Some questions about modeling and softwares in production

Dr_Hyde

Hi there,

I'm student and I was taught to use Maya to learn the basics of 3D modeling but  when I'm looking what the others mades  I see that not many people seem to use it or only for build a scene or for somes simple modeling, everyone is turning to 3ds Max or even Zbrush. So I'm really starting to ask myself some questions about it and if I have to turn to this software if want survive in this field.

I know that the Autodesk's Softwares are very buggy and lot of peoples complains about it and are melancholic of XSI. I hear a lot of rumor say that studios uses their "own maya" because they can reprogram it...
So what I have to do ? I'm also interested more and more to Modo because it seems very cool but I also read that it has some troubles with his performances and no studios use it. Can someone give me advices about all of that ?

JordanN

Don't worry about the software. Some companies do have their own proprietary plugins and what not, but that comes later. If you're just attempting to be a 3D modeler, character artist, vfx artist etc then Maya is still perfectly fine for the job.

Regarding Zbrush, it can be used in addition to your current Maya workflow. For example, you model a Garbage Bin in Maya but want to add finer surface detail, you take it into that program to sculpt with it.

Dr_Hyde

Thanks for your response, one last question I guess if i want to work in 3D concept it's better to move to Zbrush because it's more faster to design some concept on Zbrush or it's possible to work on this field by simply used any 3D software ? I mean if our workflow is good and fast we can use anything ?

Eric Chadwick

If you want to get into 3d concepting, practice your painting skills. You'll learn much faster all the required imaging skills than if you only use modeling without the image-making skills. Color theory, composition, perspective, lighting, presentation, etc. Essential skills for all concept artists. Use a free fast 3d modeler like SketchUp and develop your paintover skills. My 2 cents.

sacboi

Also 'kit bashing' pic's in an image editor is another commonly used workflow because of its efficiency and speed, essentially taking a basic 3d asset (...made in whatever 3d software) and putting it into an environment.

3D Concept Art Workflow  - author Ahmed El Johani 

(quoted from article)

Finding a Good Starting Point

In a production environment, time is a very valuable commodity; therefore, being a concept artist means that what you create is never the final piece, there are endless iterations and experiments. This means you can't afford to do everything from scratch without sacrificing the quality, so the smart thing to do is to spend some time looking for a good starting point. Things I like to keep in mind while looking for photos are the resolution and the lighting; good exposure is key to beautiful natural lighting, you don't want the lights to be too blown out or the darks to be too dark...