What is/are the best 3D rendering program(s)???

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Metallica_Band

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Hey there...I want to learn 3D rendering...I was wondering what the best one(s) are out there right now...maybe I should be asking the most popular ones??? Learning curve doesn't matter cause I learn software REALLY REALLY fast by myself...I learned the majority of the basics and several advanced things in Photoshop in about 2-3 weeks...would have been shorter if I didn't have school work interfering...so I learn real fast...

Anyways What should I start learning??? Does it have a dedicated forum/site/community like VERC Collective for Half-Life's Hammer??? What kinds of things do 3D rendering progs do???
THANX
C'YA :cool:
 
Maya and 3DStudio Max are probably some of the most used out there, you can also try SoftImage. 3D rendering programs create almost everything in a game with an exclusion of levels which they may also... Objects in the world are called models (may it be a character or a can of soda), you use these programs to create such models.

If you search you probably can find some nice tutorials but Half-Life's Hammer is as simple as MSPaint when compared to these programs. They can take months to years to get really good at. You must also be good at creating textures in Photoshop when creating models since they are what give your models the realism.
 
The 3d software packages described above are some of the best. Although do not make the mistake that these are easy to learn. If you are looking for a more basic, more for manufactouring program I would suggest Solidworks. Very easy to learn, although it does not have anywhere near the surface capabilities of others.

Rhino is also a good program.
 
So Maya and 3DStudio Max would be progs that I would "graduate" to after learning the other more "basic" progs??? How hard would it be to switch to a different prog??? Do they look and operate similar to each other???

I remember hearing something like Sparta or something like that....not sure of the name but that's close...I think our school uses it...anyone know what prog I'm talking about??? what's that one like???

EDIT: Strata is another possible name for the 3D prog I'm trying to remember...
 
Metallica_Band said:
So Maya and 3DStudio Max would be progs that I would "graduate" to after learning the other more "basic" progs??? How hard would it be to switch to a different prog??? Do they look and operate similar to each other???

I remember hearing something like Sparta or something like that....not sure of the name but that's close...I think our school uses it...anyone know what prog I'm talking about??? what's that one like???

EDIT: Strata is another possible name for the 3D prog I'm trying to remember...
Click to expand...

Strata was the first app I used, I used it for mac, dunno if theres a pc version.. I checked their homepage a while back and it wasnt too impressive.. just didnt seem to be on the same level as maya or 3dsmax.. but thats just my impression, based on nothing really :)

As for rendering.. the best renders usually use plugins for rendering, like global illumination, mental ray etc, also read up on "renderman" Im not sure what it is myself but its supposed to be a standard for renderers (so its a collection of renderers that meet up to the requirements), really hard to learn, but the best if you do.. pixar uses it for one.
 
So is there like a "beginers" 3D render prog or should/could I just jump right into one of the progs mentioned above???
 
If u can afford it *cough* I dont see why you cant start with the more advanced apps really.. if you choose maya tho, make sure you take a while to understand the interface, its nothing like any other windows application IMHO
 
when i started 3d i was just tinkering around in swift3d trying to make cool flash animations.

now i work in 3dsmax and im trying to get into maya but i dont have that much time.
thats what college seems to be for since most use that.
 
I just want to explain this a little differantly. Being Maya or Max, 3d is 3d. What you have to learn is how to understand 3d objects and how to create 3d objects. Pick any one app, and wrap your head around the concept of working in 3d space. Its much differant than creating a composition in photoshop. I perfer 3d Max, only because thats what I have available to me, from what I have experanced Max is the better software to model in, and maya is the better software to animate in. Seriously though, as soon as 3d clicks for you, it won't matter what program you use.

EDIT- Heres a links for 3d related things 3d total and CG Talk
 
pistola said:
I just want to explain this a little differantly. Being Maya or Max, 3d is 3d. What you have to learn is how to understand 3d objects and how to create 3d objects. Pick any one app, and wrap your head around the concept of working in 3d space.
Click to expand...
Well I've played around with Hammer and I got to learn it pretty well...would that help me any???
 
Metallica_Band said:
Well I've played around with Hammer and I got to learn it pretty well...would that help me any???
Click to expand...

I guess, I never touched hammer before but if its a 3d program of sorts, than I would say go ahead and jump into Max or Maya. And practice your arse off.
 
Easy:
I am a 3d Artist/Graphic Artist anyways..so!

I started out with Truespace made by Caligari.
Later in life moved to
3d Studio Max by Discreet and I tried Maya. Didn't fancy Maya so I stuck with 3ds max.

Anyways, as for learning curve? Discreet probably took me about 1 month...honestly, because it was so radically different than Truespace, interface, basics, advance techniques, rendering! Its a lot of work.

www.threedy.com
^^ Go to those forums for your 3d needs. They have an entire section for tutorials somewhere. My Name on that forum was Lockdown2000. I think. Anyways. Peace.
 
Cinema 4D is much better than 3dstudio max in my opinion. The viewing and texture controls are so much better.
 
Requiem said:
Cinema 4D is much better than 3dstudio max in my opinion. The viewing and texture controls are so much better.
Click to expand...

All personal preference. I tried Cinema 4D. Yuck :)

Yeah, but in the end, just D/L all the demos and try them out. See which one fits your needs.
 
imho get maya6 personal learning edition for free and get a book called maya 6 foundiations watch the included dvd and try the lessons... with that you will have a good start
 
Blender is always free, if you want to check it out before dropping some cash on Softimage, Maya, etc.. There's plenty of tutorials online for it, as well as several books.
 
For modelling, I'm gonna have to recomend Luxology's modo. It kicks ass, plain and simple. It's somewhat like LightWave's Modeller, only better. If you ever do any kind of architectural work, you'll love the macro recording feature so badly you'll never use anything else. ;) It's fairly easy to learn, and has a very uncluttered interface. Only problem is that you need something else for animation/texturing/rendering... but you could always use Blender + YaFray for that.
 
I'm going to cast my vote for Blender. It's free, it is similar to 3d Studio and some others. I have used 3d Studio for awhile now and It all began with early versions of blender.
 
I would pick between either 3dsMAX, Maya, or Softimage XSI. I wouldn't start to learn one program just to get the hang of 3D and then graduate to one of those programs.

It's better to start with one program and stick with it. Otherwise you'll run into workflow problems when you jump from one program to the other. Trying to learn a new 3d interface, while knowing another can be very hard.

I recently tried to learn XSI coming from a couple years of 3ds MAX, and it's really frustrating learning the new interface. Much better to learn one and stick with it.

All of them have learning editions that are free.

For 3DS max you can download G-Max
For Maya you can download Maya PLE
For Softimage you can download the XSI MOD tool.



Just my 2 $
 
I'd like to suggest TrueSpace from Caligari. It's pretty cheap but has excellent model and render capabilities. It's also very easy to learn and very quick to use.

TrueSpace
 
Wish I could learn fast so I could make use of Lightwave. For a geek I suck at learning certain things. :confused:
 
I like POV-Ray, used with Poseray, it isn't that ahrd to use. And both are free, to boot.
 
i think 3ds max and the brazil renderer together are awesome. very simple to use as far as 3d programs go IMO. plus there are plenty of sites on the net that have a ton of information on both programs. if used correctly, you can put out some very good renders.
 
if used correctly, you can put out some very good renders
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I'd say that's true for all (well, almost) 3D packages. With enough skill, you could probably get Emacs to produce marvelous renders... ;)
 
Well lets see, there is: Bryce5, Lightwave, Maya 6.0, FormZ, 3D Studio Max, Carrara Animation, Poser Figure animation.

I'm sure I forgot a few.
 
Black Morty Rackham said:
I'd say that's true for all (well, almost) 3D packages. With enough skill, you could probably get Emacs to produce marvelous renders... ;)
Click to expand...


Yes that is true. However its much more difficult/impossible to get photorealistic renders with Bryce for example. I have seen some pretty badass things done with Bryce. Ive done some cool stuff myself with it back in the day.
 
Scorpionjwp said:
Well lets see, there is: Bryce5, Lightwave, Maya 6.0, FormZ, 3D Studio Max, Carrara Animation, Poser Figure animation.

I'm sure I forgot a few.
Click to expand...

If you want very basic but fun
try Sketup5, easy to learn and very easy to use.
I made a render of my Jobs parking lot to layout the new line paintings.
I spent about 3 days on it and it was a bit overly detailed, but my boss was WOWED!

Boss - "All I asked was for a shitty MS paint outline."
Me - "This is better, look you can even see the dead grass by the door..."
Boss - "You have too much free time!"
 
If you purchase one of the biggest ones (maya or 3Ds max) I suggest 3Ds max, Maya is very confusing for beginners, do to the fact that, unlike 3Ds max, theres no way to just put in something, and it works, and looks nice, also, Textures (including Bumpmaps) are very easy to do for beginners,

It allows beginners to get a good effect quickly, which can be a good motivator

Also, Theres a good way to practice modelling, once you know the basics (extruding, atc) go to this sight

http://www.suurland.com/

And get some of the car blueprints, it's basically images of cars from each perspective, theres an easy way in Max, to get each image into each perspective of the editor window (I believe one of the Tutorials Max comes with, the one about a plane or something, teaches you how to do this) and using tools, you can just make a car fallowing the blueprints (Do the .max tutorial, "How to make a low poly plane/spaceship" or something like that, you use the same technique to make the car)

So ya, get 3Ds max
 
One of the main reasons to go with 3DSMax if you're a beginner is the fact that many people do. ;) As far as I've noticed, no other application has as many application-specific tutorials, newbie-friendly plugins, etc etc etc. I've tried quite a few 3D applications (though not 3DSM, due to the lack of a Mac version), and I found Lightwave to be the most intuitive by far, but it is probably due to the fact that I had already dabbled with 3D a few years ago (in Pixels 3D!). If I had started from scratch in Lightwave, chances are it would have been much harder.
 
Black Morty Rackham said:
One of the main reasons to go with 3DSMax if you're a beginner is the fact that many people do. ;) As far as I've noticed, no other application has as many application-specific tutorials, newbie-friendly plugins, etc etc etc. I've tried quite a few 3D applications (though not 3DSM, due to the lack of a Mac version), and I found Lightwave to be the most intuitive by far, but it is probably due to the fact that I had already dabbled with 3D a few years ago (in Pixels 3D!). If I had started from scratch in Lightwave, chances are it would have been much harder.
Click to expand...

Not to mention the fact theres huge amount of recourses (Tutorials/models/textures) on the net, for beginners for 3Ds Max.
 
One often-overlooked but absolutely stunning (and apparently relatively easy to learn) packages is Cinema4D. This would be my choice, as it's as flexible as 3DS, possibly even more so with the ability to render 100% "organic" items, the renderer is beautiful, and cheaper & easier

EDIT: look:

http://www.photonworks.net/blog/archives/cg/
http://www.cadtec.com.br/index.php?redirect=http://www.cadtec.com.br/internas/cinema4d/
http://www.superfici3d.com/cinema 4d.php (to the bottom)
http://ftp.thrustmaster.com/pictures/PSX/PSX_DesertEagle/DesertEagle50AEPSX.jpg
http://www.psionic.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/c4dtuts/gun03t1.html (low-poly stuff, impressive)
http://www.tamernakisci.com/ (all C4D, all very good)

And finally i direct you to one of many Cinema4D threads over at productdesignforums.com, where it's becoming common opinion that cinema4d is underestimated and in some cases more powerful than 3DS whilst also being cheaper and easier.

http://www.productdesignforums.com/index.php?showtopic=1597
http://www.productdesignforums.com/index.php?showtopic=1513

EDIT: two
 
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