I know there are a lot of artists around here, and I'm hoping someone can help me out.
I'm considering getting 3ds Max or Maya.
Both are made by Autodesk. I have prior experience with Wings 3d and a couple 10+ year old versions of Autocad, if that helps. I'd like to use it for making 3d models and possibly animation.
Can anyone explain the differences between the two software?
Thanks,
- Karen
Maya or 3ds Max?
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Caroline
- Kuwabarakuwabara - Oh My God!
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this is sort of like asking, pc or mac lol...? i don't animate myself, but i'll repeat what i have heard in a nutshell. maya and 3d max are computer graphic softwares, just tools in the animation process. choosing one or the other really depends on your skill level and what you are trying to do, ie animating, modelling, texturing, etc. for some, there are notable strengths and weakness, and interface differences in each program. maya is widely used in tv and film animation, but most find it the more difficult to learn. 3d max has also been used in 3d film, but is prevalent in gaming animation and film special effects. some productions use both. for me personally, i would look more at the plugins you'll want that are available for each program, ie prman, renderman, v-ray, etc and that might help make the decision. at the end of the day, you can probably achieve the same result with either program.
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MidniteKitten
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I can't help ya' far as the differences go but I can tell you about Maya in the year I've been using it.
Maya is very easy to understand, I'm only 17 and already am discovering all the possibilities. It has a lot of nifty features as far as animation and modeling, the animation works at a 24fps rate. And the time slider is easy to understand as well a setting key frames. A lot of the basic shapes are already available for creation and can easily be scaled and modified as needed. I once made a giraffe out of only a square! Its also really convenient as it comes integrated with tutorials that help a bunch, like how to make hair, how to creat a motion path, and particle emitters. Depending on which version you get the water and hair functions will also yield better results. Though if you save a polygonal model that you've smoothed out and later want to do more editing to it you can't revert to polygons, this can be annoying because I've found it easier to polygonaly model and round off later. The negatives that I've encountered is Maya can be unpredictable. Sometimes you may perform an operation correctly but it spasms and the operation is completely wrong. For example when extruding multiple faces depending on how Maya is feeling the faces will turn out connected (like they should) or be completely seperate and come out at angles. Also, when smoothing out models if your computer can't handle the program Maya will freeze and the smoothing will cause it to lag alot!
All in all I really like the program and go by the philosophy if they can teach it to us teenagers and we are capable of making anything from Sailor Moon accessories to Master Chief from Halo3 then its very possible to do even more with patience. There's plenty of tutorials on sites like youtube and turbosquid. Ill try and get the more technical aspects (in case you were looking for that) on Monday when I return to class. Hope that mess helped some ^w^
Maya is very easy to understand, I'm only 17 and already am discovering all the possibilities. It has a lot of nifty features as far as animation and modeling, the animation works at a 24fps rate. And the time slider is easy to understand as well a setting key frames. A lot of the basic shapes are already available for creation and can easily be scaled and modified as needed. I once made a giraffe out of only a square! Its also really convenient as it comes integrated with tutorials that help a bunch, like how to make hair, how to creat a motion path, and particle emitters. Depending on which version you get the water and hair functions will also yield better results. Though if you save a polygonal model that you've smoothed out and later want to do more editing to it you can't revert to polygons, this can be annoying because I've found it easier to polygonaly model and round off later. The negatives that I've encountered is Maya can be unpredictable. Sometimes you may perform an operation correctly but it spasms and the operation is completely wrong. For example when extruding multiple faces depending on how Maya is feeling the faces will turn out connected (like they should) or be completely seperate and come out at angles. Also, when smoothing out models if your computer can't handle the program Maya will freeze and the smoothing will cause it to lag alot!
All in all I really like the program and go by the philosophy if they can teach it to us teenagers and we are capable of making anything from Sailor Moon accessories to Master Chief from Halo3 then its very possible to do even more with patience. There's plenty of tutorials on sites like youtube and turbosquid. Ill try and get the more technical aspects (in case you were looking for that) on Monday when I return to class. Hope that mess helped some ^w^
I like Max over Maya.
I find 3DS Max’s keyboard and mouse shortcuts more intuitive, and I prefer a lot of Max’s plugins. However, buying a lot of plugins for a program can get expensive. If you’re not planning on getting many plugins for the program, once you learn Maya’s shortcuts, both are similar.
I did my site design in 3DS Max.
I find 3DS Max’s keyboard and mouse shortcuts more intuitive, and I prefer a lot of Max’s plugins. However, buying a lot of plugins for a program can get expensive. If you’re not planning on getting many plugins for the program, once you learn Maya’s shortcuts, both are similar.
I did my site design in 3DS Max.