How do you guys afford this?!
by Katelan Moye · in Artist Corner · 03/25/2009 (10:02 pm) · 24 replies
Is there a free/cheap alternative to 3dStudio max?! Any feedback would be great... I can't afford to pay thousands of dollars for it...
-Syn
-Syn
#22
So if you are a student, has a friend or wife who is a student, I highly recommend that you abuse that wonderful Studen ID of theirs at their local campus bookstore (or online store) and save some cash by purchasing educational and then upgrading.
04/07/2009 (8:17 am)
While you cannot use educational software for non-educational work, it is worth noting that some companies such as Adobe, let you simply upgrade from educational to commercial licenses very cheaply.So if you are a student, has a friend or wife who is a student, I highly recommend that you abuse that wonderful Studen ID of theirs at their local campus bookstore (or online store) and save some cash by purchasing educational and then upgrading.
#23
I started with Milkshape, but out grew it. It is a fantastic low-end application, but as I got better, I found it was limiting the quality of work I could produce. So I don't agree that a great artist can produce great art with any tool, good art - perhaps ;]
Blender is very powerful if you have the mind set to learn/use it. My business partner uses it, Gustavo certainly produces some nice art with it. I hate it!
The problem with Houdini is that you MIGHT want to do something with it other than Torque related some day. But now you are locked in to an expensive upgrade because it's what you know.
If you have the $3600, I highly recommend XSI + ZBrush, together they are excellent for producing AAA quality art. I find XSI interface is more intuitive than 3dmax, maya, or blender, and I believe it is less expensive than Maya or 3dmax. There is a free version if you are not doing commercial work.
If you don't have the cash, then you are stuck with Blender or low end apps such as Milkshape or Fragmotion. That's just the reality of it. I also recommend getting Ultimate Unwrap 3d for doing UV mapping, it does an excellent job.
You may also find that as your skill set grows you want to change your software to better suit your style. Starting with something like Milkshape makes that fairly painless.
Best of Luck with it!
04/07/2009 (9:20 am)
You pretty much get what you pay for. I know there are a number of folks out there producing Max or Maya content with student licenses - Personally - not dice I want to roll, but folks do it. I started with Milkshape, but out grew it. It is a fantastic low-end application, but as I got better, I found it was limiting the quality of work I could produce. So I don't agree that a great artist can produce great art with any tool, good art - perhaps ;]
Blender is very powerful if you have the mind set to learn/use it. My business partner uses it, Gustavo certainly produces some nice art with it. I hate it!
The problem with Houdini is that you MIGHT want to do something with it other than Torque related some day. But now you are locked in to an expensive upgrade because it's what you know.
If you have the $3600, I highly recommend XSI + ZBrush, together they are excellent for producing AAA quality art. I find XSI interface is more intuitive than 3dmax, maya, or blender, and I believe it is less expensive than Maya or 3dmax. There is a free version if you are not doing commercial work.
If you don't have the cash, then you are stuck with Blender or low end apps such as Milkshape or Fragmotion. That's just the reality of it. I also recommend getting Ultimate Unwrap 3d for doing UV mapping, it does an excellent job.
You may also find that as your skill set grows you want to change your software to better suit your style. Starting with something like Milkshape makes that fairly painless.
Best of Luck with it!
#24
04/07/2009 (10:57 am)
If you're learning still, I highly recommend using the Student dicount as mentioned above by Anthony and Logan. Chances are, by the time you have high enough skills, you'll be able to afford the full professional version. Also, you don't have to buy the latest version. I learned on StudioMax 3.1, and it was excellent for many years! Older versions can be considerably less expensive, and superb for learning because there are millions of tutorials out there. When you're ready to upgrade, it may seem more affordable. 
Torque Owner Anthony Ratcliffe