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What? MSolomon, you didn't get the memo that Carrara can't be used professionally? :)
Stellar work, I especially loved the one about the boy and the shoes, that actually looks like a book I would have loved to read when I was a boy. Heck, it looks like the kind of book I like to read even now that I'm all grown up.
I don't think there's any reason that an app that is as incredibly capable (already even in present form) as Carrara should die, or even be considered in decline. I see new Carrara users posting here in the forums all the time, and most of us who've become comfortable with Carrara and used it for some time aren't leaving Carrara anytime soon. The main troubles Carrara has aren't in the app itself, but that a) it isn't well known enough in the broader market and b) there are some urban legends about things Carrara supposedly 'can't' do that are simply untrue. For example, the old saw that real Pros who make a living at 3d art don't/can't use Carrara in their workflow (please ignore all those pros who actually do), or Carrara can't be used for realistic human rendering (please ignore all those Carrara outstanding human renders, especially the contest winners), or Carrara can't use Genesis2 (please ignore all those renders featuring Genesis2, who are you gonna believe, me or your lyin' eyes?) etc.
There will always be an entry-level 3d art market (Poser, Studio, etc) and until we get to version Poser 30 or Studio 37 when development has gone so far that the entry-level apps can do everything, I believe there will naturally be progression of Poser and Studio users who are looking for an app that is not so constrained and lets them do more. Carrara should be a natural choice for those who are looking for a more capable and professional software that lets them do more (much, much more).
Personally I still think the 'cure' is simply doing what comes naturally, participating on the forums, posting renders of what Carrara can do, asking and answering questions, etc. Letting others know that Carrara exists and what it can do (nearly unlimited) and also gently correcting misconceptions of what it can't do. I'm not trying to whitewash the little problems here and there but I also flatly refuse to make mountains out of micro-sized molehills :) I'm certain we'll get Carrara 9, though I don't know how soon or what will be included. But for me personally I find I need and rely on the Carrara community more (to help me access all the things Carrara can already do) more than I need the hope of some Daz developer to maybe someday add even more features.
Eovia has done some major work on Carrara, and DAZ 3D has done more than just keeping it alive... they've been adding nice new tools, fixed a whole bunch of little things that don't really show up as new features, and then brought it into the 64 bit realm, while adding what some folks have called questionable, others loved. With software like this, it's difficult to please everyone. Carrara does such a nice job of pleasing so many people - and as Argus 1000 points out, it serves ones needs so well already. I find it refreshing just to see that they are stoking up the proverbial coals.
Thanks for this awesome statement, Argus! Let's just keep on rocking on our animation and rendering fun with our favorite software, shall we? ;)
Thanks Stark, designing and building characters is one of my favorite things to do in Carrara.
I have heard some say that Carrara has a steep learning curve. One of the primary reasons I chose Carrara is its ease of use. I admit coming from 2D to 3D or from Word to 3D has its challenges but Carrara makes learning fun and relatively easy. I was up and creating in 2 months. If some of you think Carrara is hard try grasping Maya, Lightwave, Studio Max or evan Blender. At least, while learning Carrara, I didn't need any pain killers.
Thanks Stark, designing and building characters is one of my favorite things to do in Carrara.
I have heard some say that Carrara has a steep learning curve. One of the primary reasons I chose Carrara is its ease of use. I admit coming from 2D to 3D or from Word to 3D has its challenges but Carrara makes learning fun and relatively easy. I was up and creating in 2 months. If some of you think Carrara is hard try grasping Maya, Lightwave, Studio Max or evan Blender. At least, while learning Carrara, I didn't need any pain killers.
Lol @ needing pain killers! I came from Maya and blanked out for almost three years with a migraine and busted laptop, then I found Daz and Carrara and I'm up and playing again!
[\quote]Lol @ needing pain killers! I came from Maya and blanked out for almost three years with a migraine and busted laptop, then I found Daz and Carrara and I'm up and playing again!
LOL, Thats what I'm talking about. I have a friend who has been trying to use blender for years. When I suggest he try Carrara, the reply is always the same. " ...but Blender is free."
Free is only valuable if it is useful. He has a free copy of Blender but nothing to show for it.
Yeah... agreed!
Totally easy and fun. There are those few little things that help to make life so much easier, like Caps Lock for moving Hot Point, etc., but I was the same way... get into Carrara and just got up and running without the sedation. :ahhh:
So true! Brilliantly stated too.
So true! Brilliantly stated too.
Blender is (practically) the only program which I never tested, and yet I could fill a page with links who show it's enormous capacities.
I always think that, if DAZ Carrara remains late too much on the others, I would be interested seriously in it
Hmm… as soon as that I have time, I will see that !
… but, it would be finally, still to import its possibilities in Carrara…;-)
Blender is (practically) the only program which I never tested, and yet I could fill a page with links who show it's enormous capacities.
I always think that, if DAZ Carrara remains late too much on the others, I would be interested seriously in it
Hmm… as soon as that I have time, I will see that !
… but, it would be finally, still to import its possibilities in Carrara…;-)
I agree completely that blender has a fantastic tool set but if it I can't have creative freedom in a reasonable amount of time I need to look else where. I am basically a greedy man. I wanted to do what I love for a living instead of a hobby. So I needed to learn a 3D title fast. Blender did not fit that objective. Case in point: I taught my 14 year nephew how to use the vertex modeler in a week. He actually worked on an assignment with me. Blender is a great tool if you can grasp it.
MSolomon,
Very nice collection of animation work on your youtube page.. Great stuff.
Thanks mmoir
I came from Cinema 4D. After years of dedication and noodling with it I realized, almost by accident, Carrara had all the same important features I wanted like network rendering, poly modeling, UV and painting tools, and most importantly (and this was the big realization)... hassle free compatibility with a huge library of low cost props and figures. No half supported conversion plugins, awkward procedures, import/export check boxes, head scratching, hunt for youtube videos, trial and error, missing crucial steps etc. etc... this was real load and go. I practically couldn't believe it. Hahha!
I retooled my head using PhilW's excellent tutorial series (thanks Phil) and through the excellent and helpful advice I've gotten here and elsewhere. Results: I've done more 3D art in Carrara in the last few months and had more fun than in ALL my past years, and heck, this is why I got into 3D graphics to begin with.
So yeah I sure hope there's plans to upgrade Carrara... and if so - I'm so ready to place my order :)
- Don
Wow, that's a fascinating story and very common.
You are very welcome - thanks for the kind words and a great story of just how good Carrara is!
Just to be clear, I think we all realize that ANYTHING can be used professionally. Great sculptors use merely a hammer and chisel professionally. Great writers use just a simple typewriter or word processor. Carpenters use simple hand tools professionally to build houses. Using something professionally is absolutely no indication of how good it is, especially with software. What's important with software is how easy and efficient it makes your professional work process. And whether it allows you to get your ideas implemented. What's more important is how well it is accepted in the general professional community. That *might* give an indication of how useful and efficient it is.
Just to be clear, I think we all realize that ANYTHING can be used professionally. Great sculptors use merely a hammer and chisel professionally. Great writers use just a simple typewriter or word processor. Carpenters use simple hand tools professionally to build houses. Using something professionally is absolutely no indication of how good it is, especially with software. What's important with software is how easy and efficient it makes your professional work process. And whether it allows you to get your ideas implemented. What's more important is how well it is accepted in the general professional community. That *might* give an indication of how useful and efficient it is.
I would say you can use all most anything professionally. Could a seasoned pro photographer use a pin hole camera at an all star game? Could an accomplished surgeon use a steak knife for brain surgery? Doubt full. :) Inspite of a professionals proficiency, just any tool may not be up to the task.
I started my 3D journey with Strata 3D. My goal was to have no limits to my creativity. Strata was a great app but wasn't very good for extreme character design ect. So I added Poser. Great for characters unless you wanted custom and posers animation tools were a bit cumbersome. Nor could I model from nothing. I wanted a single app to do all of the above, plus...
C4D, nope, can't use Daz. Maya, nope, no Daz, crazy expensive and a very steep learning curve. Then I found Carrara. So far I can create anything I can think up without limits.
Yes, I think it is the integration of a full 3D suite with Daz's content access which makes Carrara unique.
Your right. I haven't found any other app with the same combo of features.
I also recently purchased Carrara, largely because the included Daz content is far, FAR more expensive than the $60 for Carrara pro, but also because it looks like it has very powerful landscape creation tools. Rather like Vue or Terragen, only...affordable. From my point of view, I already have my money's worth because of the content. As for the program itself...
Well, it's frustrating. First, the UI is not as intuitive or as efficient as Daz3D. Second, it keeps refusing to see any of the smart content I have installed, even after multiple rebuilds of the metadata index. (I notice the new Beta version touches on that issue). Third, and so far most frustrating: the vertex / polygon modeling tools are ten years or more behind the times. Max 7 (circa 2003 or so) could do things that Carrara's 2012 version still can't. Even worse, Carrara isn't even up to par with Daz's other product, the largely defunct Hexagon.
I'd really like to know why they can't incorporate Hexagon's modeling features into the Carrara modeling room. It would greatly simplify the process of devising a unified workflow. As it is, Daz3D has the content compatibility, Carrara has the terrain and the dynamic simulations, and Hexagon has the modeling. You have to move things back and forth between all three apps to get them "just so," and that is a royal pain. Even Autodesk is more unified with Max, Maya, Softimage and Mudbox.
Honestly, my biggest hope for Carrara was that I'd be able to modify the Daz figures a lot more than can be done in Daz, and create new content like clothing etc. All of that is possible, but sheesh the PITA factor...
Sounds like you have more insight into the VM than I, so I'll have to take your word for it.
As to editing figures, well, DAZ kinda' FUBAR'ed that with Genesis and the whole "protected geometry" thing, but you can do quite a bit with the Gen4 and earlier figures.
Regarding the UI, that is where I'll kindly agree to disagree. If I had to work with the Studio UI again, I would be bald because I would have torn out my hair.
Now, I'm not saying it isn't a bit quirky, but like Bryce users, we generally like quirky. Give it a little time and have a little patience and it may start to grow on you. ;-)
Yes, if they could take the best features from all their apps and somehow merge them into one super program, that would be wonderful. I don't see it happening any time soon though (maybe DAZ Soon...). In the meantime, Carrara is certainly the most capable all round program in the DAZ stable, and I like the interface, I guess that is more a case of what you are used to. The vertex modeller too is quite a capable beast, maybe not all the bells and whistles, but if you are seriously into modelling them you may well have Zbrush or some other specific modeller. And I think the addition of Lux and Octane as render plugins have given Carrara a new lease of life in that department too.
I use the Carrara's VM daily and enjoy doing so. I think if you gave it a solid try, without the industry standards clouding your fun, you might discover a new way to enjoy 3D.
Funny, I would have said exactly the opposite :-)
I guess that it's difficult to have an objective view on that subject.
Yeah, clearly when it comes to software, "intuitive" is in the eye of the beholder. If you started out with Carrara and aren't familiar with the other options available, then yeah, it's easy to like an ugly baby if it's yours... :) :)
But objectively, a lot of what jedilaw says is right on target. Carrara is, in MANY areas, decades behind the times. Doesn't mean it's not useful, nor does it mean people don't like it. Hell, I like it a lot because it gives what other apps can't: easy renders of characters, painful but relatively easy access to content when you don't feel like doing it yourself (painful because of having to tweak textures, etc.), and easy access to landscapes and cities and stuff like that.
But come on, when you compare it objectively to even free offerings like Blender, it's not even in the same ballpark feature-wise. Personally, I find it easier to use, but Blender is getting much easier, much quicker. And if Blender had the easy content import and built-in landscapes, etc., Carrara would be history.
I'm not bashing, it's nothing personal....just trying to be objective.
Like I've said many times, anyone can build and render ANYTHING with ANY 3D software. That's not the question. The important thing is how WELL and EFFICIENTLY does it allow you to do it.
By the way, you don't have to look very far to see how Carrara is decades behind the times in key features. Just compare it to Blender in areas such as: Fluids, Fire, Smoke, Cloth, Modelling, Built-in rendering, active support and feature enhancements/bug fixes, built in node compositing (which is huge, IMO)....
The list is long...and for Carrara to even catch up would take MANY years. That's why I'm certain that it's dead, or at least on life support, with it's sole and limited purpose to be a vehicle for users of content, who aren't very demanding. Yes, some are, but I'm guessing that's not the vast majority who want simple and quick and not complicated.
Actually, when I started 3D, I tried poser, daz studio, belnder and Carrara.
I reckon it was 4 years ago, but, at that time, I found Carrara the most intuitive of the 4.
Ui is a tricky area; what is great for some users is disliked by others. When we know one or two apps well and then move to a new one, there are surprises and lots of carried over expectations. I find Carrara to be OK. There are some elements of Daz's that I like but overall I prefer Carrara.
I came to Carrara from SketchUp, where I used a 3D mouse. It took some getting used to using a keyboard again to navigate, but the mouse is now in a cabinet, hibernating. For the first time in a long time, I also didn't upgrade to the newest SU; it is all Carrara now. There is still a lot I need to learn, and I am still artistically challenged (this likely will never change!). Carrara is also a lot cheaper than SU, and I can bring my creations (however untalented) to life with animation and lip-sync, which SU cannot dream of. There are some thigns that SU is lig
That said, I would love to see some improvements to Carrara. First up, I would love to have my 3D mouse work with it. The UI needs tweaking to look good on modern displays that are large (27 inches). Render nodes should work with any render, not just in the batch renderer. Fluids are a must, with floating objects. Better smoke and fire. And a physics engine that doesn't explode the wall of bricks upon start of animation... long before the wrecking ball hits it! The user guide number should match the software purchased (my software 8.5 came with a guide for 7). Oh, and multiple audio tracks.
There are more things I could say, but will leave it at this. Some things could be fixed in the current bug-fix efforts (which I hope are still continuing???).
Yes, Carrara looks dated. Yes, it seems that Daz doesn't care about it anymore. But, it does do some great work; there are some users here who work almost entirely in Carrara professionally and they seem to like it.
I sadly agree with that.
The worst part, IMHO, is that there isn't even a sufficient user base to have third party developers starting to implement plugins that would correct the situation.