Why Are 3D Artists Switching To Blender

[@ValorCatStudiosinc]

Im a 15-year Maya generalist, and I have fully switched to blender this year🎉 Not because its free, but because of its crazy speed/stability. It felt like switching to an electric car⚡️

[@Tertion]

ikr ? I was shocked when I started learning Maya at an animation school and even the teachers were having troubles teaching because Maya kept crashing lol. One year later I switched back and OH BOY did I miss Blender !

[@ValorCatStudiosinc]

@@Tertion yea, its really scary when the backbone of the 3D character animation industry is still about as stable as an experimental prototype, yet still runs on code from the 90s😭

[@michaeleaster8354]

Maya completely revamped it's UFE in Maya 2023 and 24, including a full upgrade to python 3. Also, Maya hasn't been incredibly unstable since Maya 2016. The things that Maya crashes at aren't even features in blender.

[@philmehrart]

Maya is solid, but it does crash at a lot of stupid crap. For me it's mainly modeling where I'd try to briefly view an instanced mesh in smooth preview and it just freaks out and closes down. I would say from the limited time of using Blender it's far more stable. Having said that have still had crashes on Blender but glad to say they're few and far between.

[@vivoslibertos]

Bcoz autodesk auditor try to extort for unlicensed item exist in the hard drive.

[@kenkioqqo]

Before I became serious about 3D modeling and animation around 2019, I had only heard about 3DS Max and Maya, so I tried tinkering with Maya's student version. Didn't really feel motivated to continue learning 3D because I didn't have thousands of dollars for 3D software. Since discovering Blender in January 2022, I've never touched any Autodesk tool again. Blender rocks!

[@Omniryu]

I switched, professionally, to Blender about 2 years ago now. All the concept artists use it. Outside of my department, more and more people are switching. I've noticed, it's a lot of the younger people who tend to fully embrace it. Some of the older folks still think "real 3D artists" or "professional 3D artists" don't use Blender. Meanwhile, since using it, I've shipped 2 games.

[@KennedyRichard]

I'd also say that the economy everywhere plays a great role. Of course this depends on the country/region someone lives in, but I'd say in general younger people nowadays deal with higher living costs and have to pay higher prices for basic stuff/services. So it makes a lot of sense to use free open-source software. It is no surprise industry veterans, which have a higher chance of already owning their own houses and having their lifestyle/living costs secured, are more tempted to keep paying for expensive software to keep their privileged position in the industry, rather than switching to a free software like Blender. That's why I'm glad open-source software exists, even more so in regard to projects like Blender. They are a true revolution and help level the playing field for everyone.

[@detroittrickster3327]

dont worry they will take over max maya more innivations @@KennedyRichard

[@sleepingonthecouch95]

Yeah. I've just completely switched from C4D to Houdini + Blender. Changed my life all around. And the Blender Community is just godlike.

[@ColinFox]

How do you feel about Blender's simulation nodes compared to Houdini? Is there anything missing?

[@sleepingonthecouch95]

@@ColinFox I've not touch the Geometry node yet. I use Blender mostly for Modeling then import them into Houdini.

[@yhiu92]

@@ColinFox Houdini has so many nodes for specific tasks. for example, we just need 1 node for simulate wind force or other forces. In simulation nodes, we need combine multiple nodes for the same result

[@RyoMassaki]

@@ColinFox There is nothing to compare really, Simulation in Blender is in its Infancy.

[@HaikuTutorials]

Exactly :) I switched from Modo and my life is much easier now :D

[@LawrenceAaronLuther]

Blender has something that i never hear talked about- the best setup for health. Seriously, other software has so much hold+click+drag that when you're working full time plus crunch time it'll kill your wrists. With blender, you never have to do that (but you can if you want to), and even tho it's a chore to memorize them using hotkeys for everything prevents unnecessary fiddly mouse injuries.

[@tospeed]

I agree... I used to experience finger pain when using 3ds Max, but it improved after I switched to Blender.

[@philmehrart]

YES, exactly dude, I've just been saying this to friends. The G, S and R functions are so fluid and don't make you feel you're on the cusp of getting RSI 🤣

[@SamEmilio2]

True! I would kill for the same hot keys in after effects

[@lucanwolf46]

One major plus with Blender is that there is no software license transfer to worry about with when migrating to a different workstation, not to mention the hassle of fudging with dongles.

[@erwinmeisel2545]

I taught C4D at our school for over 10 years. This year we switched to Blender. Students are loving it because they can install it on their own computer too.

[@HaikuTutorials]

Same as me, but with Modo haha

[@clonkex]

There's a lot to be said for free software.

[@HaikuTutorials]

Free is the best :) @@clonkex

[@GiJoe94]

When I was in uni we were running 3ds Max but now they switched to Blender which was great to hear

[@tufab3494]

I'm beginning to switch from C4D to Blender for a simple reason: there's more models, plugins, add-ons, engines and tutorials; besides being apparently a very complete software with multi-purpose

[@ChaosWolfNinja]

This is a strange thing to read because I thought Cinema4D was pretty good in a lot of things well I know the modelling when I played with Cinema4D wasn't great.

[@tufab3494]

​@@ChaosWolfNinja Don't get me wrong, I think Cinema 4D is much better than Blender as an animation software, but as an overall 3D software Blender smashes it. It has good sculpting, modeling, uv maping, engine support, open script add-ons and even 2D animation. I'm switching for practicality, because although Cinema 4D is the go-to in Ads and VFX, it still lacks lots of other things such as good modeling and add-ons, which forces us to rely on other softwares besides Cinema 4D. And there is of course the price.

[@ChaosWolfNinja]

@@tufab3494 I totally get it. It makes sense. You will do well. Good luck!

[@mr.j7899]

Is C4D a better modeling software than 3DS and Blender? Maya is great and all, but it's mostly used for animation.

[@tufab3494]

@@mr.j7899 absolutely not. Among those three, 3DS is the best for that, but Blender combines the best of 3DS and C4D in one free software. You can add virtually all 3DS functions to Blender by open source scripts and add onz

[@TheBreezus]

I've been learning Blender, Im sticking with it, learning on 3.5.1. Its a damn powerful tool. Also the Blender community is dope and plentiful, so I'm/we are sticking with Blender.

[@hasan7786]

Curious to know why you referred to yourself as “I’m/We”? If you don’t mind me asking.

[@snark567]

@@hasan7786 Split personality

[@adamgacso6455]

I learned 3d modeling with autodesk softimage, i also used mudbox for sculpting. Since autodesk killed off both of these, i was fed up with them too. Maya and Max were industry standars for a very long time, but Blender getting better and better. When i became unempleyed i started to learn Blender and i was surprised how easy it is to learn and use. There were a lot of functions that speeds up the worflow, not to mention the huge ammout of paid and free addons, plugins and scripts.

[@moominjuice2]

Been a diehard 3ds Max commercial artist for at least 20 years. It has taken some time to transition to Blender (and still some features in Max I sorely miss) but I now save myself the cost of a very nice holiday in subscriptions each year. I can write my own tools in Python should I need anything specific. Autodesk doesn't give a hoot about its customers, Blender is a community of passionate artists/technicians. Edit poly modifier, better spline tools and spline modifiers would be a game changer.

[@AlessandroPacifico]

Switched from C4D to Blender 2 years ago. Not because it's free, but because you get stuff done. Tons of Add-ons, a great Community, and there is a Tutorial for everything imaginable. On top of that, I think the Open Source Paradigm is the future in general. Corporate greed, time-wasting subscriptions, and licensing models are turning people off by the minute. If I want to create something, I want the software to work, period. I don't care about your licensing server polluting my computer, being dependent on having an internet connection, entering 200 serial keys, and clicking on 400 email verification links. Learn Blender, because it's the future.

[@ultraozy4085]

Switched from blender to 3ds max for Tyflow and the software stole my heart but ofcourse we're lucky to have blender

[@tolebaybaglan4330]

Really? Max with Tyflow worth to switch Max? Is it better than Blender? Please tell how its happen

[@ultraozy4085]

@@tolebaybaglan4330 It was worth the switch for me but I still use blender cycles for rendering my animations sometimes. I don't use blender for everything anymore.

[@acadgatsu]

@@tolebaybaglan4330 I'd say tyflow is currently more robust. Think of more developed geometry nodes + simulation nodes + presets. there is a free tyflow if you want to try it out but you still need to pay for 3DS max. I wouldn't go back to 3DS max over it though.

[@jfx6387]

in a nutshell, Tyflow gives 3ds max "Houdini like" abilities. @@tolebaybaglan4330

[@Cathodeus]

Sticking to Max here. While trying Blender more and more ... For Heavy scene and precise modeling Max is still king.

[@ColinFox]

Can you explain what makes Max better for precise modelling than Blender?

[@ktpktpktpktp]

nope@@ColinFox

[@ultraozy4085]

Exactly ❤❤❤

[@AlexNguyen_Design]

​@@ColinFox😂 hardsurface

[@LawrenceAaronLuther]

​@@ColinFoxI use blender but I miss "edit poly" modifier in Max. It's perfect for procedural modeling

[@YouTubsel]

I am actually glad, Autodesk still thinks their pricing is adequate today. The longer it takes them to adjust their prices the more people realize that Blender (while still having some very sore spots) has become a really good alternative by now and is not far behind in most areas and even ahread in some others. And the awesome thing about open source software is that it is never a waste of time. It is never going to vanish from one day to the next like commercial software can and already did in the past. If it's a currently healthy repository, at worst it is discontinued and will slowly degrade into incompatibility with future systems. Go Blender. Go Godot. Go anything truly Open Source, really.

[@mickey5073]

I started with C4D. Switching to Blender was soooooooo hard. But I didn't stop trying to get used to it. Now I don't regret it at all. Getting better day by day. Plus it has a big community and lots of tutorials

[@Damian_DH]

Been using max for like 8 years mostly for rigging gotta admit im bleeding learning how to rig properly from 0 to hero in blender but im slowly getting used. But there are some aspects when creating a mechanisms that connect an IK chain that autodesk had it covered by 1 click while in blender u have to set it all up by urself. Another thing they need to fix asap is the backface selection i checked the amount of donations in the web page and they have a HUUGE support from people. They need to tackle these things asap man is just basics.

[@moominjuice2]

l get what you are saying about back face selection. I have wireframe and x-ray toggle on a keyboard shortcut, and now I'm used to it it doesn't bother.

[@clonkex]

"is just basics" Basics for you might be a weird, foreign idea for Blender users. Like, I just tested in Blender and I can select backfaces just fine. Sooo... you're saying you _don't_ want backface selection? Why?

[@Damian_DH]

@@clonkex there is nothing to test bro if u dont understand what im saying read the second comment dude got it asap.

[@clonkex]

@@Damian_DH I read the other comment. It didn't tell me what your problem is

[@JoCuji]

The subscription for use is killing the independent artist

[@ImaginationVFXhouse]

It’s like the Avid vs premiere thing most long form projects are still cut in avid but some directors like David Fincher prefers Premiere. Both have professional capabilities and both can cut a project but for the most part premiere used to be mostly used by lower budget hobbyists and music video generalists while avid was almost exclusively used in Hollywood studio projects with millions of dollars so in the end yes one is more “hobbyist” based on who’s using it the most BUT they both have the capability for professional work. Blender is not nearly used in the industry as much as maya,3ds Max,Houdini but has the capabilities to create pretty similar stuff with the right artist. It’s like debating if a hammer is “professional” or “hobbyist” it’s more about who is using it for what work cases. If someone is using the hammer to build a cabinet in their home “hobbyist” if they are using it to construct a house they are on contract for “professional”

[@frellinghazmot4443]

As a 3D modeler 2.8 was a game changer especially for me cause after using Maya for 15 years I thought I was going to quit all together. Once 2.8 dropped it turns out that I was just fed up with Maya.

[@branimirpodboj]

Was working in 3D Max for 4 years, then went for Modo and stayed on it for 9 years (didn't like their aggressive approach to their subscription model and slow pace of upgrades after subscription model was introduce), and now I've switch to Blender and now working in it for one year, it is free and it is great with constant updates and a lot of great addons that speed my work.

[@3runjosh]

ah yeh the old modo felt so good, i joined in 401 501 era. Good feeling times.

[@arsenart648]

I mean which of the rest 3d softwares can beat hops+boxcutter?

[@GooDogProductions]

I had a KeyShot Zbrush bridge version, and after they changed owners, I had some kind of bug. They would not fix it, and I thought they were trying to sell the full version license for 1K a year! That was simply too much for me since I'm a jeweler and like to render and model some pieces. That's when I decided to give Blender a try. Wow! Yes, there is a moderate learning curve, but the payoff is just out of this world. My renders are actually better than KS's, and I love the modeling, too. I hardly use ZB. But this is all due to the vast and dynamic Blender community. I send them money here and there and support the 3rd party developers with their amazing add-ons...

[@GuruStalker-qq3ut]

I agree, I've also switched from C4D to Blender. I think the 3D giants forget that many artists are individuals not big studios who don't have big pockets, and Blender has matured enough to offer everything I need as a professional in one place, and again not just because its free. I found modelling is quicker, and character rigging better, plus the bonus of grease pencil for sketch and toon (an addon for C4D). I found myself pushed and I'm getting better results from Blender compared to my aging c4D app. It has taken quite a bit of relearning (many hours!), and it's not always been intuitive, with some more complex aspects, but Blender has now a vast community of help and tutorials, and each new release comes with big improvements.

[@Sssseytha]

Been married to C4D for so long but even i am on the edge of switching to blender. Maxon really screwed up with the lack of updates and their crazy subscription plans.

[@bradybro1423]

Been there, I used C4D for a lot of years finally got fed up for the same reasons. Best thing I did was get a trial for Skill Share (or whatever learning platform you choose) and pounded out some serious Blender learning for the 30 day trial time. I am constantly amazed at some of the great updates they are doing, and quickly too.

[@clonkex]

The awesome thing with Blender is you can try it out whenever you like. Even if you hate it initially (the likely outcome after living with one piece of software for so long), you can chuck it in the bin at no cost. Then when you get fed up with the subscriptions again a few months down the line, you can come back and give it another go (again, at no cost), and this time it will seem less unpleasant (because you gained a little familiarity last time you tried it). Even if you end up sticking with C4D, it's still very much worth messing around with Blender every now and then and becoming progressively more familiar with it. I do the same with Windows and Linux. I've daily-driven Windows since I was a baby but I always keep a copy of Linux Mint dual-booted on my gaming laptop and try to use it for as much as I can reasonably do. It's scary to rely entirely on tech giants to provide such critical pieces of software, and very reassuring to have a backup plan in the form of free, open-source software that can never be directly ripped away from you. The Unity game engine is a great example of why this is important (although thankfully I was already a Godot convert by the time of that debacle).

[@moh1t]

Been using C4D for over a decade but recently using Blender. I still prefer the user experience of C4D but their prices are insane.

[@pwhv]

@@moh1t agree

[@pwhv]

agree price is a barrier

[@juanverajr4614]

I've been.... Was using Maya since 2015 and last year I got into blender... Best decision, not only am I saving a lot from subscriptions but the amount of plugins makes my job so much easier

[@fireintheskyburningtrap701]

4 years at blender now never looking back just finished my latest project gothic house

[@jpnovark]

Also switched to blender recently. The fact that blender is free, the community driven market and plugins are soo much more affordable than paid softwares and its market

[@bradybro1423]

Absolutly!

[@dirkvoltaar]

I wonder if one of the pressures that Autodesk feels is that they don’t want to disrupt big studio pipelines? Being Open Source (rather than proprietary) that’s not such an issue for the Blender Foundation. Getting input from partners (like Ubisoft) and continuous feedback from users about which features are most useful, alongside the robust developer ecosystem around it is a pretty powerful advantage. If schools / universities start to adopt Blender, Autodesk could face a real challenge. Do you think the industry partnerships will encourage more adoption of Blender in studio pipelines?

[@jensenraylight8011]

lets be real, blender is suck when it come to maintaining feature, they just screw the past features all the time, heck they even thought that they should only run on newer hardware, and poor people should just eat dirt. they need a 5yo laptop to be able to run, even the newest autodesk still be able to run on 13yo 64 pc/laptop, yet blender decided that they're too good for that basically you can't establish a solid workflow if your tools name and features are changing all the time, the tutorial from last year become useless. not to mention the 3d space are riddled with people who provoke other software user other than blender to a flame wars. they're very toxic

[@JavierVillavicencioS89]

​@@jensenraylight8011guess me learning from tutorials from 6 years back was magic cause it was pretty much the same.. (it was actually easier cause there's more tools now) so yeah... And at least there's good tutorials for it and almost anything

[@ultraozy4085]

​@@jensenraylight8011very true blender won't even work if you don't have a recent machine with a big graphics card but other 3d softwares work on that same machine

[@fbi805]

@@ultraozy4085 that's funny because I have Blender 3.0 on a Windows 8 platform and it works just fine, I just don't run Evee on it.

[@jensenraylight8011]

@@fbi805 windows 8 is an OS not a Hardware. Heck, you can even still run blender 3.0 on windows 7. But you can only run blender on a hardware and GPU that was less than 5 yo

[@VIPINFX]

Bro been Milking Same subject for 100 videos now; He knows blender community will flock over and start arguing over a piece of software and fight each other, We are artists we use what ever the tools to get the job done as fast as possible.

[@kousik8042]

true

[@chuaTapia]

Every 3D artist gets certain insecurity about his software

[@menteirradiante1307]

eu uso o blender há mais de 20 anos e desde o inicio o que eu percebi foi que as empresas faziam propaganda de seus produtos mostrando artes maravilhosas feitas em seus softwares quando na verdade são os artistas que criam. vendiam as imagens como se o programa fizesse aquilo automático e isso acontece até hoje. foi por isso que se tornou padrão da industria, hoje quem já começa com o blender em seus estúdios já saem na frente. o que mais pesa para migrarem totalmente para o blender é o workflow, os meses necessários para a mudança.

[@dmitryvolkov7178]

I wish I could transfer all the guys in the studio to a blender. But this is more expensive. Take the annual salary of a specialist. receive Maya's cost percentage (or other 3D package) from salary. The result is a reduction in speed that you can afford. If the speed is lower, then you receive a loss from NOT using maya. It's a different matter if you increase your work speed. then the benefit is double. But it’s worth adding a retraining stage here. how much time the employee will spend on this, and how long it will take him to return to the original speed of work. Changing the pipeline. New bugs and problems. Unforeseen difficulties. Lack of support. This is a very cool fantasy, but large studios simply cannot afford it. More precisely, they have no need to do this. Only a new studio can risk building a pipeline for a blender. And she should immediately hire people who are very good at it. Love Blender...

[@clonkex]

I don't think this is entirely accurate. I mean, yes, it's true that existing companies have very large and complex pipelines built around Maya and there's a tonne of inertia... but I don't think that will prevent them from changing. They will be forced to adapt in small increments. Many CG students looking for work will be coming with 90% Blender experience and 10% Maya experience tacked onto the end. They'll want to keep using Blender and the pipeline teams will be forced to start making little tweaks and changes to better support Blender. They don't have to replace the entire pipeline in one go, they just need to fix issues where Blender is trying to integrate into the existing pipeline. It won't happen overnight, of course, or even in only a few years. But I think it will happen eventually.

[@dmitryvolkov7178]

@@clonkex I agree and hope this happens)) but I mean that maya its maya, blender it’s blender. Sometimes amount and quality of tools not enough in blender. Yes it’s similar but in general you lose. 10% slowing down of artist is more expensive that maya. It’s not profitable.

[@donhoolieo4896]

You would be correct but that is for your situation now. In ten or twenty years, this could be completely different and a lot of studios could be easily closed because they refused to grow with what was offered. More 3d artist are popping up because of Blender not because of Max, Maya, Zbrush, Adobe, or any subscription based “commercial” standard. When people can’t afford to even try, they will not even entertain the idea and look for an alternative. Blender has everything these programs offer or you can purchase an add-on due to the community that is available.

[@dmitryvolkov7178]

@@donhoolieo4896 I agree with you on 100%

[@roofoofighter]

As they say, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. Maybe you need to hire young artists who already know Blender.

[@kirill99]

Autodesk will never die, cause they have popular CAD softwares and big companies like ILM with their in-house tools will not give a chance to die. At least in this decade.

[@TheBreezus]

Freecad is right around the corner, fam. We are going to improve that to, we hate the SAAS model, tbh.

[@muger4ik]

As long as Autodesk sponsors schools to promote and teach their programs, this archaeological mess of these products will continue and progress will also stand still.

[@mcateerdesign]

3DS max is irrelevant and has been since like 2013 when C4D started to take over

[@Beef3D]

I've been a Cinema 4D user since 2015 and up to 2021 or so but I already from the very beginning rather wanted to use Blender to begin with. I just started with C4D because it was included in my class. however In 2018 I graduated 3D modeling class, and since then I had to self study, in about 2 years later somewhere up to 2022, I finally made the switch to Blender, which only was further compounded when I found out rendering was VASTLY better in quality and efficiency. I mean Cinema 4D simply CAN NOT hold a candle to Blender's versatile render abilities be it Eevee or Cycles.

[@ImaginationVFXhouse]

Funny how autodesk raises their prices when their free competitor is making a better software than them and all they have is a legacy spot at studios that can be easily filled with a number of other softwares

[@Flugeldar]

Fully agree! I started with Maya 1.0 in 1998 and I am now in the process to switch to Blender. Why? As a one man Studio I don't like being at the mercy of subscription costs. Like a craftsman, I want to own hammer and drill and not beg and pay for them every month. Might be old-fashioned, but it has its reasons.

[@BillMurey-om3zw]

I started my switch last year and have no plans of going back. Also I pirated my past software for decades.

[@ktpktpktpktp]

haha the feeling you can subdue to your hobby/profession withoth the guilt of theft.. i know

[@TheRealLink]

While not in the scene, I studied 3ds Max back in college over 25 years ago when it was still Discreet and not acquired yet by AutoDesk. While I'd argue sure, there's a pain point of learning new software, it seems like the UI / UX is starting to be more and more the same as they all give and take. For a hobbyist relearning the 3D scene, you can't beat Blender for being free, plus past 3.x it's now gotten incredibly powerful. The late 2.x UI of Blender though, yeah, was sooooo bad. Really as you said, from 2.8 onwards it was improved by leaps and bounds in terms of the overall ease of use.

[@Dyako_010]

i am houdini user , and will never look back to other software

[@ColinFox]

Then why are you bothering with this video?

[@kirill99]

But Houdini has so illogical interface. Not user friendly. And it's hard to do simple thing with Houdini.

[@Dyako_010]

@@kirill99 no , its very organized software each task have its own network this is why look hard , but when you get your hand dirty with it the only limit is your imagination

[@kamazooliy]

@@kirill99 no. Houdini is really good with its interface and workflow. You don't have to know menus, commands in some hidden right click, shortcuts etc. Just nodes, their parameters and that's it. And you can do anything from there. Blender people are waiting on updates every day for things that will be half finished every time.

[@ColinFox]

@@kamazooliy "Blender people are waiting on updates every day for things that will be half finished every time." Keep telling yourself that, while you justify your wasting money on Houdini.

[@yasaipicles6295]

I keep trying to give blender a go.. but I can't. It feels so awkward to use. I keep coming back to max.

[@jamdva8176]

It's now better. Give it a try with simple tutorials, not with donut one.

[@yasaipicles6295]

@@jamdva8176 yah i did. I really struggled with a heavy scene to do basic things, half the time my model would refuse to get selected. I couldn't take it. Ill keep trying though.

[@jamdva8176]

@@yasaipicles6295 maybe it would be better to stick with lts and try using remesher in the mean time to optimise viewport performance a bit.

[@shlokbhakta2893]

@@yasaipicles6295that’s completely fine 👍, whatever gets the job done is what you should use 😅

[@mr.j7899]

The hotkeys throw me off always... Also the transformation tools. But I love cycles!

[@KenzieLaMar]

I've worked in videogames for over 20 years. I switched to Blender fully in 2019. I had been learning it and exploring it before that but made the full switch after Eevee was introduced and the mouse controls were switched to conform to most software. Most pipelines I've worked with export from Maya, a few use Max. But even that doesn't mean modelers can't use other software. I know many many people that have been using Blender for a long time. Much longer than I have. They are professionals that make their content in Blender and export to Maya to get it in engine. Almost every artist I know and work with is either using Blender or is interested in learning it. The fact that its free is a huge part of the reason. For individuals, software is getting too expensive with subscriptions. It start with using Blender at home and Maya/Max at work. Within 6 months they are using Blender at work as well and never looking back. The only tools I still use in Maya are Xgen. I think Blenders hair tools are getting better but they aren't as user friendly yet. It might take an addon to make it work as easily and be as flexible for a regular user as Xgen. I hope Blender continues to push into all aspects of digital creation.

[@Daniel_WR_Hart]

I did a deep dive on the many great Blender addons, and I recently made the jump from C4D after considering Modo and Houdini. Houdini still looks great though, but some of the fluid simulation addons for Blender look amazing!

[@RubenCc1999]

For me was the cost. Spending 1k annually for maya is way too much money for the current economy. And if you add Zbrush, Substance Painter and Designer the cost is way too expensive.

[@NarutoUzumaki-md8zs]

I mean blender has already has enough one time pay addons for literally everything and blender is now capable of reinstalling addon automatically from previous version of blender which saved me a lot of head ache of reinstalling addons, and now the development of simulation nodes is going towards replacing the particle system but will take some time to get their but I will gladly wait🙂

[@ektorthebigbro]

lets see in 1 year

[@junechevalier]

I’m a character lookdev artist, used to do my work in Maya, but xgen is a home of bugs. Then I started learning Houdini, it’s way more stable. Now I only work in Houdini and not looking back

[@21EC]

I also used to be a 3ds Max user for like 16-17 years and then I got fed up with trying to catch up with finding another cracked version of 3ds Max to keep being up to date just to learn 3ds Max and create stuff not even for earning any money (not to talk about how expensive 3ds Max is even for just renting it monthly) so I decided to do the move and switch to the free and great Blender after all these years and what a great choice that was, so far Blender ain't perfect but it is surely a pretty good 3d creation program for a free one and its only going to keep getting better and better and to catch up with other 3D softwares that costs a fortune so yes, I'm glad I did the switch. edit : forgot to say that I've already been using Blender for like 2+ years and am planning to keep using it, I've no reason to go back to 3ds Max or switch to any other 3D program that costs money.

[@zluzluzluzluzluzlu]

Been there, done that. I started using 3DS in 2002, and switched to blender 2.8 during COVID 19 lockdown.

[@nicholaspostlethwaite9554]

It will be a bit like the old battle between formats of video recorders. The default vhs was not the 'best' but it was the most popular. So the likes of Maya etc. might cling on by being fractionally better in arcane special areas, but Blender does it all, and that is worth a lot more. Besides the whole concept of the community contributing what they can, pays back as you get the things others can do and add. Money grabbing software is a dead end, the nasty subscription basis, constant leaching of money, the last step in the road before death.

[@migovas1483]

I am switching to Houdini and blender, both are awesome.. and work together very well..

[@Cyroneradurna]

Been using blender for a while now, but it still pales in comparison to Houdini in a lot of ways for what I need it to do.

[@ektorthebigbro]

sadly i agree but do you have a way to export a flip sim mesh sequence from houidini to blender?

[@miriades]

@@ektorthebigbroby exporting it to alembic format (.abc) and import it into Blender? This is what I would try first.

[@ektorthebigbro]

@@miriades i might as well try i hope the file size is not too big for 290 frames

[@miriades]

@@ektorthebigbro should be ok

[@adrawdesign]

It's just simply BETTER and free with much plugin freedom!!

[@ektorthebigbro]

finally someone who gets it

[@BigDaz]

I've begun to switch from Modo to Blender in the last few months. It's reached the point where paying for Modo is unjustifiable when Blender does more and it's free.

[@foshizzlfizzl]

I'm really thinking about switching to Blender, after 12 years of Max and Maya. As I started my own business and not willing to spend that money on licenses. I'd rather support tool developer, who are offering those tools, Autodesk is talking about for decades and nothing is coming out. I will start that journey this year in combination with Unreal and Plasticity. We'll see.

[@CableGraceCB]

I'm glad it's free. Because it is the first opportunity for everyone. Not just one person

[@ramyissa20]

I switched from C4D to Blender, It wasn't easy but I found a course named "switching to blender for experienced artists" It was a great help!

[@bishalchetri4381]

I feel like autodesk should merge max and maya. Max feels sluggish to use in present times given how other 3d programs have evolved all these years.Max's UI is extremely outdated. However Iam sticking with autodesk with student's licences to get job but I have my eyes on blender too. Great video

[@ColinFox]

The legacy 3D software makers are living on borrowed time. Blender is just too good, with just too many developers interested in improving it. Plus, because it's free and open source, graphics PHD researchers often use it as a platform for developing new techniques, which then get released to Blender itself. The studios may currently be using Max & Maya, but that won't last as Blender becomes more of a dominating force. As artists learn it because it's free, they will have more experience with it, and studios will have a harder and harder time justifying using one of the commercial alternatives. There are no features missing from Blender any more that exist in other packages. They may be implemented to a lesser degree, but all the features are there. Geometry nodes & simulation nodes were the last to large feature gaps that have now been closed. Smaller studios are already switching over and their output will make them more competitive with the big guys. The transition will just accelerate, and once an artist or studio has switched to Blender, there's no way the commercial guys are going to get them back. What argument could they make?

[@Mike_Michael1]

You live in your own version of reality. You are delusional

[@ktpktpktpktp]

and if a stusio can afford a programmer? guess what? tweak blender code to be better for the studio/ pipeline/ community

[@88RunnerBlade]

pretty much spot on

[@ColinFox]

@@ktpktpktpktpA studio doesn't even have to afford a programmer. You could create an open source bounty - say "$10,000 to anyone who develops feature X". Boom, done.

[@RealTimeFilms]

@@ColinFox Maybe they would adopt Blender faster if it would be easier to customize it. In a regular 3d program it can take me a few minutes to change shortcut keys and create new menus, buttons and so on. In Blender I spent hours without achieving the same thing. The shortcut keys system is so complicated, and that's usually a good thing, but in Blender is bordering on buggy or broken. Same problem with creating a custom button or a menu.

[@whosearm]

last time I came this early my wife said it wasn't a big deal

[@Can8473]

💀

[@MarcV_IndieGameDev]

Seemed to be a big deal when I did it to Her 💀

[@darviniusb]

NO COST, NO SUBSCRIPTION BULLSHIT ! No GREEDY corporation that suck on our wallets like leaches ! Made by passion driven people for passion driven artists!

[@philmehrart]

In the process of switching from Maya. I love the systems of Blender like Shader editing, rendering, viewport stuff like Eevee, etc. Not to mention a crazy amount of resources out there for Blender. The only thing I miss from Maya is the UV editor, but again this could be just because I'm trying to get upto speed with new software!

[@ktpktpktpktp]

there are plugins for that alredy im shure

[@michaeleaster8354]

Hypershade is equally capable as blender shaders (if not more) and it's MaterialX support is super cool. Rendering is rendering, and both Arnold and Vray have viewport rendering like Eevee, but you don't have to choose one rendered for GPU and another for CPU (like you have to in blender). I don't understand your issues with Maya.

[@Arjjacks]

@@michaeleaster8354 Arnold and Vray are raytrace engines, like Cycles, and therefore much slower than Eevee especially in viewport. You don't have to separate GPU and CPU rendering in Blender either, you can use either or both for Cycles (Eevee just defaults to GPU or CPU if there is no GPU).

[@philmehrart]

​@@michaeleaster8354hi Michael, no issues really, I can model in both, just Blender piqued my interest. I like the shader creation UI where its almost like Unreal, feels very intuitive. The amount of plugins and workflow in Blender are really nice. Asset browser is cool. As said in my original reply, the only thing I miss about Maya is the UV editor as imo it's the best UV editor I've used, very quick and fluid. Having said all that I still use Maya in my daily work for production, right now am just learning Blender in my spare time.

[@AyushBakshi]

Vanilla UV toolset is trash in blender. I recommend RizomUV (paid)

[@Soap308]

Nope we're not lol. Came from 3DS max because I had to for my job. Then started learning C4D and I am way more pleased. Blender without 100 plug-ins is lame

[@shlokbhakta2893]

Fair, currently have like 17 plugins lol (dont use all of them tho) 😂

[@wadinsongonzalezgarcia9450]

Is it inconvenient to turn on addons? XD Oh sorry you actually have to pay 15 dollars, for an addon that you can use FOREVER

[@JayJohnson26]

I like the add-ons it's like building my own personal blender.

[@ektorthebigbro]

lame as in not having features? definetely not. even if getting 100 plugins costs 500 dollars it will be a much better experience than c4d or maya

[@rainv974]

Well that's the beauty of blender, you can eventually upgrade it with add-ons. C4D is great in another way as it is ready with the "plugins" built in, but as blender grows it really is closing the gap

[@selflesswon]

Def not Switching. not jumping on this bandwangon

[@lexa7250]

Based 🗿

[@AlexNguyen_Design]

I have been using 3ds Max for 10 years, and I heard Blender is good, so I decided to try it and learn. Firstly, Blender lacks many commands, and despite being free, you need to buy add-ons to use it effectively. Secondly, Blender is not compatible with other software. I still use some Blender features, but saying Blender is good is not accurate.

[@clonkex]

? Lacks many commands? Like what? Not compatible with other software? How so? What other software?

[@AlexNguyen_Design]

Many commands, because you haven't worked on practical projects, you don't understand. A project requires using various different software, one software alone cannot do it. However, Blender is free and worth a try

[@AlexNguyen_Design]

In terms of compatibility with software, for example, Vray and Corona, why don't they continue developing for Blender? Or perhaps, after a while, they realized that Blender's policies have something that might lead them to lose their source code

[@clonkex]

​@@AlexNguyen_Design I'm honestly not even sure what you mean by "commands". Do you mean features? Or like... "create edge loop", "bridge faces" kind of thing? As for compatibility, both of those renderers are compatible with Blender (although why you wouldn't just use Cycles I don't know). _"Or perhaps, after a while, they realized that Blender's policies have something that might lead them to lose their source code"_ This is a bit silly. Yes, if they publish an addon for Blender that provides VRay compatibility they would have to publish the source. But that doesn't mean they are "losing their source code", and you can bet your ass their lawyers know the licence agreement inside and out so there's no "realising after a while". I'm not familiar with VRay, but if it would need an addon, they would just create a simple addon that calls into what API VRay uses. That addon can be open-source without requiring them to make all of VRay open-source. Alternatively, if VRay loads the scenes directly, there's even less problem because any software is free to read .blend files however they like. I'm not trying to argue Blender is ready to replace Max and Maya (although I think it actually is in most ways - and you can't tell me you use Max without plugins), but at least be accurate when you compare them.

[@lajoyalobos2009]

I'd rather pay a one time, flat price for something than pay a subscription. What's better than even that: free!! I guess the key is ownership. You bought it, you downloaded it and now it's YOURS, not something Autodesk or anyone else's to take away or mess with whenever they feel like it.

[@adriank8792]

I switched from C4D to Blender 10+ years ago and never looked back

[@davidlloyd1526]

Eventually Z-brush and so on will become paid Blender plugins. They aren't going to be sustainable as standalone applications.

[@sasnad3]

Makes no sense whatsoever. You alright bro? 😂

[@curvedair3830]

Blender may want to compete with Maya, 3ds Max or C4D, but a real threat is Unreal.

[@muger4ik]

Unreal is threat in term of Visualiazation and Animating, the modeling is Blender winner.

[@ariehendrawan9784]

Houdini + Blender + Unreal are the future for artist

[@Dyako_010]

They switch to houdini not blender

[@ericschirmer3106]

switched from C4D to Blender this year. So many more recourses overall. Blender's UI is sweet and pretty intuitive.

[@miarvfx]

Let's switch to Blender. It's free and also versatile. Max and other software are for the wealthy and super hard to use and learn.

[@LinilKomban]

Being using Blender since 2.48b version. 😀 Happy to see other artists are joining the community.

[@tldrinfographics5769]

I mean just try turning on 3DS Max... the thing crushes even before booting. And how much was it again?

[@PsycandyII]

no joking, i've been using 3ds max since 1999 ... and i'm thinking of moving across. it is a sincere investment of time, any package is, but it's not like there's a learning curve with max any more

[@Itsyesfahad]

Nobody is switching unless they won't or can't afford 3ds Max or Maya I tried Blender a few times before god it's very bad compared to 3ds Max and Maya but again Blender is free so I can't complain we are lucky to have something like this for free in the first place.

[@ColinFox]

Blender updates very rapidly. If you tried it even a year ago, it's hugely changed since then. Give the latest 4.0, or even 4.1 alpha a look. It's incredible.

[@Itsyesfahad]

@ColinFox I was talking about a few days ago, and it's already installed on my computer because why not? it's an amazing 3D software and it's free but 3ds Max will always be my main 3D software.

[@nosirve9458]

I switched to blender and i Had maya for free since three years ago; in blender the speed workflow is crazy. For the same project in maya i would take almost the double time in doing it! I have maya in my pc too because why not, but ye, it sucks and Im happy that abusing autodesk will go down

[@Itsyesfahad]

@@nosirve9458 nah It's sub-par.

[@nosirve9458]

@@Itsyesfahad what its sub-par?

[@Uliszs3d]

I've been a 3ds max user for many years and when I started using blender.... 🤯🤯 I love blender

[@beccamguille8570]

In my case, because of the Evee engine, it cannot be possible that Cinema 4D is so expensive and does not have a native real-time engine.

[@rendericeib4513]

3ds Max user since 2006, gradually switching to Blender since 2.8. Fully switched after BSA unfair harassment, but mainly because Blender and cycles are superb.

[@davebirley2280]

I used to use Source Filmmaker before switching to Blender, after a lot of people recommended it to me.

[@morname8731]

20 years maya user, didn't switched to blender and didn't see any reason to do so, almost everything cool that Blender offers is already in Maya and just because they added it recently, they advertise and showcase it, and everyone go crazy about them like they are just some groundbreaking tech. sadly most Maya users don't really know the software very well. the only thing in blender that I really like is sculpting, I wish maya had better sculpting brushes but since I have zbrush i guess I just stick to that. as good as blender sculpting might be, it is still not zbrush.

[@GiJoe94]

If the progress that Blender achieved in 2 years is continued in 10 years it will be the universal software. I would keep an eye

[@sasnad3]

​​@@GiJoe94Because blender is developing the same tools that have already been innovated and exist in other softwares. They will eventually stagnate and run out of ideas. Because once they reach a level of maturity like maya, they wont have many new things to add. Then they will concentrate on making their existing functions better like maya has been doing for years and very few new features. So the way you are extrapolating the development over two years to ten years doesn't really make sense.

[@sasnad3]

You are right most maya users dont know it well.

[@GiJoe94]

@@sasnad3 To be honest with the newest Unreal Engine tools I wouldn't be surprised if it tops it all. I didn't think they would expand more than the game stuff tbh Now they are venturing into animation and modeling which is crazy

[@sasnad3]

@@GiJoe94 its okay to be impressed. But it could be an overstatement. But its good to see that no one software or company has a monoply now.

[@MaximilianPs]

400€ per year for an indie or for hobby when you can use Blender for free is just crazy!

[@gasparddelanuit3462]

All these comments by people who swtiched from C4D make you realize that we're not talking about serious stuff. No high level CGI production is done in C4D... so it's just a load of amateurish work moving from C4D to Blender.

[@nickzane4695]

Blender's development is unpredictable, sometimes big changes came from one version to another. If you want to work with Blender, take it as it is and be ready for changes to which you will have to adapt. On the other hand, professional software like Lightwave, C4D, or 3dsMax have a more predictable development, witch is more suitable for a professional workflow.

[@amootoon4032]

기다렸던 저의 가려움을 긁어주는 시원한 영상 이네요.👍👍👍

[@bluedotanimation]

10 years C4D user, I switched to maya this year because like it or not (and I don’t), it’s still the standard for character animation today and pretty much all jobs require maya knowledge over blender. I think it’s a clunky and outdated software and I prefer C4D over it. I’m not interested in blender yet, nothing I need to do I can’t do with C4D / maya / Houdini and I think when you are a professional you should be able to pay for the tools you like. If you can’t are you really a professional ?

[@clonkex]

On the other hand, that's a huge amount of money for someone on average salaries and not to be chosen lightly.

[@stevegamer4683]

I switched from blender to c4d and houdini

[@Aldebaran80]

constantly evolving and free! i stopped using Maya two years ago and i don't miss nothing of it. i use it for poly modelling, i don't know for animation or FX how it works.

[@LukeTheDukeYT]

I probably should start using blender now. I just hope it rly just stays free. I am NOT buying it for 200 dollars….well maybe I will

[@fruityloopsquan]

so ive been suffering trying to figure out if i should go from using unreal engine to houdini. Do u think its much better than using blender + unreal engine?

[@Mike_Michael1]

I stay on Maya, things are working perfect for me ! Why to change ? Also I am impressed by Maya's updates.

[@ColinFox]

Why change? Blender is free, and updates more rapidly than anyone else. They have 2 releases per year, and these are feature enhancements as well as bug fixes. No commercial company has a release schedule like that.

[@Mike_Michael1]

@@ColinFox If Maya was also free, your position would be the same ? I don't think so.

[@Mike_Michael1]

@@ColinFox When you work on big and heavy scenes, Maya is 1 million levels above Blender. Also with the proper knowledge B1fr05t can give you for free more than 3 quarters of what all Blender third party addons together can give to you.

[@hound_of_justice]

​@@ColinFoxMaya and other behemoths of softwares dont need that schedule of releases tho and thats for good reasons. Also more rapid updates doesnt mean better quality ofc.

[@Mike_Michael1]

@@hound_of_justice Exactly, I can stay more than a year without updates, when I said that I am impressed by Maya's updates... I didn't meant that I am allways eagger to jump on all the new methods of work. I stay quiet in my place and I observe and I do updates only when I think is worthy. I don't need tons of updates every year, I am too busy to work on my things in general, I don't have time to constantly accommodate myself with too many new things. For example I am intrigued by B1fr05t, but I didn't even used it yet... I didn't found free time to do it, but I am sure I will start using it...one day...

[@sm151219]

693 / 5.000 I was/am still a Cinema 4D R20 user since the Amiga version of Cinema 4D R2, I also still have the R23 which I hardly work with, I also use Blender 4.xx, with Cinema R20 I do a lot of things in Blender occasionally, because I get the result faster with C4D for most things than I have to search with Blender, although when I find something there it is more powerful. The software from the big 3D software houses does similar things and one has its strengths and the other has its strengths. I do it privately, Blender is an alternative to the professionals who cost a few thousand euros because it is free. I don't see the best 3D software because it depends on the user and what their requirements are.

[@cemgulpunk]

Years ago, people tired of Autodesk switched from 3dsMax to Cinema4d. Now everyone is switching to Blender. I guess the fact that it's free is not what makes everyone think about switching to Blender. But innovation, fast updates, speed and stability.

[@TimV777]

The only prob with blender for me is that it runs very poor and can't handle higher polys while maya and others can easily

[@JohnSmith-wg3pl]

That's why Blender is for hobbyist.

[@spiritofmax]

I can agree with you before 3 years, but now try and see, dont be biased

[@JohnSmith-wg3pl]

@@spiritofmax I tried. It is still a lot slower than Max.

[@murom4593]

@@spiritofmax you can make a simple test of same amount of objects/polys in scene) for sure i will get surprised

[@jo.D56]

I may be the only one here, but I tried Blender and I stay with C4D for the moment. C4D is making huge update with physics, modeling, and 3D render (Redshift is stunning) and in terms of ergonomics, it is way ahead of the pack. My biggest problem with Blender is that it's not user friendly. You can't find anything without scouring the forums, it's just incredibly frustrating. But the fierce competition is beneficial for everyone, so my warmest thanks to Blender.

[@stevenpike7857]

Greed is deystroying Autodesk and the others.

[@abdelhakkhalil7684]

In the gaming industry where competition is getting fears every year, many studios already shifted to Blender or incorporated the software in their workflow. For instance, Gameloft has ditched Max for Blender about 2 years ago because Blender has better animation tools. I've just started learning Blender coming from years of using Max. I still think that Max is better when it comes to modeling, and I feel it's more intuitive than Blender at this point, but again, I just started using Blender. I might be wrong.

[@sasnad3]

Where do u get ur news from. They never used max for animation. Maya is best for rigging, animation and games.

[@abdelhakkhalil7684]

@@sasnad3 Inside employee :)

[@ThomasStuart]

I'm playing around in Maya and GOD is it unintuitive, at least for modeling. I can literally swipe my keyboard and model a boat in Blender, but Maya would have me click 200 icons and long hotkeys, some of which the abbreviations don't even make sense.

[@pelte]

the only reason why the industry is still using autodesk softwares is because most pipelines made using those. And most older gen artists are more comfortable and faster in their native tools than switching to blender. And that's just about it really.

[@leenux3261]

I started with Blender 10 years ago, and while I was thinking about switching to some paid solution (for absolutely no reason it seems) I considered other tools UI to be obsolete and not satisfying. So Blender it is, and with all latest features updates I am not really into even thinking to switch to something else...

[@superleo6156]

I learn then use Houdini + Blender, because those are the two support weapons for the C4D king !

[@luciox2919]

nice video... and there is a point which is the most important one that u didn't mention: Blender CANNOT be bought. Softimage, BAM! killed. Naia, BAM! killed as many other 3D softwares.. For an artist who've been working for years and years on one software and then be killed by another company is an artist worst nightmare. Blender is open source with a GPL2 license, so it cannot be bought nor killed. An artist will start to build faith and trust toward Blender and that his skills won't be smashed one day.. this is a very important thing to consider.

[@clonkex]

It's super important! This is also the big strength of Godot and Linux and other appropriately-licensed open-source tools. It doesn't guarantee that the software will live forever or won't change in some annoying way, but it _does_ guarantee that it's not under the control of a single profit-driven company. It puts the control in the hands of the people using it, and that's a huge plus.