Why Blender
Joe Cotter
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(a) because it's open source, so if the documentation isn't helping, then as a last resort you can dive into the code (or ask someone else to) and determine exactly what on earth is happening;
(b) it bundles up almost everything into a single package and interface - modelling, sculpting, soft-cloth hard-body hair particle and fluid dynamics, UV-mapping, projection texturing, rigging, animating and rendering (and probably other corners that I haven't thought of X);
(c) it has a simian as a mascot - oook! (^_^)
WHY NOT?
*ahem* at the risk of being a bit negative...
(the interface is not to everybody's taste... some find the surfeit of power to be "just too much", and want to focus on a single task such as sculpting or uvmapping only, with a specific dedicated toolset... others might have an eye on their CV and want to be able to put down '3DSMax/Maya experience', rather than 'Blender experience'... also the importer for Poser objects still has a little way to go... can't bake textures with cycles yet... python scripting can be esoteric...)
Nonetheless, I enjoy them both - Blender for creating stuff, and DS for making pretty NVIATWAS pictures (^_^)d.
...stable.
...more comprehensive
...professional grade.
...0$ vs. 3,500 - 4,000$
because it crushes your ice and mixes your drink?
...heh!
Ah, but is it a floor wax or a dessert topping?
On my pc, it just collected dust bunnies... but I have heard that since I last used it, the interface has gotten better... I still haven't braved it. I have such a stressful association with the thing that I just haven't even tried...lol
My trouble: I'm clumsy as hell... I have to be able to make mistakes and "undo" them... and Blender didn't do that very well when I used it. I also was notoriously "wrong" in there. I mean, I would click when I should drag or click the wrong thing or click the wrong way and unforgiving Blender didn't give me a way out of it! So yeah... I haven't tried it yet... but my b/f is a fan. He tells me I should give it another try all the time....
Btw, that was meant to be somewhat of a rhetorical question, which I had hoped would be apparent if people clicked on any of the links in the first post ;p
Jasmine
control+Z
for undo
only thing that kept me trying a few things in Blender.
I only find each upgrade changes the user interface a bit and I only just get my head around last version!
have gotten Daz dollies wearing simulated Optitex clothes in via mdd export and run fluid sims on them but then the bloody interface changed yet again and only the clothes animate etc.
Blender has come along way for sure. Amazingly enough an old newb like myself was able to understand things better than I have in all the other modeling programs I've tried, with ALLOT of help from fellow Blender users!! :-) With help I got my bodysuit fixed up really nicely. SO why Blender? If I can get a grip on it anyone can!
You missed this one Gedd ;-)...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVJyGzPJIeQ
(a little hardcore... skip to around +07:20 to see the final results -- it's the intro to a set of paid-for tutorial videos)
There's also this (now that everybody it seems is getting into strand-based hair)...
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/Extensions:2.6/Py/Scripts/Objects/HairNet
Because it runs natively on Linux...
Its not for everyone. I am not against it but I personally dont use it. I tried learning it via this tutorial - http://blendercourse.com/English/blendercourse-basics-v2 - but in the end, the Blender UI is still the main reason I will not use it. It is a great all in one package, but since I only need a modeling app and not a complete all-in-one package, I put it away and wont go back. Silo is my modeling app of choice and works wonderfully for what I need. I do not bash, judge, or make fun of those who use a different program cause there is not point or purpose in doing so. I will point out that tutorial to anyone looking for help in Blender cause I found it helpful enough but I cannot use Blender. It is not my cup of tea if you know what I mean.
Speaking of Blender stuff, for anyone new to Blender looking in on this thread, these are the Blender links I have saved for tutorials and the like though I suggest you start with the one above:
http://www.blenderguru.com/
http://www.blendernation.com/
http://www.blendswap.com/
*ahem* at the risk of being a bit negative...
(the interface is not to everybody's taste... some find the surfeit of power to be "just too much", and want to focus on a single task such as sculpting or uvmapping only, with a specific dedicated toolset... others might have an eye on their CV and want to be able to put down '3DSMax/Maya experience', rather than 'Blender experience'... also the importer for Poser objects still has a little way to go... can't bake textures with cycles yet... python scripting can be esoteric...)
Nonetheless, I enjoy them both - Blender for creating stuff, and DS for making pretty NVIATWAS pictures (^_^)d.
Do you mean it is similar/identical to 3DS Max/Maya ?
Do you mean it is similar/identical to 3DS Max/Maya ?
No no - in that post, I was trying to list some of the reasons I've seen why people do NOT like using it (v_v). I've been told that the interface can be (made to be) somewhat similar to those packages, but I've never had the opportunity to sit down in front of 3DSMax/Maya, so I wouldn't know <(^_^). Also, if you are sitting down "cold" with no previous experience in any package, you might want to select the PLE / Learning versions of those packages to spend your time on, because they look better on industry CVs (as I understand it).</p>
Interesting thread. ;)
I use it because it's free and it gets the job done. I do this for a living, so if I accepted "it's difficult" as a reason for not doing something, I would die of starvation (and if you've seen me you know that would take a while). This applies to everything I do, and my most lucrative projects have invariably been the hardest.
There are specific things that other programs do better, especially when it comes to 3d painting, but fortunately most of them are supplied by 3d Coat, which is much cheaper than Max or Maya.
I wouldn't work for someone else even if I could - I loooove being my own boss - so CVs are not an issue for me. :D But that is certainly a reason for mastering as many of the big suites as possible if you're right out of art school and looking to work in film or with a game studio.
I am actually putting together a tutorial for some of the basics that might be easier for some to follow. I noticed that the tutorial you were trying to learn from Matty followed the traditional method of jumping right into Edit Mode, which is one of what I see to be basic flaws in the way Blender tutorials are covered. I believe one should have a solid understanding of Object Mode and basic 'getting around' before being thrown in and expected to edit stuff, even basic things. The other thing I noticed is, that the interface is given a topical treatment which is fine for someone who already knows it, but is lacking quite a bit for those that don't. There are some areas of the interface that make sense once someone groks it, but is just confusion before and those are the aspects that should be covered but almost never are.
Once I get the basics down, I will try to either post it, or a link to it for anyone who would care to look at it.
Great idea! We've been seeing more interest in the Blender to DS workflows lately, probably because of how easy DS's rigging tools are to use since version 4.
Thank you. I'd be interested in your approach. I've actually made some progress, but lack a lot of time to devote to learning it. (Work).
I would not recommend changing the interface to match another package unless one is using the other package as their default tool, as it defeats many of the built in efficiencies in Blender's interface. One would not generally want to retrofit a sports car interior into a Semi Truck or vice versa... as they are both designed for the type of vehicle they are contained in.
This is a reason to be proficient at one or more of the Autodesk products, but studio work is moving overseas to a large part, India and China. It appears the real growth area for many will be as independents or sub-contractors in places like the U.S., England, etc... There are other reasons to learn Autodesk and other products however, as even as an independent sub-contractor the work might need to be submitted in that form.
With the growth of things like ptex and other new standards, this might become less of an issue, and if one is looking to create for 3D Web or other new formats like that, the base tool also becomes less of an issue.
I hope to create 2D graphics for web design eventually as one income stream so what I use will not matter at all, only the finished product.
This is a reason to be proficient at one or more of the Autodesk products, but studio work is moving overseas to a large part, India and China. It appears the real growth area for many will be as independents or sub-contractors in places like the U.S., England, etc... There are other reasons to learn Autodesk and other products however, as even as an independent sub-contractor the work might need to be submitted in that form.
If you're trying to sell on TurboSquid, I guess. They're not necessary to sell in the Unity Engine store.
Or are we talking about one-off projects for individual customers? From what I hear, it's hard to make a living that way unless you're working on purely adult content.
cross posed!
I was referring to doing sub-contract work for graphics houses. It appears direct hiring by houses here might drop significantly, but some independent work will probably be supported for various reasons. For one, independents are more flexible and/or specialized often then work houses one would see in places like China or India. Also, I happen to believe, totally based on my own perspective, that the market might open up in general for premade content the way it did for off-the-shelf software. That is, we could be on the cusp of a bit of a revolution in 3D graphics.
Don't bet your house on my ruminations however. There is an old saying, anyone can predict the stock market.. it's the timing that is the bear.
Some colleges have started to embrace Blender in lieu of AutoDesk and since I can't use Autodesk software for free unless I can prove I'm an artist or teacher, and if I can prove it I still cant legally sell anything I make because of the license agreement unless I pay for it (and it ain't cheap) I don't see it as a viable solution.
Autodesk products are also free for anyone unemployed for non-commercial use. Just an fyi for anyone that might be interested.
There are also some more specialized applications that are not being actively pursued by India or China from what I understand, due to the smaller market. Houdini is one of them. If one were interested in sub-contracting to larger houses, that is one avenue worth considering... software packages used but in smaller amounts, by the big houses.
Oh, and Second Life, I forgot about that. Also requires no specific software package but offers the opportunity to make money with less startup and based on your effort and abilities rather than someone's need for a specific project (as with Unity, TurboSquid, and our own market).
I'm sure there are other such opportunities that will open up as time goes by, since they let customers get things cheaper (since they're paying per item and not by the hour) and merchants make more per unit of time spent (since they can sell a given product to more than one person).