Metallic materials have been widely applied in many industrial fields as important structural and functional materials because of their excellent physical and mechanical properties. Thus, the metallic materials have been playing an important role in the development of human society. The microstructures and properties of the metallic materials have been studied using various characterization techniques. However, the real-time dynamic characterization was limited to a great extent due to the opaque feature of metallic materials. With the development of the third generation synchrotron radiation light source, the synchrotron radiation real time imaging technology with strong penetrability, high spatiotemporal resolution, nondestructive and visualization features show its remarkable advantages in the field of metallic materials research. In this paper, the development of real time and in situ research work on metallic materials are reviewed. The typical applications of synchrotron radiation 2D/3D imaging techniques are briefly introduced, for example, the observation of the classical solidification behavior (grain growth, solute diffusion, modification mechanisms, et al.) with and without the physical field (electric field, magnetic field and ultrasonic field), the static/dynamic 3D characterization of the solidification microstructure (dendrites morphology, intermetallic compounds, precipitates, et al.) and the internal defect (spatial distribution of voids, inclusions, et al.) which related to the meso-damage mechanics of metallic materials (crack initiation, propagation and fracture). Finally, the future development of the imaging techniques and the prospect applications in metallic materials are prospected.