How to get started

[egproductions]

I hvae been wanted to do 3d modeling for quit soem ti now but the learning curve seems way to steep for me. When i began video eiditng I dindt need any books or anything the progam was self explanitory enough to get started. Whats the best way of learning maya or lightwave or 3d studio max?

[Beat Takeshi]

Well... I would say the absolute best way to "start" is to take a scupturing class and work with clay first. This will give your eye and hands the spacial relationship practice you are going to need for organic modeling in 3D.

[oneinfiniteloop]

Well... I would say the absolute best way to "start" is to take a scupturing class and work with clay first. This will give your eye and hands the spacial relationship practice you are going to need for organic modeling in 3D.

Good point. I took a class at my local community college. It helped me get a firm understanding of the basics and then I went from there.

[Greggl]

Set a goal and do it.

Storyboard a project or shoot a scene with the express purpose of using 3d
modeled CGI.

I know *hundreds* of aspiring 3d artists that have spent ages working on
their modeling skills... most of them have web sites and reels filled with uber
complex or hyper-realistic 'things' that they do renders on slightly reflective
surfaces. Its the equalivent of hanging artwork up on mom's fridge

If you have a goal to actually USE what you're modeling.. you'll only model
in the detail that will be visible at the scale its being used. You'll learn to light
and composite for realisic results, where to cut corners etc. In the end, you'll
have usable vfx skills that can be directly applied.

[Matt Grunau]

You may want to take some time and look at the process as a whole and find a particular niche/area you may be particularly good at and like to do. 3D ain't like Photoshop, there are many areas where you can bury yourself in wholly, without ever touching any of the others. 3D packages have so many applications that it is almost anti-prosperous to try and excel in them all. I'm not bashing your abilities, or anyone else's, but the plain truth is no one I can think of (and no effects houses worthy of being looked at) have only one person doing everything. Here are the major portions of any 3D app:

Modeling
Texturing
Character Animation
Scene Animation
Rigging
Lighting
Dynamics (Hard body and Soft body)
Particles
Rendering
Compositing

Each one is a career unto itself. Personally, I can't model with a crap, but I am not to bad at simple animation (cameras), particles, rendering, and compositing. (Lightwave) The pipeline for 3D is a massive one. No one is great at everything.

Most of my uses for 3D revolve around specific visuals dedicated for video enhancement.

Get some software and find what you are best at and then develop that. Then find others who use the same software and are good at different things. Three people great at three different portions of a 3D package are a hell of a lot more valuable than five people decent in more.

[Alex DePew]

You'll definitely want to check out the work on CGtalk. There are artists there in all the disciplines from beginner to professional. Just a warning though it is geared more towards the more skilled people and they can give the cold shoulder to a newbie. But I had good experiences on the board. I toyed with the idea of a career in animation. I was learning modeling in 3ds max to start and got to a certain point when I realized that it would be fun as a side project but that I would much rather make movies outside of animation.

http://forums.cgsociety.org/

A link to my WIP. I haven't touched it in a while. I hope to get some time to work on it one day.
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=265799

[surf]

you will have to read several books and tuts.
first you will have to choose the software you want to use later. and learn that one. for what do you want to use it?

[egproductions]

thanx for all your advice, i am going to try a little out from all the diffrent areas of animation but i would probably end up using it for video enhancments mostly maybe to be able to make technical animation of a product for promotional videos. What software would you recommend(PC)?

[jelloshotsrule]

personally i'd recommend the maya personal learning edition. maya is one of the standards in 3D work, but it's also pretty pricey. the PLE lets you learn maya without paying anything, and the only downside is that it watermarks your renders so you can't use them commercially. now, if you want to get something that is cheaper and you can use your results right away, lightwave or 3d studio max are also highly respected.

personally i've found lightwave to be confusing (coming in as a maya user) and have never used 3d studio max. so, i'm biased.

good luck! 3D is a lot of work but a ton of fun.

ps. you can get the maya PLE from alias's website... or just search for it on versiontracker or something and you'll get a link.

[Rich Lee]

if you can...take a class...i took a 10 week class and it helped a great deal!

if not do some research and grab some tuts on the net...there are tons of dvd training courses you can buy.

start modeling simple things around your house...a glass...a table...a chair...working your way up to harder things like a stove or shoe...

one of the first things i ever did after my class was model things on my desktop...things i could measure and examine...



then i started modeling other things in my house...starting with chairs and bottles and jars...working my way up to my bike and a cool old fan....then measuring my apartment and building it...

it was a great exercise...and you will learn allot cause you start to think about how to build each shape and each one wil have its own little challenge...



this was like 5 years ago...i could do way better now...but you have to start somewhere...after i did this and a few other images it wasnt long before i got a job...

you have to work hard though...like anything else...and if its something you really want to do then you have to make it a priority...its nothing like learning an editing program, these programs are 50x's deeper then any editing app...they are more complex then operating systems...

take a short intro class...just to learn the basics...

i started