# Save volume rendering as STL file

**URL:** <https://discourse.slicer.org/t/save-volume-rendering-as-stl-file/524>\
**Category:** Support\
**Tags:** segmentation, faq\
**Created:** [June 19, 2017, 5:03am UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/save-volume-rendering-as-stl-file/524 "2017-06-19T05:03:48Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 6

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**Author:** ![lassoan](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discourse.slicer.org/lassoan/32/13_2.png) [@lassoan](https://discourse.slicer.org/u/lassoan)\
**Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 10:04pm UTC](https://discourse.slicer.org/t/save-volume-rendering-as-stl-file/524/6 "2017-06-19T22:04:03Z")

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Semi-transparent volumetric cloud = your image data, so you already have it. No processing is performed on the data, it is visualized directly using [raycasting](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volume_rendering). Volume rendering visualization parameters are mostly defined by transfer functions (opacity, color, gradient), which are saved in the Slicer scene.

STL file cannot store volumetric cloud, it only stores a surface mesh = hard boundary of your printed object.

What confuses most people that volume rendering may give the illusion that there is a distinct surface computed from the data, but actually what you see is a volumetric cloud.

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