What 3D Program?

OK, I am starting out and I just need some of your opinions on what 3d program I should use as a n00b. PLEASE DONT MAKE FUN LOL. :confused:

n00b eh, welcome! Well, you do now that any type of good 3D program starts at around $4500? I'd recommend Cinema 4D, you can do most things with it, good render times, nice price, almost every modeling tool you can think of, however, the program does not support n sided polygons, that's the other dissadvantage, if you have a clue what i'm talking about! If it's just for text and small stuff, then i'd go for 'pixels' or something... Here's what can be done in c4d...http://homepage.ntlworld.ie/cyblingv2/images/oblivion.jpg
plus you can do architectural design, industrial, anything you put your mind to!

Thank you very much I forgot to mention I have 3ds max but I am just learning it (College) I understand is is very complicated and I was wondering where i could get some tutorials for it. I want to master stand still art animation is simple thanks for your help again.

www.3dcafe.com

Best website for what you're looking for.

If u have 3dsmax then u have what u need :-)
try this one www.3dbuzz.com a lot of tutorials, artical, plugins and a lot more.

It kinda depends on what kind of stuff you're going to be making. There are programs like Bryce and Vue d'Esprit which are primarily for rendering 3d landscapes. There's Poser 4 and Poser Pro Pack for character psoing and animation. And there are all-around packages like Cinema 4D and 3ds Max. I have Cinema 4D and I'm also new to 3D, and it's my opinion that Cinema 4D makes things slightly more complicated than they have to be, and I've heard from others that it's not the most user friendly program. Then there's Lightwave, a professional level package, in fact the Final Fantasy movie was done with Lightwave. Or if you're obnoxiously rich you could spring for Maya, Maya Complete is $1,900 and Maya Unlimited is $16,000 (although there's a price drop coming but it'll still be expensive).

There are also some lesser known (and cheaper) programs that, from what I hear are almost or just as good as 3ds Max and Cinema, like Rhino, Carrara Studio, and the newly released Shade R5 (which was previously sold only in Japan).

By the way, how is 3ds Max? Have you tried out character modelling with it? I'm thinkin about getting it when I get some cash and I'm wondering what kind of learning curve it has.

And cybling, how did you get all those streaks in your oblivion pic? Is it an array, a particle emitter, or an explosion?

Ok, I guess I will stick to the 3ds max but the thing is I am not exactly stacked lol as much as i would like to get these other ones to try out. Oh yah I cant get my freakin banner to work :-( Help!!!!!

Are you serious about Final Fantasy being made in Lightwave.............WOW!!???!!!

I'm not 100% positive about Final Fantasy but I saw the making of documentary and the program they were using looks A LOT like Lightwave.

Production companies a whoal load of 3D program..i'm almost certain they used more than just lightwave. Thinks about character animation, they wouldn't have done that in LW

The streak are just an object with the explosion deformation applied to it with a light at the centre