# White vs Rigid Translucency **URL:** \ **Category:** Support & Troubleshooting\ **Created:** [November 24, 2024, 3:10am UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695 "2024-11-24T03:10:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![leonhart88](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/leonhart88/32/19153_2.png) [@leonhart88](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/leonhart88)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2024, 3:10am UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/1 "2024-11-24T03:10:10Z")
Hoping to hear from someone who has printed in both Standard White and Rigid 4K. I print often with the latter but do not have the former. Rigid 4K is somewhat translucent and acts as a pretty good light diffuser. I’m just curious if Standard White acts the same with light transmission, or if it is more opaque. Thanks in advance! ---
**Author:** ![DKirch](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/dkirch/32/20300_2.png) [@DKirch](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/DKirch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2024, 3:49pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/3 "2024-11-25T15:49:02Z")
Hey @leonhart88! I’ll just jump in here and mention that internally when we suggest a resin for folks making lithophanes, we typically recommend white resin. It will quickly become opaque at larger thicknesses, but while thin, it definitely allows for some light to pass through! > **[How to Make Your Own 3D Printed Lithophane](https://formlabs.com/blog/how-to-make-your-own-3d-printed-lithophane/?srsltid=AfmBOopLITpbVbcP_V2Ne4f3GB3fxYN2uyntnA90uAZLdIxLIavUK5TS)** > > In this tutorial, we’ll walk you through the process of creating 3D printed lithophanes on a stereolithography (SLA) 3D printer in three simple steps. Long story short, it’s mostly dependent on part geometry. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![leonhart88](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/leonhart88/32/19153_2.png) [@leonhart88](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/leonhart88)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2024, 5:01pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/4 "2024-11-25T17:01:51Z")
Thanks Dan. I’ll probably have to just get some white parts made somewhere else and then compare 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DKirch](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/dkirch/32/20300_2.png) [@DKirch](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/DKirch)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2024, 5:40pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/5 "2024-11-25T17:40:47Z")
Let myself or @henryqiu know if there are quick tests prints that we could try for you as well! ---
**Author:** ![leonhart88](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/leonhart88/32/19153_2.png) [@leonhart88](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/leonhart88)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2024, 6:15pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/6 "2024-11-25T18:15:43Z")
Thanks for the offer 😊 I’ll probably just get my friends over at Shop3D to print some parts for me since they’re next door! ---
**Author:** ![dominicbarry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/278dde/32.png) [@dominicbarry](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/dominicbarry)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2024, 7:00pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/7 "2024-11-25T19:00:03Z")
Wanted to jump in and agree with @DKirch here, white makes a great lamp shade diffuser, I have had good success in the 1.5-3mm range but it will depend on the bulb and the part geometry for sure. I have made lampshades with Clear V4 and V5, Rigid 4k and White V5 and honestly like all of them. I think that Rigid 4k is my personal favorite but it will depend on the application for sure! ---
**Author:** ![leonhart88](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/user_avatar/forum.formlabs.com/leonhart88/32/19153_2.png) [@leonhart88](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/leonhart88)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2024, 2:10am UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/8 "2024-11-26T02:10:25Z")
Thanks for the feedback! I’ll see how they compare. I’m prototyping parts that will be injection molded in white ABS/PC so I suspect I want something more opaque, which might be closer to standard white than rigid 4K. We shall see! ---
**Author:** ![system](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex025/uploads/formlabs/original/3X/5/b/5bc2bdf993ff27c2e0eecab5010b25626fbb327a.png) [@system](https://forum.formlabs.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2025, 2:10pm UTC](https://forum.formlabs.com/t/white-vs-rigid-translucency/40695/9 "2025-05-27T14:10:34Z")
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