Dual-Head UV I can choose standard white, rigid white or flexible white. If you have the Single UV or the UV + DT Fabric edition, you might not get this option. I chose the rigid white on UV2, the second print head. It's slightly faster because it uses a different ink channel to the main head.

Click Preview to see a 3D view with the gloss finish. It also shows you where the mask isn't quite perfect, which is handy to know before you print.

Step 6: Print it

Click Process. Mine came out at 18 minutes 25 seconds and about 26 cents of ink. I went a bit overkill with two whites and a gloss layer. You could use fewer layers or drop to Standard precision to make it quicker.

When I clicked Print, it told me the print head was below 30°C and asked if I wanted to heat it. Click Heat. UV ink needs to go down at its optimum temperature, which is around 30°C (86°F), and the O1 Omni warms the heads up for you. As soon as it gets there, the print starts by itself.

There was a little overspray around the edge, but not a lot at all. The detail is really good and you can see the gloss finish. A cheap 3D printed blank, a small amount of ink and a free AI image, and you've got something you can frame or stick on the wall.

What theme would you pick?

Tell me in the comments on the video what you made. If you want to print lots of smaller items in one go, like coins, keychains or coasters, my O1 Omni jigs hold them in exactly the same spot every time.