Which software?

[dd_]

ok i own moi, 3d max, c4d and cobalt and i would say try downloading the free demos of c4d, max and moi even modo has a nice renderer and has a good modeler. if you want to give blender a try its totally free and produces some nice stuff (and its FREE because its open source) dont get too tied into the "industry standard" stuff as there is always some that say blah blah blah and blah are the main players and some that say its blah blah and blah not blah blah. this shouldnt stop you from finding one that is user friendly to YOU and if that happens to be blender then WOOT bonus
any hoo good luck with the trying and 3ding

[Hinkle]

also have a look at luxology modo. Very powerfull modeling and uv mapping tools and easy workflow for shading and rendering. altho their animation features are pretty much useless.

[Joe.Morgan]

I use 3DS max at Uni and Maya at home. Personally I prefer Maya and being industry standard is a good piece of kit to learn.

[dan_hin]

well gosh I guess it depends on what you want to do with the 3d you're going to be making.

If you need tight animation control, good rigging and completely scriptable APIs then I would have a look at Maya or Houdini....if you have a spare £5000 lying around of course.

For anything general then almost all the major packages will do the job. I'll give special mention to Blender not just because I'm a complete fanboy (I am!) but also because:

- It's free
- It has the best (read simplest/easiest to use) uv unwrapping feature of all the packages
- it has a built in node-based compositor, video sequence editor and paint functionality
- it has a built in particle, fluid, cloth and dynamics simulator
- it has real-time viewport shaders, a scriptable game engine (great for those tricky "first-time bouncing ball" animations)

it's updated more than once a day, so there's no waiting around for a new release or bugfix. If you report a genuine bug, chances are it'll get fixed the same day.

Hope that helps,
Dan

[glebe digital]

Lightwave has been my SW of choice for the past 15 years...........great piece of kit, I see no reason to change it.

[dawnhutchinson]

Don't forget that most 3D packages offer accademic versions (for non-commercial use) at a fraction of the price so you don't need to go spending thousands just yet!

[dd_]

but you have to prove you are a student to get those :/

[simpo]

Hi,

Personally to me...of all the 3D programs, Carrara is the easiest to pick up.

It is highly suitable for a beginner.

[redhotrocket]

wow, some great info there guys, I was considering asking the same question, so ta! :D

[Archiform 3D]

does Cinema 4D will work?

I am a Cinema4D user and loving it. My 3D gallery - archiform3d.com/3d-gallery/index.php - has mainly C4D work and a little Vray on Max, but I think the coolest stuff on there is still what we do in C4D.

Steve Bell