What 3D program would you recommend?

[Reptile]

I've tried modelling and want to take it serously but I cant decid on a program, I think the most popular ones would be the best because there would be more of a community and help. Cinema 4D? 3Ds Studio Max 7?

[MrColossal]

Try Blender, it's free.

Also try the learning edition of Silo, it's free, or Gmod by 3d max, it's not good in the slightest but it'll get you used to max if you decide to use it

[stuh505]

3ds max is a great program but it's not a MODELLER although it can model, that's not the easiest place to model

same with C4D...

check out Silo, download the free 14 day trial

after that try wings

[dasjoe]

but blender has no ZVarily.. always keep that in mind!

seriously, most people i know use 3dsmax or blender.
i'd prefer blender, if i ever figur that interface out.

[Traveler]

I use Rhino 3 and find it very good for modelling - although it takes a while to figure out how to model complex surfaces. I believe it's *much* better at modelling than 3ds max (which I haven't used in a long while.)

I use Flamingo for rendering and I'm quite happy with it. If you give a try to Rhino and/or Flamingo, make sure you have the latest fixes, though. For game graphics, the built-in Rhino renderer is probably good, but it doesn't have support for plants and has no material editor.

I don't have much experience with other renderers, so if someone can suggest something good (and not too expensive), I'd appreciate it. I used to use Truespace (a bit, it was OK) and Bryce, too.

[stuh505]

I think NURBS are pretty much dead, and good riddance...

[Traveler]

I think NURBS are pretty much dead, and good riddance...

I like it, mostly because I don't have to work with meshes. It's more natural to me to define a surface by drawing a few curves. Also, I like its interface a lot more than most other 3D programs I tried.

McNeel plans to release a Rhino 4 in the near future, it'll have a lot of nice features. As I said, I haven't used 3ds max for a long time (lacking $3500 to buy it  ) and at that time it was pretty complicated.

[stuh505]

I'm not pushing Max, although I disagree with it being more complicated...I think it gets it's popularity from it's being the simplest one to learn

[Krazy]

I'd recomend Blender, it's free and not really that hard to use once you learn how.

[shbaz]

but blender has no ZVarily.. always keep that in mind!

I think you guys are just making up features to make Blender look bad. Does 3DS have a monkey primitive? Blender does. 

[dgunpluggered]

Monkey primitive is soooo 1997. Get with the times, man! We live in the age of ZVarily.

[theyak]

For me, I'm impressed by some of the features and overall niftyness of 3DSMax.  However, the first brand-name program I messed with I also found the most intuitive and easy-to-use: Rhinoceros.  I quite like it.  It has it's downsides, of course, but for modelling the CAD-type structure seems more natural than the primative-modification of 3DSMax.  Blender I found incomprehensible.  Of course, given more than 10 minutes of attention, I might've learned something but if I can't pick up a program and right-away do something cool in it, I just stick with what I have.

Besides, Rhino's got the Hyperbolic Anthromorphization feature.

[veryweirdguy]

but blender has no ZVarily.. always keep that in mind!

I think you guys are just making up features to make Blender look bad. Does 3DS have a monkey primitive? Blender does.

I made this 3D model of a ninja using ONLY ZVarily and a extra frothy chocolate milkshake:



It could be perceived as an allegory of the Russian Revolution, in which the lasers represent communism.

And Blender represents something which is being shot at by a laser.

[Traveler]

Just curious: can you use 4 views in Blender? I tried Blender several times, but it always gave me headaches when I tried modelling something complex. I couldn't figure out if I can set more than one view (having one perspective and the others as top/front/side.) That was the major turn-off for me  , I need multiple views to work with a 3D program.

Since stuh505 said 3ds max is supposed to be very easy to learn, I may give it a shot if I can get my dirty hands on a recent copy.

[stuh505]

One thing I will say for Blender is that I've heard good things about the LSCM mapping capability.  Since Blender is free, that makes it a potetial reason to use it...simply for setting mapping coords.  I downloaded it but could not figure out how in the heck to use the LSCM tool...I messed around with it for a few hours and finally gave up.

But here are some questions to the Blender fans--

1. Dynamics
a. can you do basic physical simulations, aka a bowling all knocking over pins?
b. does it have built in hair dynamics, or plugins that do a good job?
c. does it have built in cloth dynamics, or plugins that do a good job?
d. does it have a good particle system?
e. support soft bodies?

2. Characters & Rigging
a. can you build a full FK/IK rig thats practical to use?
b. how is skin weighting assigned?

3. Compatibility
a. can you import/export fbx?
b. can you export rib?
c. can you model with subdiv surfaces?

4. Rendering
a. SSS?
b. efficient hair shader support?
c. radiosity?
d. global illumination?
e. support subdiv surfaces?
f. how well does it support displacement mapping?
g. can you batch render in the background?

5. Material editor
a. layer based or node based?
b. generate procedurals?
c. animated textures?

[shbaz]

Just curious: can you use 4 views in Blender?

To use multiple views you split the main viewport by right clicking on the dividers on the top and right sides and choosing "Split." You can do this as many times as you want with any of the viewports.

One thing I will say for Blender is that I've heard good things about the LSCM mapping capability.  Since Blender is free, that makes it a potetial reason to use it...simply for setting mapping coords.  I downloaded it but could not figure out how in the heck to use the LSCM tool...I messed around with it for a few hours and finally gave up.

Select faces (easiest using face select tool), press U, select LSCM. Full release log of the modern UV features is here and specifically LSCM here. It also has texture baking, which is relatively new.

1. Dynamics
a. can you do basic physical simulations, aka a bowling all knocking over pins?
b. does it have built in hair dynamics, or plugins that do a good job?
c. does it have built in cloth dynamics, or plugins that do a good job?
d. does it have a good particle system?
e. support soft bodies?

No to a, b, c. Yes to d,e. Softbodies are actually going to be fully released in the next version but have been around in Tohuppu Blender for a long time. The particle system will animate for fur, look through the release logs for something on that.

2. Characters & Rigging
a. can you build a full FK/IK rig thats practical to use?
b. how is skin weighting assigned?

Yes.. skin weighting is assigned to verteces either in groups or one by one.

3. Compatibility
a. can you import/export fbx?
b. can you export rib?
c. can you model with subdiv surfaces?

No a,b.. and to c, WTF, have you ever downloaded it?

4. Rendering
a. SSS?
b. efficient hair shader support?
c. radiosity?
d. global illumination?
e. support subdiv surfaces?
f. how well does it support displacement mapping?
g. can you batch render in the background?

New Python scripts for a but not implemented into BF Blender yet. Radiosity has been there ever since I've used it, which was years ago. GI is accomplished using a sphere with lamps particle emitted from its verteces according to its normals. With subdiv surfaces, again, wtf? Have you seen the galleries, or.. I just don't know why you would ask that. Displacement mapping sucks. No batch rendering since Blender is so light on memory, if I need to do more than one render at once and it's not an animation I just open two instances. No hair shader support, people have just started bitching about the lack of modern shaders lately.

5. Material editor
a. layer based or node based?
b. generate procedurals?
c. animated textures?

Yeah to all of those.. you really haven't made a qualified effort to use this program before, have you? I mean, subsurfaces and procedurals are so basic and necessary for any 3d program that I don't know how you would have missed them if you tryed to do anything significant. If you want to learn to use it, go here, but if you just want to continue badmouthing it for years like it's a piece of trash at least do it on the premise that you've never genuinely tryed to do anything with it. I hear people all of the time saying, "I couldn't make a cube, so I closed it." Well I really have to wonder if using any 3d program was ever that easy, it certainly wasn't any easier for me with other new programs like Lightwave and AutoCAD. Sometimes people need to just get off of their high horses and pick up the manual or a tutorial.

[stuh505]

I wasn't badmouthing Blender, relax.

And no, I have not attempted to really learn Blender...I was asking those list of questions to get a sense on simply what Blender can do.  I don't really plan on ever learning Blender, except for checking out some features someday like LSCM, because I am happy with other programs, but I was just curious what you CAN do with Blender.

[Traveler]

Just curious: can you use 4 views in Blender?

To use multiple views you split the main viewport by right clicking on the dividers on the top and right sides and choosing "Split." You can do this as many times as you want with any of the viewports.

Oh, man, thanks, I couldn't figure this out! I didn't see a menu item anywhere in Blender that would suggest that it is capable of having multiple views. I tried resizing the one view and other windows but didn't think of right-clicking the divider. Thanks once more, I'll give it another shot.

[shbaz]

Just curious: can you use 4 views in Blender?

To use multiple views you split the main viewport by right clicking on the dividers on the top and right sides and choosing "Split." You can do this as many times as you want with any of the viewports.

Oh, man, thanks, I couldn't figure this out! I didn't see a menu item anywhere in Blender that would suggest that it is capable of having multiple views. I tried resizing the one view and other windows but didn't think of right-clicking the divider. Thanks once more, I'll give it another shot.

Just pop into elysiun.com forums/blender general any time you have a question, people are quick to respond.

[Gregjazz]

but blender has no ZVarily.. always keep that in mind!

I think you guys are just making up features to make Blender look bad. Does 3DS have a monkey primitive? Blender does. 

I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!

Actually, Blender does look pretty cool. I tried it a few months ago, but I really didn't have the time to get into it.